Filling Bellies
Nine-year-old Seth and his family sponsor a boy named Figo in Haiti. Many people in Haiti don’t have enough food or clean water. Seth wanted to raise money to help kids like Figo. He also wanted to invite neighbors and church friends to have fun. So he planned an ice cream social. He and his family set up tables outside their home. The tables held ice cream, toppings, and a box where party guests could give money for kids in need.
Many caring neighbors and friends donated money, and they raised $818.05! Seth looked through the Compassion Gift Catalog. It shows lots of things Compassion can buy for people using donated money. Seth chose a goat, two chickens, a pig, garden seeds, clean water from a well for 10 families, and a filter to clean dirty water.
“I chose these things because they keep going and going,” Seth says. “This helps families because they can use these things to eat and drink very many times.”
Cool Ice Cream Social Tips
Want to host a party to raise money? Take Seth’s advice …
Pinch pennies: Seth wrote letters to three stores to see if they would donate ice cream. A local shop wanted to help and said yes! Then Seth took his calculator to buy toppings so he could add up how much he was spending.
Classic flavors: “You want to have a basic ice cream,” says Seth, who served chocolate and vanilla. “The other ones, in my opinion, wouldn’t be the best for toppings.”
Toppings aplenty: Party guests had about 15 toppings to choose from, like candy, chocolate syrup, and Seth’s favorite, cherries.
Teamwork: Seth’s brothers — 6-year-old Joel and 12-year-old Kyle — helped set up the party by filling jars with toppings and making labels for the jars.
Say thanks: After the party, Seth wrote thank-you notes that his parents sent to the ice cream shop and party guests. The notes said how much money they’d raised and how it would help. “We couldn’t have done this without you,” Seth wrote. “Thank you!”