A Little Girl with a Big Heart
Often, we think of modern-day heroes as adults, but many young people are also inspired to find ways to make a positive impact. Ruby, a warmhearted seven-year-old, proved this to be true when she held a bake sale recently which benefited families at Bell Family Shelter.
“During the cold of winter is when Ruby really started praying for the homeless,” said Ruby’s mother, Caitlin Steel. Ruby asked her mom about the people she’d seen standing at intersections with signs, or noticed others, dressed in layers of tattered clothing, outside stores and on street benches.
“I wanted to help them,” Ruby said, “I was praying for the people.”
After her prayers one night, Ruby and her mom decided to put Ruby’s concern into action. Sharing their intentions by word of mouth and Facebook, they set aside a Saturday in the family’s busy schedule and started taking orders for chocolate chip cookies and loaves of banana bread. Neighbors, friends, and even the family dentist signed up.
When Cait spoke to her Mentorship York class about the project and mentioned that they now needed to find an organization that could help move the effort to the next step, a fellow classmate was particularly interested. Zak Wolpert, a member of Bell’s board of directors, talked with Cait and connected her to Averie Clark, Bell’s director of community engagement.
Averie was delighted to hear of Ruby’s effort and welcomed the opportunity of a Zoom call to meet Ruby and Cait and tell them more about Bell, particularly the Bell Family Shelter, which helps York County families experiencing homelessness.
The next morning, Averie received an email from Cait that she and Ruby decided their bake sale proceeds would go to help Shelter families.
That weekend held a full day of baking – making the banana bread was Ruby’s favorite part, she said – and when the flour dust cleared, Ruby’s bake sale had raised over $1,000.
With the proceeds from the bake sale, Ruby went shopping and bought supplies to make gift baskets of practical and fun items for Shelter residents. Ruby made over 30 baskets filled with items – essentials like shampoo, wash cloths, toothbrushes and toothpaste, as well as coloring books, pencils, and such – organized by age. “This way, we figured staff can easily hand them out to children and their parents,” said Cait. “Since our project took time to plan, bake, and shop, we ended up working with Bell to figure out what we could best purchase/provide to the folks that are currently being served.”
When they Steels arrived at Bell Family Shelter to deliver the baskets (dad, Tim, came along to help unload their two carloads full of goods), Ruby looked a little nervous. Carrying in baskets, though, her eyes twinkled and she smiled a big smile when Shelter staff, Joy Bagwell, and Bell’s Outreach Coordinator, Janel Fox, began gushing over all the donations and thanking Ruby heartily.
Soon, a family in residence stopped by, and eight-year-old Jeremy introduced himself to Ruby. While his 10-year-old sister and their mom stood quietly off to the side, Jeremy couldn’t help but buzz and chatter with excitement at seeing all of the baskets.
For Ruby, the day will certainly be one she won’t soon forget. Cait reported to Averie that Ruby loved feeling like she helped in some way and told her mom she wants to return. They may encourage Ruby’s eight-year-old brother, Will, to join in, too, she said.
What started out as a little girl’s prayer and generous heart became a loving action of kindness. With the support of the people who donated and encouraged her, plus Ruby’s own determination and hard work, she made a real difference at Bell Family Shelter. The act of one family reaching out to help another can be what makes a change in the world and makes our community a better place. It’s inspiring to know that, like Ruby, we all can make a difference!
image at top of page: Zak Wolpert, Bell board of directors, helps Caitlin Steel and her daughter, Ruby, unload the family’s vehicle which was packed with donations for Bell Family Shelter