Not Just an Awards Ceremony

Posted by Gabe on October 5, 2009 under Kids Are Heroes Day, Kids are Heroes | 6 Comments to Read

Some of the kids from Kids Are Heroes DayI discovered today that one person’s perception of Kids Are Heroes Day is that it is just an award ceremony at a mall for a bunch of kids.  They didn’t see the real meaning of it.  Maybe that is my fault because I haven’t written a post like this explaining what it means to at least one person – me.  To an outsider maybe that is all it appears to be. Let’s see if we can correct that.

Kids Are Heroes Day is a celebration of all the kids on our web site regardless of whether or not they are in attendance – it is another avenue to inspire like minded children to get involved in their communities.  This is the spirit of the children on the site – to be able to bond with fellow “heroes” and raise awareness to her cause in any way they can.  It has little to do about receiving a certificate from a mall.  If that were the case I doubt that any of the kids would attempt to come from out of town.

Although this is a local event the Kids Are Heroes concept is a global one.  We plan to use this event as a springboard to get national attention.  Through our Facebook, YouTube and Twitter accounts we are doing just that.

Let me quote a person who also “gets” what Kids Are Heroes Day really means: “It is events like these that can create a new and different awareness not only about the causes these kids are pushing forward, but more importantly to awaken the sleeping activist in all of us!”  I couldn’t have said it better myself. Thanks Jamie.

Every child that attends Kids Are Heroes Day will put a stamp of approval on what the Kids Are Heroes community represents – and that is to inspire other children to join them in doing good things for other people.  Each child will raise awareness about what he/she is doing and perhaps inspire one or more kids to follow in their footsteps.  The concept of the Kids Are Heroes web site has already been proven – it is acting to motivate children all over the world to emulate their peers by giving to others.

Let’s take a look at the kids who will be at Kids Are Heroes Day:

Winston Duncan started Wheels to Africa which has supplied over 2000 bikes to people in Africa.
Addison White is a 10-year-old who takes his rescued greyhound to nursing homes to visit the elderly.
Mercy Escoto is an 8-year-old spokesperson for MDA and raises funds for them several times a month.  She also suffers from the disease.
Calista Pierce is a 9-year-old who makes crafts and sells them so that her brother Austin can participate in the local chapter of the Special Olympics. She (and Austin) are coming from 300 miles away.  They sold candy bars to support their trip.
Evan Frank is a 7-year-old who is funding his second well to be drilled in Africa.
Cati Grant is a 16-year-old coming all the way from San Diego, California. She has a web site that discourages bullying and cyberbullying and also created a club in her school that is anti-bullying.
Adele Taylor is coming from 180 miles away – she is 14 years old and has created Adele’s Literacy Library where she promotes literacy by giving away books to libraries, schools and hospitals.
John Sun is 9 years old and last Christmas he delivered 35 gift baskets to Shady Grove Hospital – specifically to go to the premature ward as he was premature when he was born. He got people to knit caps, blankets and make quilts and convinced Boyd’s Bears to give him a discount so that he could purchase toys for them.
MaryMargaret O’Neill is a ten-year-old girl who started the Kids Are Heroes web site and who has raised over $2700.00 to give the gift of music to kids in Children’s Hospital.
Miranda Mossburg raised $400.00 to fix a roof being used to shelter two blind horses.
Julia and Anna Lemick have given up their birthday gifts to provide funds for their favorite charities – Toys for Tots and Labrador Retriever Rescue.
Casey Landahl is just 5 years old. She gave up her birthday gifts for a local cat rescue organization.
Kayleigh Crimmins is just 6 years old. She sells toys and whatever else she can to provide ballistic vests for K9s.
Emily Zimmerman held a basket bingo that raised over $6300.00 to support two organizations that help families deal with catastrophic illnesses.
Nichelle Upton is always giving of herself through the Youth Action Corps. She works with seniors at a nursing home, raises funds for the Lions Club – her list goes on and on.
Kids from Thurmont Middle School collected over $1400.00 for the St. Jude’s Research Hospital.

