Meet Stacy DeWitt

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stacy DeWitt.

Hi Stacy, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My heart broke years ago as I found myself holding a 3-year-old girl in a wet diaper with an empty sippy cup her only belonging. Remembering a quote from one of my heroes, Mr. Rogers, “look for the helpers” when faced with scary things, I looked and the search changed my life.

With a background as a Spanish-speaking bilingual teacher to children and a tutor in all subjects and ages, my heart for children and youth is a part of my identity. But when faced with the reality of finding resources and help for a helpless little girl with no parents, my social entrepreneurial business skills emerged quickly to address a larger problem – foster children and aged out youth and the resources gap that exists for their transition into safety or independence.

Since our first warehouse in May of 2014, I have successfully built a privately-funded nonprofit organization. The growth has been exponential. In 2021 alone, James Storehouse directly served over 14,686 children and families in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties with services and critical life-saving resources, averaging around 1,224 children a month while also placing and supporting over 63 apartments for aged-out youth. Our Transportation Program has presented over 20 gently used cars to eligible youth. Our transitional home in Ventura is a safe haven for females who have aged out of foster care.

Our motto is “From Cribs to College, we serve children in foster care.” Essentially, we help to reduce the time abused and neglected babies and children spend in a “waiting black hole” until they are placed in a loving and safe home. We do this by providing every resource needed for foster families including furniture, clothing, diapers, food, toys, bedding, car seats, etc. For teen parents and aged-out youth, we provide housing, life skills classes, apartment setups, mentoring, financial classes, parenting classes, study skills tutoring, and additional resources customized to their needs.

In addition to running the day-to-day operations, I especially enjoy mentoring, training and developing interns, leaders and teams to empower them to be effective in their roles, whether as volunteers or part-time employees. It is my highest honor to fight for justice and to be a strong voice for the voiceless and most vulnerable in my community.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The growth has been exponential, but the road was not smooth. We had to learn how to build a donor base and also to build trust and relationships with public and private child welfare agencies in order to serve this population well.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Stacy DeWitt is the Executive Director of James Storehouse. During a year of weekly prayer and fasting, Stacy asked the Lord to show her the needs of the most vulnerable and brokenhearted in her community. She wanted to do something about it. Her heart was moved with compassion as He directed her steps towards foster care and to the plight of abused and neglected babies, children, and aged-out youth.

In the spring of 2014, Stacy, along with her husband Pastor Kirk DeWitt of Conejo Church and their congregation, raised $100,000 to launch the James Storehouse warehouse, boutique, and offices in Newbury Park. James Storehouse is contracted with the Department of Child and Family Services, and Stacy works daily with an outstanding volunteer team to meet emergency needs to help expedite cases and ease transitions for children and families in the child welfare system, trafficked children, and those youth who have aged out.

Stacy is bilingual and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Liberal Arts/ Spanish and graduated Summa Cum Laude. She has done graduate work at California Lutheran University and Fuller Theological Seminary.

Stacy has three children ranging in age from fourteen to twenty-four. She is also an adoptive mother and has had the great joy of being a foster mother as well. She considers it the highest honor to fight for justice and to be a strong voice for the voiceless and most vulnerable in her community.

Who else deserves credit in your story?
Here is a link to our team, which includes a bio for each person and their role. Click each picture to read the bio. https://www.jamesstorehouse.org/team

Contact Info:

• Website: jamesstorehouse.org
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/jamesstorehouse
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamesstorehousecalifornia
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stacy-dewitt/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/jamesstorehouse
• Other: https://www.jamesstorehouse.org/donate-form

Image Credits
Nina Russo