Amazing Kids Feature: Lilou from California
We recently sat down with Lilou, an Amazing Kids nominee from California. Lilou just turned 12 years old and entered the sixth grade. For her birthday this year, Lilou wasn’t sure what she wanted. She had recently re-read A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park and knew she wanted to do something to help the people in South Sudan living without access to clean water. She asked her parents for $100 to donate to Water for South Sudan in lieu of a gift for herself. She remembered Salva’s story and his efforts to provide clean water for the people living in rural villages in South Sudan and wanted to do more to help.
“Both characters in the book inspired me to want to change how it is in South Sudan.” This moved Lilou to get to work and set up her own fundraiser.
She created a fundraising page and started spreading the word about her efforts. She created a flyer that she posted throughout her neighborhood and school, and handed it out to friends and family. She also sent emails and texts to get the word out. When she blew past her initial goal of $1,000 in only a few days, Lilou upped her goal to $3,000. It only took six days to raise over $2,000.
Her friends and family were so supportive of her fundraising initiative and her favorite part was watching it become so much bigger than she thought it could. Lilou’s advice to other kids who want to make a positive impact on others? “If you really want people to understand what you’re doing, you have to show them where the money is going and tell them about the people in South Sudan who don’t have water.” This experience has taught her how to conduct a fundraising campaign if she wants to do it again in the future and how lucky she is to have clean water so accessible to her.
Lilou is not only a young humanitarian, she has a huge array of interests and hobbies. Her main hobbies include art, reading, and volleyball. She even participated in robotics for the last two years. When she grows up, Lilou dreams of going to space or even becoming a teacher, architect, or interior designer.
Lilou is so close to reaching her $3,000 goal and we couldn’t be more grateful for all of her hard work. A huge thank you to Lilou, her family, and all of the people who support WFSS—you are all watering the seeds of change in South Sudan!
Lilou (far right) with her family.
Lilou passing out flyers in her neighborhood.
