About Bears for Badges:
Bears for Badges has a mission to help their local sheriff deputies and the children they encounter on their calls. Bears are handmade by volunteers and they are lovingly packaged to go into deputies’ patrol cars for the officers to use in helping comfort children traumatized by a stressful incident such as an accident, crime or domestic situation. The bears help calm them down, make them feel safer, and give them something to hold in difficult times. The bears also help aid in the relationship between officer and child, showing the child that they do not need to be afraid of the deputy or emergency personnel.

How You Can Help:
The Bears for Badges program is 100% volunteer driven and we welcome anyone that can help! The Studio is open every Thursday from 10-2 and you can come in and help in any of the following areas:
Cut out bears from the template to go into a kit.
Sew bear pieces together to create the bear.
Stuff a bear skin
Sew up the opening in back of the bear.
Donate Polyfil Stuffing for the bears.
Donate quality flannel and woven fabrics.
Financially support the purchase of safety eyes and materials.
Pick up a kit from the Studio and assemble the bear skins at home

If you would like to find out more information about the Bears for Badges program, you can send us an email at bearsforbadges@yahoo.com or stop into Studio and have a chat with us! We look forward to meeting you!

With much love and appreciation, Jeannie Stratis and Barbara Jean Smith

Jeannie Stratis and Barbara Jean Smith proudly showcase some of the very first bears that were donated to the Ramona sheriff station.

Our stuffing station hard at work! Jeannie Stratis is cutting and prepping bear kits in the back. After the bears are stuffed, the backs will be sewn shut and then packaged for delivery. Each bear comes with a special black and blue ribbon and Bears for Badges tag.

Bears being assembled from their kits! The bears will go from this station over the to stuffing station.

Corbin Bento helps by shuttling bear skins from the sewing station to the stuffing station. We find jobs for everyone!