The news these days is often depressing at worst and frustrating at best. It’s easy to let it get us down. Never fear… The News Blender has you covered. Once a week we feature Something Good and, in return, all you have to do is tell us something good that has happened to you this week, something you are thankful for, a joke, a cute animal story, an inspiring tale of heroics, a Random Act of Kindness… SOMETHING good.
When the news is awful, we especially need Something Good to remind us that there is good in the world. Two Atlanta teenagers have made life happier by helping refugee children start the school year off well.
Lily and Evie Babcock both love to cook. Lily, 17, starred on Chopped Junior, while her 14 year-old sister Evie starred on Master Chef Junior. And when Lily was spurred to help more after working at a camp for refugee children, the sisters decided to use their social media platforms for good.
Refugee families obviously come from difficult circumstances – natural disasters and war – and face many challenges adapting to a new country. The Babcock siblings, understanding how difficult it could be for parents in this situation, decided to raise money to buy school supplies for refugee children.
Lily, a high school senior, told 11 Alive, “I’ve always loved going back to school with like, fancy pencils. It’s really helped me love learning.” She continued, “I realized if we could help get school supplies for all of these children, that it could help them have that same love for learning and happiness that I’ve experienced.”
“It’s just really heartbreaking to see like, how sometimes kids don’t have access to what they really need to have a great school year and be successful. We just really wanted to help,” said Evie.
The girls baked to raise awareness and asked their followers to donate. They raised over $4,000 – enough to stuff 240 backpacks with school essentials.
Chief Advancement Officer Nancy Gaddy, of New American Pathways, an Atlanta based organization that helps refugee families, will help distribute the backpacks to children in need.
A story about two young people seeing a need and jumping in to meet it is good news indeed. Now it’s your turn… Tell me something good.
