picture1My name is Anna Belle Rooney, and I am a 10th grader at Mountain Brook High School. Last year I helped my dad make and stain book cases for the families in Foundations. Since then, I have also volunteered by helping to organize their school supplies and classrooms. After learning more about Foundations, I came up with 2 projects that I thought would be helpful for the students. I wrote letters to about 30 friends/family members explaining the mission of FELFC, and I asked for donations to fund the two projects. One of the projects was to give all the students basic school supplies for the beginning of the year: pencils, crayons, glue, safety scissors, erasers, Play-Doh, and a note pad. The other project I have been doing is putting together weekend bags for the kids. I fill them with snacks for the weekend, a small activity (like a puzzle or chalk), a book, and a few other small things (like stickers and erasers). The idea for these projects started out as part of an application for Key Club, a service club at my school. Unfortunately, I was not selected to join Key Club, but I decided to do it anyway because I still believed it was a good idea. After the letter writing campaign, I raised about $700, which was more than enough for school supplies and a few months of weekend bags. I also had a bake sale in November, in which I raised about $100. Even when I am not fundraising, I raise awareness on social media and word of mouth. I am also looking into the process to start a club at my school to help with fundraising for these projects. I am so excited to have been blessed with this opportunity to have an impact on these students’ and families’ lives, and I cannot wait to see where this goes.