Pool party for ONE
Some children really know how to party for a cause!
Recently we received a letter from a mother whose 10-year-old son decided to use his birthday party, not for his own gain, but for the gain of other children:
"Sorry this has taken me so long, but here’s a little write-up. Had I thought about it, I'd have taken a picture of the decorated collection bucket into which kids put their money (mostly birthday cards to Conor with Plan/ONE money inside). I'd have shown them all showing their bracelets, too!!
"In July, Conor had seen a show on television, apparently narrated by Brad Pitt, about the prevalence of AIDS and poverty around the globe. Later at our friend's house, Conor got to see a slide presentation of this friend's trip to Nepal and Bhutan. Like Brad Pitt, our friend also spoke about the relatively small amount of money it would take to sponsor the education of a child in this and other developing countries. Conor was deeply touched by both of these presentations and wanted to do something to help a child.
"Meanwhile, we were finishing a swimming pool in our backyard and Conor was thinking about his 10th birthday party. He figured that if he invited everyone he wanted to a pool party, he would have over 30 friends here. He decided to use this event as a way to support children suffering from AIDS and extreme poverty.
"We went to the ONE website to look for bracelets to give as the only party favor to Conor's guests, but found that we couldn't get the bracelets in time. I told a friend about Conor's idea and wondered where else I might find ONE bracelets. She had just heard that her yoga instructor was planning a "Yoga-thon" to support the same cause, and probably had something to help us out. Sure enough, Pamella Inveen in Gig Harbor had extra bracelets we could use, and we were on our way.
"We then went to Hallmark to pick out birthday invitations, and as we were chatting with the owners, I told them what Conor was doing. The woman asked Conor why he was collecting money for Plan/ONE when he could be getting so many presents. He said he was so lucky to have a pool in his backyard, and there was nothing else a kid could need.
"He is a fortunate child, to be sure, but I am so proud of him that he senses his fortune in the world and is aware that so many are so far less fortunate. I'm proud of the growing world-community responsibility he is beginning to feel; my job as a parent now is to take the seed of global awareness, nurture it and spread it.
"His party earned $505 for Plan/ONE, and Conor has been so happy to see some of friends choose to do the same thing with their birthday parties."
Recently we received a letter from a mother whose 10-year-old son decided to use his birthday party, not for his own gain, but for the gain of other children:
"Sorry this has taken me so long, but here’s a little write-up. Had I thought about it, I'd have taken a picture of the decorated collection bucket into which kids put their money (mostly birthday cards to Conor with Plan/ONE money inside). I'd have shown them all showing their bracelets, too!!
"In July, Conor had seen a show on television, apparently narrated by Brad Pitt, about the prevalence of AIDS and poverty around the globe. Later at our friend's house, Conor got to see a slide presentation of this friend's trip to Nepal and Bhutan. Like Brad Pitt, our friend also spoke about the relatively small amount of money it would take to sponsor the education of a child in this and other developing countries. Conor was deeply touched by both of these presentations and wanted to do something to help a child.
"Meanwhile, we were finishing a swimming pool in our backyard and Conor was thinking about his 10th birthday party. He figured that if he invited everyone he wanted to a pool party, he would have over 30 friends here. He decided to use this event as a way to support children suffering from AIDS and extreme poverty.
"We went to the ONE website to look for bracelets to give as the only party favor to Conor's guests, but found that we couldn't get the bracelets in time. I told a friend about Conor's idea and wondered where else I might find ONE bracelets. She had just heard that her yoga instructor was planning a "Yoga-thon" to support the same cause, and probably had something to help us out. Sure enough, Pamella Inveen in Gig Harbor had extra bracelets we could use, and we were on our way.
"We then went to Hallmark to pick out birthday invitations, and as we were chatting with the owners, I told them what Conor was doing. The woman asked Conor why he was collecting money for Plan/ONE when he could be getting so many presents. He said he was so lucky to have a pool in his backyard, and there was nothing else a kid could need.
"He is a fortunate child, to be sure, but I am so proud of him that he senses his fortune in the world and is aware that so many are so far less fortunate. I'm proud of the growing world-community responsibility he is beginning to feel; my job as a parent now is to take the seed of global awareness, nurture it and spread it.
"His party earned $505 for Plan/ONE, and Conor has been so happy to see some of friends choose to do the same thing with their birthday parties."
