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When the Community FoodBank of New Jersey’s refrigerated truck overturned in November 2004, ruining all its Thanksgiving turkeys, Kate Dulac decided to dedicate her life’s savings toward buying new turkeys for families who would otherwise not enjoy a Thanksgiving meal.
The then-four-year-old from Margate ran upstairs, grabbed her piggy bank, and rushed back down to the dinner table, emptying out $101 for her parents to send to the FoodBank. Since then, Kate—now 11—and her 8-year-old sister Chloe, have given money to the FoodBank every year at Thanksgiving.
Last year, they took it a giant step further: Working with other local children, they helped raise over $15,000 for the FoodBank and four other charities. They also inspired their mom, Laura Dulac, to create Children Making Change, a new not-for-profit with the potential to raise many more thousands of dollars.
Photo Courtesy John DiMaio Photography
What made Kate and Chloe look beyond their piggy banks for FoodBank donations? “With so many people struggling in the poor economy, the girls wanted to make a bigger difference,” says Laura. With the help of best friends Georgia and Isabella Turner of Margate, they held four fall fundraisers to benefit the Community FoodBank of New Jersey: a yard sale, bake sale, classroom coin drive and a candygram delivery service. The results? “They were able to present the FoodBank’s Southern Branch with$4,000,” says Laura.
Of course, mom helped. “That was a lot of work. I knew we couldn’t keep doing that every single year,” says Laura. Still, she knew that something big was happening here with these children, and she didn’t want to let it go.
Then came the “aha” moment that led to the creation of Children Making Change. While lying in bed one morning last May, Laura came up with the idea of bringing together 100 children from local families and having each child agree to try to raise $100 for charity. Not only would the children raise $10,000 for organizations desperately needing funds; their actions would also remind parents that “we really can make a difference in these difficult times.”
Over the next few weeks, Dulac worked tirelessly to turn her vision into reality. In June, Children Making Change held its first “summit.” There, 100 children ages 4-16 pledged to raise $100 each over the summer to support a handful of community organizations chosen by thegroup at large. Kate Dulac, of course, told everyone about the FoodBank. “Some people who’d never heard of the FoodBank got to know what it was,” says Kate. The same was true of the four other charities chosen: The Atlantic County Women’s Shelter, Sister Jean’s Kitchen, the Little Rock Foundation (which aids blind children),and the Kira Cundiff Foundation (which helps young children with life-threatening tumors).
“All summer, parents called me to say they couldn't believe how well things were going, how much fun the kids were having, and how it wasn't that hard,” she said.
“It was really exciting to see everyone getting so passionate about these organizations and raising money for them.”
When the group met for its final summit in late August, Dulac was beaming. The children had raised over $11,000! Each chosen charity, including the FoodBank,received over $2,000. And this may be only the beginning. Many people have asked Laura about getting involved in Children Making Change. “Even the person at the bank who I started [the organization’s] account with wants to start this in her community,” laughs Dulac.
—By Ellen Weisman Strenger
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