My social impact journey started when I was around 13 years old. I grew up with my mother working in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at the University of Michigan Mott Children's Hospital. She would come home from work and tell me stories about children who were fighting for their lives and families that were struggling to pay for medical expenses. At the time, most of those kids were around my age or younger. This sad reality haunted me and made me feel incredibly fortunate for my good health. I wanted to help these kids in any way that I could, but as a 13-year-old girl, my options were limited.
My hobbies and interests had always been very different compared to other girls my age. I hated Barbie dolls, playing "dress-up' or experimenting with makeup. I loved to play video games, read comic books, collect Pokemon cards, build cool stuff with legos, solve puzzles, and scrapbook. Scrapbooking was probably the girliest thing I did as a kid, but I was pretty good at it. I enjoyed it because, in a way, it was kind of like solving a puzzle. The goal is to create beautiful crafts by being resourceful using different scraps of paper and various materials. One day, I figured out how I could put my scrapbooking skills to good use. I began making handmade cards and tags to raise money for the children in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) at Mott Children's Hospital.
My first year was the most memorable. I ended up raising more than I had expected and was so excited by my success. I had around $400 in cash, stuffed in an envelope that was about to rip. At the time, it was the season of giving and my favorite holiday was just a couple of weeks away. I took the money I had raised and spent it all on gifts at the toy store. On Christmas Day - December 25th, 2011 - I went to the hospital to hand-delivered the presents. I felt like Santa Clause. It was by far the best day of my life.
The first gift I gave was to a little girl who held a special place in my mom's heart. She was a couple of years younger than me and had been battling Leukemia for about a year. I bought her coloring books and colored pencils as well as a "Lite-Bright," which is a lightbox toy with small neon-colored plastic pegs that fit into a panel and illuminates to create a lit-up picture. It was nothing big - just a few little presents that I thought could help pass the time, but she was thrilled and beyond grateful. When I glanced over at her parents, I saw tears welled up in their eyes and smiles on their faces. They stood across the hospital bed, hugging one and another and looked at me with eyes that voiced appreciation and gratitude. My heart was exploding with love and joy. Before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face uncontrollably.
From there on out, I sold my handmade cards/tags and donated the proceeds to children in the C.S Mott Children's Hospital every Christmas up until I moved to New York City for college.
