10-year-old Max Whitehead and his family.

10-year-old boy, Max Whitehead, took the initiative to organize a 120 person fundraiser held at Legion Hall in Sudbury, Ontario. The funds were raised as a goodbye gift for the Whitehead’s sponsored child who has grown up in extreme poverty in Nicaragua.

“I want to make a difference in Wilford’s (their sponsored child) and his family’s life, and I just need you to arrange for the hall,” said Max. And that is exactly what his mother, Marie Whitehead did. “We are very proud of Max, especially since it was all his idea,” she says.

The Whiteheads have sponsored Wilford Picado in Nicaragua for the past 11 years through Christian Children’s Fund of Canada (CCFC). This sponsorship allowed Wilford to get an education, receive medical assistance, access clean drinking water and more.

The sponsored child is now 14 years old, and because of the Whiteheads, and other Canadian supporters, the community in Nicaragua where Wilford lives has become self-sufficient and no longer needs charitable assistance.

Max feels very connected to Wilford due to the letters they have shared back and forth over the past 11 years, that he is passionate about sending Wilford off with a final goodbye gift—thus the fundraiser. Max wanted to invite a lot of people and needed a location that could accommodate them. So, he thought the Legion Hall would be the perfect place to host it as the 10-year-old had been there before and had a great time. Max started writing his guest list and it has turned into a full fledge fundraiser.

"It’s an admirable gesture from Max who is only 10 years old," says Ian Robertson, spokesperson, CCFC. "It’s this kind of effort that helps to break the cycle of extreme poverty around the world."