Updated 11/23/2011 10:51 AM
Life in Action: Austin children give back
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During the month of November, 33 Austin schools pulled together to make a difference in their community by gathering food and coats for the needy.
St. Gabriel's School was one of the participants. They raised more than 4,000 pounds of food and are continuing to raise awareness about poverty.
Children sing a rendition of "Jingle Bells" in the carpool lane of St. Gabriel's school.
They withstood the weather and handed out flyers to arriving parents and fellow students, reminding their community to donate cans and coats.
"Well, it's really cold outside but it feels good when you hand a flyer to someone, or when you see someone bringing their cans and coats because then you know you're getting the word out and that you're going to help people," fourth-grade volunteer Hana Takamatsu said.
A Legacy of Giving is a local nonprofit that teaches children about giving back.
"When you empower youth so they know they can make a difference, it stays with them their whole life, and they find their passion," Founder of Legacy of Giving Linda Brucker said. "We all can be philanthropists. It's not just for the wealthy. So if we teach children, at a very young age, the word philanthropy it becomes who they are."
And fifth grader Jack Moore couldn’t agree more. He said his favorite part of the process is, "Probably when they see the kids, they'll think the kids care about it a lot, which we do, so then that might get them to donate cans too."
Moore went on to say the giving makes him feel warm inside.
"It makes me feel like joy and happiness. It makes me feel like if I can help one person than I can help the others, because there's a lot of stuff I don't need. So I'm giving that up to help those who need it a lot more than I do," he said.
And other St. Gabriel volunteers agreed.
"Giving to people who are less fortunate to me made me feel good because I was helping people who don't have as much things as I do," fifth-grader Lyla Senn said.
This is third annual day of service, donations collected by students from St. Gabriel's and 32 other Central Texas Schools will benefit the Capital Area Food Bank and Coats for kids.
Whether it's the local environment or world hunger, everyday people are working to make the world a better place. Every Wednesday YNN's Jennifer Borget shares the stories of Central Texans who have dedicated their lives to making a difference.