School project gone right
Nov 17, 2009 - 02:11 PM
By Emily Wrigglesworth
WHITBY -- Thomas Gilbert took a school project about changing the world to heart,
The 11-year-old Whitby boy was given an assignment about local charities by his teacher. He would have to chose one and say how he could help. Thomas chose the Children's Wish Foundation but he did not stop at just writing down what he could do.
While researching the charity, Thomas came across a video of a then six-year-old boy living in Prince Edward Island. As Thomas watched the video, his eyes teared up, said Thomas's mother, Tricia Munro-Gilbert. The boy in the video had idiopathic lymphedema, which is lymphedema of an unknown origin. In the video, the little boy described that his only wish was to have his grandparents move back to P.E.I. from Edmonton. This little boy became Thomas's inspiration for July and August.
"I felt so bad for this little seven-year-old who had to go through so much pain," said Thomas.
While the little boy's wish had been granted, Thomas knew he wanted to help other children's wishes come true. Already wanting to improve his bike skills for triathlons, Thomas set out a cycling route he would follow three times a week in July and August while raising money. The path was roughly seven kilometres long, in the area around his house. He raised awareness about his efforts by creating a poster informing people about what he was doing. Thomas also raised money through lemonade stands and his family held a garage sale. â?¨ "He did two lemonade stands," said Mrs. Munro-Gilbert. "One at kind of the beginning of the summer, one at the end."
Thomas raised $834.55 between his Ride 4 a Wish/Refresh 4 a Wish campaign, and getting neighbourhood sponsors.
Mrs. Munro-Gilbert wanted to make the efforts official and a recognized event, so Thomas could show people exactly where the money was going. The Gilberts contacted the Children's Wish Foundation to find out what could be done about it. The organization sent Thomas a letter of appreciation and a sponsor sheet.
The highlight for Thomas was while he was on a family vacation, along with his mom, dad and younger twin sisters Moriah and Claire, to the Maritime provinces to visit family. While there, Thomas took two weeks off from biking, but on a trail, he rode 10 kilometres, adding to his eventual overall total of around 168 kilometres. In preparation before the trip, Mrs. Munro-Gilbert contacted the Children's Wish Foundation to see if they could set up a meeting with the boy who inspired Thomas. The boy's family agreed and the two families met and had dinner together.
Thomas said that the few times he felt like giving up, he just thought of his inspiration, and all the good he would be doing if he continued. He added meeting the boy made him work much harder at raising the money.
Thomas says he will "probably want to" do his campaign again next year, saying that "it was fun."
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