Write a commentEight-year-old Mia Longley isn’t just an avid gardener; she is a budding philanthropist with a big heart.
Mia and her grandfather tend a five-row pumpkin patch every year at her grandparents’ home in Hannibal. Mia then sells the fruits of their labors at a roadside stand all autumn long. Her goal isn’t to make spending money: it’s to support different causes that she cares about in the community.
This year, Mia raised $192.50 and decided to donate the proceeds to the Hannibal Free Library’s children program. The money will support craft supplies and activities for the library’s busy children’s calendar, which includes a robust after-school program and story time on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
“I’ve been doing this since I was five,” Mia asserted. Each year, she chooses a different program to support. In the past she’s also supported the Golisano Children’s Center, among other worthy organizations.
Her bubbly personality and giving heart make it easy to see why she’s so successful at raising money. In fact, Mia even donated some of her “good behavior money,” as she called it, to help raise the total of her donation. “It’s the most we’ve ever raised!” she told the iHeart team happily, before presenting her donation to Children’s Programming Director Nickie Shue.
We see a bright future for this young humanitarian, and we’re delighted to have such energetic change-makers in our community!
