Teens Pull Weeds to Raise Money for Children's Village
Spending a day of summer vacation doing yard work for a complete stranger is not most teenagers idea of fun, but a small group of teens in Yakima did just that Monday.
If you've ever been in charge of clearing a patch of ivy, you know it can be hard work.
Amber Owen said, "the surface looked easy, but then getting down to the roots was hard."
A group called the YouthWorks Council volunteered for three hours to fulfill a promise. The group auctioned off a certificate for three hours of manual labor at a fund raiser for Children's Village of Yakima, which provides services for disabled children. While the certificate for manual labor went for $125, it was part of a much larger auction put on by the council that raised more than $3,000 for Children's Village.
Owen said, "we wanted to make it bigger and then we decided that...we will provide our services so that we can hopefully raise more money for children's village."
The money donated will be used to buy educational resources for Children's Village and help families with travel expenses if they need medical treatment in Seattle.
Kelly Connaughton, the Development Director for Children's Village, said "as we say here at the foundation, 'philanthropy is gifts of time and money.' So they did the full thing all the way around the circle."
There are 11 teenagers and young adults in the YouthWorks council, and they all agree the hard work and sweat is worth it so kids with disabilities can live a little easier.
Lauren Brewington said, "it's a good reminder of how important it is to help the kids and just do something for them and help someone else out in the community."