OHIO — In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, a program combining academics with philanthropy is giving kids as young as 3- and 4-years-old a leg up when it comes to giving back.
Pre-schoolers and kindergartners at The Learning Center in New Albany spent the month of April doing something big. They created art so that other kids battling illnesses could experience wishes of a lifetime.
“I don’t think it’s never too early to learn about the value of giving and the value of kindness, and I think why not in preschool, where, you know… they’re able to grasp so much at this age,” said Hina Mehta, the owner of the Learning Experience in New Albany.
The month-long projects are a part of the Make-A-Wish Foundation’s Art for Wishes campaign, which took place across the country. Using a few leaves and a little paint, all of the kids got the chance to make their own masterpieces auction. Due to the pandemic, Mehta said things would be slightly different this year.
“It will just be displayed on a table. So we’re still going to be able to give them that firsthand interaction, just not in a group setting,” Mehta said.
The hope was that each piece of art would go fo $40 each, in honor of the 40th anniversary of the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
“It’s you know never too early to just show people the little things that really make a difference in somebody’s life, and you don’t have to, you know, it doesn’t have to be all materialistic it doesn’t have to be when you’re older. It can start early as now,” Mehta said.
So, it’s lessons like those that Mehta hopes her students will keep for a lifetime.
All of the work kids created also coincided with World Wish Day on April 29. All of the money raised from the Art for Wishes campaign will go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. So far, more than $300,000 has been raised.
