Wilsonville Spokesman Online

Never too young to help

Mentor Graphics Child Development Center raises $6,400 for victims of Haitian earthquake

• By: Josh Kulla  
• Published: 2/10/2010 3:07:27 PM
• Last Updated: 2/10/2010 3:08:51 PM

Photo By: Josh KullaHaiti fundraiser
Preschool students at Mentor Graphics' Child Development Center raised over $6,000 for the victims of last month's earthquake in Haiti.

As anyone with small children can attest, the youngest among us often are the most enthusiastic of helpers.

This was demonstrated vividly in recent weeks, as preschool students ages three to five at Mentor Graphics’ renowned Child Development Center helped spearhead a fundraising auction to benefit victims of last month’s earthquake in Haiti.

From encouraging parents to act, to bringing in a daily assortment of coins and creating artwork to sell, less than a dozen kids have shown that even they can have an impact on people half a world away.

Their work culminated on Friday, Feb. 5, when both silent and oral auctions were held at the Mentor Graphics campus in central Wilsonville.

There, children’s art – along with a huge array of goods and services donated by Mentor Graphics employees, Wilsonville businesses and other individuals – were sold in barely an hour. Among the individual gems were an “Other Mouse” puppet, 1 of 600 created for use in the movie “Coralline,” along with time in beach rental houses, yoga instruction and even a pre-owned treadmill.

As a result, over $25,000 was raised through prior fundraising and Friday’s auctions combined. It was an amazing result considering the entire event was thrown together in barely three weeks’ time, said CDC director Gillian Brun.

“This event shows the generosity of this community so much,” said Brun. “So much hard work came together in such a short amount of time, I’m really proud to be a part of Mentor Graphics. It was amazing how we got so many donations in such a short time. We’ve never done anything like this before.”

All proceeds now will be given to the American Red Cross, said CDC preschool teacher Jenny Youngblood, who said the entire concept started with a child and grew from there.

“The (idea) was brought to us by a parent,” Youngblood said last Friday as she supervised her students helping out at the auction. “She and her daughter had done some talking and Stella thought maybe her friends would be interested in helping, too.”

That parent, Angela Anastasakis of Wilsonville, and her daughter Stella both volunteered at the Oregon Food Bank last year. That experience, Anastasakis said, had a profound impact on Stella. Just days after the Jan. 12 earthquake that killed over 200,000 people in Haiti, she said, Stella immediately wanted to help.

From there, the idea took shape and expanded rapidly.

“It’s really blossomed into this,” Anastasakis said, explaining how the idea of holding a fundraising auction quickly gained steam as word spread from the Child Development Center, first throughout Mentor Graphics, then the Wilsonville community at large.

“They collected coins, (and) the kids decorated jars and put them out for the coins,” she said. “They also used this as a learning project, counting the money and sorting it. So, it’s really been amazing watching this project grow.”

Youngblood said the event not only provides tangible relief to people in need, it also reinforces the CDC’s aim to promote sharing and community service.

“We emphasize helping others,” she said. “And when this really got rolling, the parent support was incredible. It spread throughout the Wilsonville community, and it’s amazing the amount of talent we have right here. We’ve been really astounded at the amount of support it has shown.”

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