Charity Bake Sale

Many weeks ago, we had a very scary set of storms pass over us.  People not too far from us were not so lucky, as tornadoes ripped their towns apart.  We talked to the kids about what had happened and gathered lots of items to help with the clean up efforts and donated them.  While we were doing this, Maren asked if she could have a bake sale to raise money to help out the people.  I told her I would support her in this effort.  She was suprised, because usually I tell her no when she wants to make bookmarks or bracelets and sell them, and I told her that's because usually she's trying to raise money to buy a toy for herself, whereas now she was raising money for other people.

She was very excited to get started.  We set a time and I asked permission from the neighborhood association to hold the bake sale in a more prominent location, since we live on a cul-de-sac that doesn't get much traffic.  They thought it was a great idea and said we could do it by the pool on a much busier street.  They also sent out an announcement and I was surprised at the support the neighborhood gave to Maren.  She was thrilled.  

We got busy making treats.  I supervised while she made cupcakes, cookies, cake pops, and rice krispie treat birds' nests.  She made signs and a place to put the money.  

Her brothers helped advertise.  

At first she had come up with prices for each treat, but we ended up just deciding to let people donate what they wanted and take what they wanted. This worked pretty well.  We had some who paid a 50 cents for a treat, some who paid $20, and one very generous neighbor who paid $100 for a cake pop, so it all balanced out.  The kids thought that was pretty great.  In the end, Maren had raised $387 to donate to the Red Cross.  

We made an online donation to the Red Cross, and then Jason and I matched the money so that Maren could also have a more hands on donating experience.  Her grandma lives near a town that was wiped out by a tornado, and the soup kitchen where Grandma lived was busy feeding many people, including workers trying to clean up.  They were in need of supplies.  Grandma took Maren to Sam's club where they filled up a couple carts.  

She paid for it with the cash she had collected.  

They took it to the soup kitchen.  Grandma said Maren was beaming.  

This was a great experience for Maren, and I was so glad she was able to do it.