Kids in Conflict Foundation helps bring holiday cheer to youth housed at Indio Juvenile Hall

INDIO, Calif. (KESQ) - Dozens of volunteers, including Palm Springs Police, joined together for the Kids in Conflict (KIC) Foundation Christmas Wrap Party event Tuesday night.

The event was held at the Indio Juvenile Hall, where everyone wrapped stacks of gifts and packed gift bags for the youth housed there to make sure they have some holiday cheer.

Indio Juvenile Hall Probation Specialist Monika Ortega has been involved with the event for 23 years, and has been an Advisor at the KIC Foundation for 15 of those years. Ortega says it's important to give gifts and celebrate the holidays with the kids because, "We do have some kids that have come from troubled homes. Maybe parents aren't involved or grandparents aren't involved, so they've never experienced, you know, Christmas. So we do try to decorate, try to give them the homey feeling."

"When we contact the juveniles, usually it's in a in a bad connotation, generally speaking. This is our way of kind of giving back to them, letting them know that we still care and we still believe in them. We're not having given up hope and we're hoping that they find hope in us being here supporting them" said Palm Springs Police Department Lieutenant Michael Torres. "The hope is today that we give them a little bit of hope and let them know that we're still here. We haven't given up that that hope."

KIC Foundation President Tom Ward says it's important for the kids at Juvenile Hall have an opportunity to open some kind of present on Christmas morning. Included in the gift bags are things like notebooks, puzzles, and candy for the kids, who aren't allowed outside presents, even from parents, due to security policies.

Ward adds, "Some of these kids, you know, yeah, they got in trouble. But, you know, they probably - the one thing they think about is that 30 seconds of that bad decision and so now they're making better decisions, a lot of them, and just to see that community cares."

Each year, the KIC Foundation provides more than $6,500 in gifts for over 190 youth at Indio Juvenile Hall and the Youth Treatment and Education Center. The Palm Springs Police Officers Association contributed $2,500 toward this year’s effort.

The KIC Foundation is a nonprofit organization supporting youth in Riverside County Probation detention facilities, including Indio Juvenile Hall.

The Foundation focuses on at-risk youth in juvenile detention who face significant challenges and are working to move forward. This includes youth on probation or in custody who benefit from mentorship, education, structure, and rehabilitative services.

For more information on KIC Foundation, visit kicfoundation.org.