This eleven-year-old is proof that size doesn’t matter when you have a big idea.
Mandi Simon drafted up the business plan for her nonprofit, Simon Says Give, when she was just seven years old. Over the past four years, the organization has thrown birthday parties for 500 kids between the ages of five and twelve who are growing up in poverty.
“I think it is really important for every kid to have one day, or at least a few hours, when it’s all about them and the celebration of their birthday,” Simon told Good News Network. “It’s important for kids to go to a different environment and be able to have fun with their friends– and know that someone outside of their family cares about them.”
Over the past six months, the Jefferson Awards Foundation, who named Simon a GlobeChanger, has helped Mandi and her 40 volunteers grow Simon Says Give from a Minnesota charity into a global venture.
But this mini-philanthropist always does her homework first.
“I plan meetings around my school schedule and just try to balance everything and have a team of people that help me do things while I am in school,” she explains. “We have been asked to speak at a Rotary Club next week and I need to be at school that morning, so two of our team-members are going to attend for me.”
“The recognition of being a GlobeChanger has caught the attention of businesses and people that want to help us reach our goals,” she said. “My goal for Simon Says Give is to impact 2 million kids by the year 2022, so we need the support of corporate sponsors to help us do so.”
Check out this video to see how the nonprofit got its early start: