Ready for something bigger and better?!? Written by Kristen Stocks, founder of Kids Boost
So you’ve worked hard over the years to maintain a decent, if not great, GPA. You may have even already taken the dreaded ACT or SAT or are planning to take it soon. And chances are you probably are involved in activities in school… maybe things like student council, sports, band or academic clubs. But are you looking to do something different, maybe something bigger or better? Are you looking to do something fun but impactful all at the same time? Did you just say yes? I thought so…
What I’ve learned is that most teenagers do want to do something to give back to the world – something bigger and more meaningful than anything they’ve done in the past. This is the reason I started Kids Boost. I wanted to create a way to help kids and teenagers use their gifts, talents and interests to give back to something that is important to them. So this isn’t the situation when an adult is telling you to sell wrapping paper to improve the library at your school… this is the opportunity to do something YOU enjoy for a charity of YOUR choice. Here’s the deal… Kids Boost will give you $100 and help you turn it into more for a charity. We will give you resources that you may need along the way and a coach to help if needed. You will also have your own webpage to help spread the word and to help generate donations for your cause.
Here’s an example of how it works: Ethan is 16 years old, loves basketball and is super competitive. Ethan also has the desire to help Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta because his neighbor was treated there for cancer a few years ago. Kids Boost gave Ethan $100 and helped him come up with a way to turn that money into more for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Ethan decided to have a free-throw-athon with his basketball team to raise money. He talked to his team and coaches and picked a day they could use the school gym. Each player was challenged to get pledges from friends/family for each free-throw they made in a 30 minute window. Ethan also asked a few local restaurants to donate gift certificates to use as prizes for the player who scored the most free-throws and the player who collected the most money. Ethan used $25 of his $100 startup money to buy drinks and snacks for the event. The remaining $75 was put towards his money for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Ethan’s hard work paid off in a huge way. He raised $875.00! Ethan presented a check for $700 to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (80% of his total) and the other $175.00 (20% of his total) goes back to Kids Boost to allow another kid the opportunity to participate. So his hard work not only helped Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, but it also helped other kids and charities… because some of the money he raised will keep the Kids Boost cycle going. Ethan and his team had a fun day and made an enormous impact on the community. Ethan was also able to add this experience to his college applications which made him a well-rounded candidate with great philanthropy experience.
Want to learn more?!? Check out www.kidsboost.org to get more information and to sign up. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at Kristen@kidsboost.org. I would love to hear from you and to help you do something amazing in the world. You are capable of much more than you even know!