Our Youngest Fundraisers

Ruth and Walter Lewandowski, at the age of eight, have a sympathetic view to those who are less fortunate. This past summer Ruth decided it was time to earn money to help other people. At first she was a little unfocused on her goal but her intentions were good. She told her brother one day about her idea to raise money and help someone. It took very little convincing and Walter was on board. At first they tried making friendship bracelets but these were very time consuming and the end product was not going to bring in very much money. Then they came upon the idea of making chocker necklaces by taking memory wire and stringing it with glass beads. This would be a fun item to make, with beautiful end results.

They set to work making lots and lots of necklaces. When friends were over for play dates they drafted them into the ranks of craftsmen. Finally about twenty were completed and Ruth and Walter were ready to canvass the neighborhood. A display tray was made out of a box top and velvet, a price of five dollars per necklace was set. Ruth and Walter practiced their sales pitch and then started by selling to neighbors, people they knew. After great success they started knocking on other doors (mom was along for safety). The results were amazing. Walter and Ruth were fantastic sales people who wouldn't take no for an answer. If someone said “sorry I don't have any cash”, the two of them would chime in “that’s ok you can write a check, here is the information”. Finally, they started calling everyone they knew, family and friends, whoever had a checkbook. The end result was $250 dollars earned!

At the end of the summer during the annual campout at Kelley Point in Jonesport, two very proud children presented the checks to Dawn Dagenhardt. The only one string attached being that this money help someone somewhere in the world. Dawn explained that it was enough to send a Haitian child to school for a year and pay for their uniform and school supplies. Without this contribution this child would otherwise be unable to go to school. Ruth and Walter are very proud of their accomplishment and have happily told their customers the end result of their fundraising. They continue getting orders and making necklaces in hopes of sending more children to school.