I woke up this morning and knew beyond question that today was going to be an incredible day. How could it not be, especially after reading the amazing story of 5-year old Phoebe and her inspiring drive to raise money for San Francisco’s swelling homeless population.
It began a few months ago when, driving with her mom to school, Phoebe noticed a homeless man on the street holding a sign asking for food. When her mom explained to her how there are many people who don’t have food and go to bed hungry… well Phoebe just decided then and there that wasn’t right. And she made up her mind that she could and would do something about it.
So she came up with a plan… Cans! If she earns a nickle for every recycled can she turns in, what if she could collect a whole lot of cans? She could earn a whole lot of nickles, and those nickles could be turned into dollars, which could then be used to buy food to feed the homeless. So simple!
So she started collecting cans…
And she wrote a handwritten letter which she sent to 150 friends and family…
Her goal was really BIG: she planned to raise $1000. Her sincerity and ambition caught the attention of her local community. Anonymous donors left bags of cans on the schools steps and cash in the mailbox. In less than a month Phoebe had reached her goal.
“When she got to $1,000, she cried,” her preschool teacher recalls. “It was very touching, I mean, she was like, ‘I made it I made it I made it!’”
But Phoebe didn’t stop there. Within a few weeks she had collected 4,497 cans and raised a grand total of $3,736.30! She donated all of it to the San Francisco Food Bank. Which can turn $1 into $9 worth of food. Meaning Phoebe’s small fund provides enough groceries to feed almost 18,000 people.
It’s amazing to see how such small measures create such huge ripples of good. Since Phoebe’s project, word has spread online like positivity wildfire, inspiring people to rise to the occasion and show support. Over $40,000 has poured in from across the country toward Phoebe’s Fund. Should you feel compelled yourself to make a contribution, you can follow this link here.
Again, it just goes to show how truly simple it is to make a difference. You don’t need to have big ideas or big resources. You don’t even need to be (literally) big. If a 5 year old can see something wrong in the world, and enact a plan to make it better, and enormously succeed… why can’t you or I? Or perhaps a better question yet, how soon can we begin?
I am humbled. I am inspired. I am uplifted. I am in awe. Thank you Phoebe for reminding me how truly, innocently easy it is to do good. I am so happy the children are our future!
But let’s not forget that we are the now. And it’s not enough to teach future generations how to be better… we must challenge and teach ourselves how to make our own change right away. Right now. In this very moment. Phoebe’s given us the lesson. Now it’s time to do our homework.
Happy thursday!
-Aaron
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