Learning to give
Philanthropy isn’t just for rich, old people — young people are giving, too JOYCE GRANT
“The poop emoji ones go really quick — they’re always the first to go,” says Jeff Chuchman.
He’s referring to the cupcakes his 13-year-old daughter, Tonya, and her friends baked and decorated for a charity fundraiser last February. They put up flyers, shopped for ingredients, baked, decorated, sold — and ended up raising more than $1,500 for the animal charity she supports.
Why would a teenager spend so much time working so hard for someone else?
“It’s the giving-back factor,” says Tonya. “It feels rewarding. It’s a lot of work but after you’ve done it, you get a reward — you’re saving animals.”
She says it’s also good practice for when she’s older.
“If you want to get involved with stuff like this later on, you’ll know how to do it — you’ll be prepared.”
A 2020 study suggests that altruism may begin in infancy. Researchers at the University of Washington studied 100 19-month-olds, and found that even when they were hungry, many of the babies readily gave away food to an adult that they perceived needed it.
Giving something to help people in need, at a cost to oneself, is one definition of philanthropy. For young people, philanthropy often means giving their time to a charity or a cause they believe in, rather than donating money.
Tonya, who loves animals and horse riding, also volunteers at a riding stable. She says the key is to pick something you really enjoy.
“There’s the saying, ‘it’s not really work if you’re having fun,’ and that’s what it basically is,” she says.
The Allison children in Oakville have a very specific motivation for giving their time to a charity.
“I’m a warrior and I want to help other kids get better,” says fouryear-old Makayla Allison.
For the past three years, Marcus, 7, and Makayla, 4, and their parents have been participating in Sick Kids’ annual GetLoud fundraising walk. Makayla was born with a heart defect and was treated at Sick Kids. When she calls herself “a warrior,” she means it — she has collected more than 400 Sick Kids’ “bravery beads,” representing the procedures and treatments she’s undergone.
Her medical journey inspired her brother, Marcus, to join the GetLoud walk as well.
“I like doing the Sick Kids walk because I like raising money to help other kids like my sister.”
Their mom, Michelle, has a degree in social work. She says her own parents’ involvement in charitable giving influenced her. Now she’s encouraging her own children to be altruistic.
“I want my children to know that not everyone is as fortunate as they are, and it is important to be good citizens — whether that is raising money for a cause you believe in or helping an organization by donating your time.”
That kind of philanthropic legacy also influenced Tonya Chuchman. Her parents say their entire family has always done volunteer work. In fact, three generations were on hand that day to sell cupcakes. And not just family, but two of Tonya’s friends brought cupcakes and helped out as well. Philanthropy can have a ripple effect.
Researchers say that giving is a learned behaviour. A 2018 study, 30
Years of Giving in Canada The Giving Behaviour of Canadians: Who gives, how, and why? published by Imagine Canada and the Rideau Hall Foundation, looked at how young people in Canada “learn” to give. More than 89 per cent of the young people surveyed said that seeing someone they admire helping others encouraged them to give. Being active in a religious organization, youth group, student government and organized sports were also found to influence young people to give.
In Peterborough, Ont., 14-yearold Stuart Robertson has been volunteering with his church, handing out bagged breakfasts to people in need this summer.
“It’s a good thing to do in the community when there are a lot of people who are struggling or are less fortunate,” he says. “I’ve grown up doing this, it’s part of my lifestyle since I was super-young. It’s part of my weekly routine to do things like this.”
There’s no question that young people are more involved than ever in the world around them, and they want to have a say about what that world will look like when they are adults. Many young people find that they can gain influence through philanthropy — whether that means donating money or time, or through increasingly innovative methods that take advantage of technology.