Two kids, 12 countries
Fundraising for 34 charities and a goal of $1 million
“You know how in school you get to look up stuff on the Smart Board? We are looking it up in real life,” Lydia Sacallis, 8, says of how she and her brother Adonie, 11, will be schooled over the coming year. In St. John’s, their “classes” this week included science (a visit to the Geo Centre), geography (exploring Cape Spear) and history (learning the history of the Newfoundland pony).
Lydia and Adonie are from Kelowna, B.C., and are in town with their mom, J.B. Owen, as the first stop on their Just Give world tour, which will see them travelling to 12 different countries in an effort to raise $1 million to support charities in each of them.
“This is the coldest place we picked,” Lydia says, laughing.
The idea for the tour came about after the siblings fantasized about winning the lottery and donating part of their winnings to charity.
“For a couple weekends in a row we bought lottery tickets and when they didn’t win, they realized, well that’s no fun,” Owen explains. “I said to them, you don’t have to win the lottery if you guys want to give money. If you’re really committed to giving money to charity, you should just raise it yourselves.”
Lydia wondered how they could ensure their money was getting into the right hands; Owen suggested their deliver it themselves. The kids did some research and chose 34 charities in 12 countries; one a month from now until August: Canada, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Costa Rica, Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, Peru, Galapagos, Greece, Turkey and the United States. Their chosen charities include the SPCA, Habitat for Humanity, Operation Smile and Galapagos Conservation.
In Greece, they hope to support the shoebox schoolhouse project, which turns shipping containers into classrooms. In Costa Rica, they will be assisting in protecting sea turtles. In St. John’s on Thursday, Lydia and Adonie spent the morning speaking to kids at Cowan Heights Elementary, and the afternoon at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), learning about visual impairments and how they can support the organization.
Adonie is the math guy for the project.
“We need 7,000 people to donate $12.12 a month for one full year to make $1 million,” he says. “But you can also give stuff that doesn’t cost money, such as time, hugs, friendship, energy, all kinds of things.”
The family plans to use their website to provide updates on their trip, as well as an educational component for other kids.
“We really want to empower kids to feel like they can make a difference,” Owen says. “Lydia and Adonie want to be examples of how kids can work and help and support.”
The siblings are hoping to connect with airlines and hotels that will sponsor their trip, but other than that, are paying for the tour with the family’s own money.
More information on the Just Give project and world tour is available online at www.justgive.today. Lydia and Adonie are also posting regular updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube, and you can follow them by searching for Just Give Today.