Having compassion for others, like sharing, is something that often has to be taught to young children. But one 5-year-old girl is making hearts swell this holiday season with her act of kindness for her fellow classmates. With a hot cocoa and cookies stand, Katelynn Pardee was about to pay off the lunch debt of 123 fellow classmates.
The Breeze Hill Elementary School student, located in San Diego, was inspired to set up a hot cocoa and cookies stand after overhearing a touch conversation at school, KSWB reports . In the conversation, a student’s mom was explaining she was struggling to pay for an after-school program. Katelynn, being a curious child, immediately started asking her mom why these things happen.
“She’s very inquisitive,” said Katelynn’s mother, Karina Hardee, told KSWB. “So she started asking me a bunch of questions and I tried to answer as best as I could without too much for a 5-year-old, and just explained to her that some people aren’t as fortunate as us.”
Katelynn, who usually sets up a lemonade stand during the summer, decided to help. “So they can lunch and snack,” Katelynn told KSWB. “I can give money to the lunch people so they’ll have money.”
According to the outlet, she made the cocoa and cookies herself and then spent three hours this past weekend selling them. When Monday morning came around, her mom reached out to the school to see how they could donate the money she made. “I just left a note saying my daughter held a hot cocoa fundraiser over the weekend and would love to donate the money to any of the negative accounts,” Hardee told KSWB.
Katelynn donated $78 to the school Good Morning America reports, $40 of which were donated by a friend of the family. The money they raised was enough to cover the lunch balances of 123 students. “Her actions do create awesomeness,” her mom said to KSWB. Katelynn was later given an award at school to honor her kindness to others.
Teaching kids to be kind to others, as well as grateful for what they have, is incredibly important. This is especially true around the holidays, which, for children, can largely revolve around the excitement of getting presents. If you’re looking for ways to teach your kids to be thankful, we’ve got some activity ideas that can help.