We have several key people (our “adult heroes”) from the local armed forces, the sheriff’s department and a school guidance counselor handing out the awards.  In addition we have chorus groups and other young musicians from various schools to come and play so that they can be a part of this event.

So no, this is not just an awards ceremony at a mall.

Some of the kids are still trying to fund raise to get here from out of town.  It would be helpful if you left a comment telling others why you think this event is worth sending kids to.

Kids Are Heroes day is Saturday, October 24, 2009 from 10AM-4PM at the Francis Scott Key mall in Frederick, Maryland.

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  • Gail P said,

    Kids Are Heroes inspires kids to dream dreams and offer a hand in some personal way. My class of 5 and 6 year olds likes to hear about all the heroes on this site and when schedules get in the way, I hear about it. “Mrs. Poulin, we didn’t do Kids Are Heroes today.” I think they like hearing about real kids who are real heroes. They like composing a class message using their own thoughts and words. And they really love the double thumbs up they get when the Shoutout has been sent off. Any one of these heroes who has worked to help others should be able to enjoy the thrill of meeting other heroes. They are a very special group of people and they continue to make a difference. What more are they actually capable of down the road?

  • Danny Brown said,

    Gabe,

    Knowing you like I do fella, and seeing all you do day in and day out, it’s clear that Kids Are Heroes is waaay more than a “simple mall award thing” or any other description along these lines.

    You show kids that they have a purpose in life, that they’re young adults and that they can actually change the world and make the wildest dreams come true.

    A lot of adults can learn from you and the kids you highlight. Never give up, mate, and kudos to your continued journey.

  • Jenifer said,

    We have also heard the question, “why are you trying so hard to take them to a mall in Maryland?” As a mother of 2 heroes, this is just an opportunity I can’t pass up. Austin is 12 years old and is a child with severe disabilities. He is in a wheelchair, has speech trouble and is functioning at around a Kindergarten level. But, my goodness, when he smiles, he can melt your heart! He works so hard to raise money for Special Olympics every chance he gets and has helped his little sister with her fundraising project. Calista just turned 10 and is completely inspired by her big brother. In just 2 1/2 years, she has spent over 1,300 hours fundraising and volunteering for Special Olympics and has raised over $5,500.00 for our local program. She has given up so many of her weekends to attend craft sales and hold her own bake sales, raffles and a lemonade stand. She is determined to make sure every athlete is able to go to regional and state competitions.
    We have had our ups and downs with fundraising and volunteering. Calista has won a few awards for her efforts and has lost friends over it. She has even been bullied over it. One of her teachers let us know that while what she is doing is great, we shouldn’t allow anyone to nominate her for awards because of the media attention she was receiving. She went so far as to tell us that a friend worked at a jail and my baby’s pictures could be on the walls of child molesters. She also said that Calista was getting a big head about it, which wasn’t true at all. If anything, Calista was gaining confidence and coming out of her shell. She was proud of her accomplishments! I need my kids to see that there are other kid heroes out there who might have gone through similar situations and that they should celebrate their achievements and not have to hide them. I can’t thank you enough for giving them this opportunity!

  • Mary Morawska said,

    I salute this wonderful effort to gather like-minded young people who are doing good. They provide positive role models for their peers to be inspired and, in today’s world, we need to promote the positive, especially for the young.

    Have a great Kids Are Heroes day and can’t wait for the photos!

  • Gabe said,

    Thanks so much Gail - so inspiring it made the subject of my next post. :)

    Danny as always your humility is something I admire and hope to emulate, and thank you for the kind words.

    Jenifer I really hope we get to discuss this at length when you come, because it isn’t always peaches and cream. Sometimes jealousy rears its ugly head and clouds the true meaning of things, but we all stand fast because we know what we are doing is right.

    And Mary – you’ve been following me for a while so you know there will be plenty. :)

  • Paul K said,

    Congratulations to all of those involved. Kids and adults alike. This is such a wonderful program and it’s so inspiring to see children working so hard to make their world a better place.

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