SLANT 45, which stands for Service Learning in North Texas, was a community project program that aimed to involve children in community service.
Some of the best and worst stories come from children’s playgrounds. As parents, we know that, left to their own devices, kids sometimes relent to the little devils on their shoulders. But not always. …
Last spring, a typical day on the playground turned into tragedy when a house burned down in Carrollton’s Homestead neighborhood. Resident Jackie Santaella says the kids could see the fire and smoke from the playground, and like an S.O.S., they read the smoke as a call for help.
The kids wasted no time in answering. Her daughter, Lauren, 9, along with nine girls from her Brownie Troop 8905, assembled a gift basket to donate to the family, the Mastellars.
“We gathered things we thought you’d need at an extended stay hotel—luggage, office stuff, filing cabinets, snacks, toothbrushes, toothpaste, hygiene items. …” Santaella recalls.
But that wasn’t enough—the girls wanted to do more.
So Santaella challenged them to hold a bake sale. The Homestead pool presented the perfect venue, and generous, hungry residents would be the perfect guests. So the girls got to planning.
“The girls baked everything,” says Santaella. “My daughter was happy to be helping; it made her excited that she could be doing this for the family.”
On the day of the party, a few local Boy Scouts also donated their time to help set up tents and tables, and the Homestead provided pizza and drinks. The girls sold treats for $1 to $5—everything from cakes and brownies to cookies and cupcakes, all made from scratch. The residents who stopped by swam, bought treats and ate pizza. In the end, the girls raised $175 to donate to the Mastellar family.
“Everyone was just so giving,” says Santaella. Still, despite everyone’s generosity, she notes that after the fire, she made a point of discussing what was truly important with the girls. They learned how important a sense of community is—that everyone gathered to help a family in need, and how great it is to step up when needed.
In the end, Santaella says the girls learned how appreciative people are when you’re generous. What could be sweeter than that?
