Ever heard of a village called Mosenessi? Probably not. It’s kind of small, easy to miss on a map. Small, maybe like every kid has felt, sometimes. But here at Let Them LOL, we believe we all have a lot to learn from the small things in life – and sometimes they add up to really big things!
A few months ago, a special event reminded us how much we have to learn from some of the smallest ones in our lives – the ones everyone might not immediately imagine as world-changers because, well, they’re kids. But these kids are something special! We had a blast again hosting our annual Kid’s Gala, with the help of some incredible volunteers, and were able to offer a night of life-changing fun for k-8th grade at our Volunteer Center.
Dressed in their best, our lively attendees basked in the red carpet treatment taking full advantage of a playful photo booth and tables full of pizza, candy, desserts, and other treats. An italian soda bar, some rising talent appearances, face painting, and a basket auction kept the energy high (as we celebrated zero injuries or major meltdowns), all while learning about the need for clean water.
Our DJ was a unanimous hit as soon as a Frozen tune was played, thus ensued a full Disney sing/dance-along marathon and a range of age groups united in shameless joy to remind us how we all really just want to be part of something together.
In the same spirit, throughout the evening all ages worked diligently to literally weave threads of hope together, creating two beautiful displays of the word.
These two string art pieces will each be up for auction at this year’s Let Them LOL Water Gala on Saturday, Oct 20, to become a stunning and meaningful reminder for anyone’s space (we hope to see you there)!
With all these inspiring moments collected from a fun evening of a bunch of children gathered together, we are perhaps most profoundly moved by the realization of the tangible difference they made together. Every kid who attended came together to say that kids an ocean away in Sierra Leone should be able to have clean water; because they came, there was a direct impact: a well!
Believe it or not the well you see pictured was able to be saved from its previous state of disrepair (a costly process) because of the Kid’s Gala. In fact, just a day or two after the Kid’s Gala, as we counted up all the donations we realized we were in need of exactly the amount of money these children raised in order to fix this well and ensure reliable and safe clean water to the the village of Mosenessi (remember that little village we mentioned at the beginning? Check it out on our map by clicking here)! Can you believe it?! It was perfect timing and the exact amount, reminding us how kids – every kid (every person) – can do big things. And every small thing adds up. We love the way the Africa proverb says it: “Many drops make a mighty ocean.”
Thanks so much to all of you, kids and families, who were part of the Kid’s Gala! Look what you did, together, and imagine what this means to every child who drinks from this well. It’s a big deal. They no longer have to look at a broken well in their community and drink from a pit of dirty water instead. Imagine what more you can do, with every small thing you choose to give to the person in front of you, and the person faraway that you choose to care about! What you do, what you give, where you go, and how you love really matters in a big way. We are so grateful for you! Thanks for dancing, partying, creating, and laughing along with Let Them LOL, and for reminding us that none of us and nothing is too small to give.
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Did you know you can start your own LTLOL clean water fundraising page anytime you’d like with whatever creative idea you might have? Click here to get started, your imagination is the limit – who knows what your “small” idea might become?
BuffaloEventsFundraisingKids GalaSierra LeoneStoriesVolunteer CenterVolunteers
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