Young people often get a bad rap. However, kids and teens perform good deeds all around us, every day. Recently, one such group of high school students received some much-deserved attention for shoveling snow for someone who needed a hand.
Learn about these and other selfless children and young adults who noticed the needs of others and stepped up to help, not seeking anything in return.
Students Shoveled Driveway For Dialysis Patient
Natalie Blair is a New Jersey woman who depends upon dialysis to survive. Brian Lanigan is an EMT and a neighbor of Blair who shoveled her driveway following a recent storm. When another storm was on the way and Brian had to work, he encouraged his brother Patrick to pitch in. Patrick rallied some of his classmates and, together, they cleared the woman’s driveway at 4:30 in the morning.
The boys’ father, Peter Lanigan, tweeted photos of the boys, calling them “Snow Angels disguised as PHS Srs.”
For many kids, a snow day is a day to chill out or have fun. However, some members of the Lomira High School wrestling team from Lomira, Wisconsin, turned a snow day into a day of service. The teens touched the hearts of their community when they spent their day off clearing paths and driveways after nearly a foot of snow fell.
In Colorado, a half dozen teenagers snuck out in the wee hours, but they weren’t getting into trouble. Instead, they got up and shoveled the snow off all of the driveways and sidewalks in their neighborhood — the entire block. When people woke up, they found clear paths and notes on the door stating, “You’ve been served.”
Group Of Teens Dig Neighbors Out After A Snowstorm
A group of kids who participate in the Waterbury, Connecticut Police Athletic League pitched in on a snow day. With no school, the teens kept busy shoveling snow for elderly and disabled people in their community. The PAL officers who work with the youth shuttled the group, who called themselves “The Waterbury PAL Shovel Brigade.” Getty Images | Scott Olson
Teen Makes Mom Stop The Car So He Can Shovel Snow
Tommy Adams and his mother were heading home from the DMV when the high school senior suddenly urged his mom to stop the car. Tommy had seen an older man trying to shovel snow while using a walker. A plow had piled the snow in the man’s driveway, preventing him from leaving his home.
“I try to do good for the elderly because one day I may need help too,” Tommy told WTVR.
Kids Come Together To Replace A Classmate’s Stolen Property
When someone stole the Nintendo 3DS XL of California high school student Shawn Hawkins, he was devastated. The game console had been a gift from Shawn’s late grandmother. Some of Shawn’s classmates were moved and decided to take action.
With the help of a teacher, they collected money and purchased a new Nintendo for their friend. While it wasn’t the one his grandmother had given him, the act of kindness meant the world to the teen.
Melissa Vang of Sacramento, California, installed a security camera as a means of protection, but it actually captured video of a young person doing a good deed. Tyler Opdyke was passing out flyers when he found a wallet filled with cash in Vang’s driveway. After ringing the doorbell in an attempt to hand someone the wallet, Opdyke tucked it under Vang’s welcome mat. The wallet contained credit cards and more than $1,000 in cash.
In a similar story, three siblings from Aurora, Colorado, were playing outside when they noticed a wallet in a neighbor’s driveway. When they rang the homeowner’s driveway, they were greeted by the doorbell camera’s automated message. They explained why they were there and hid the wallet near the door.
Rapid snowmelt and rainfall caused severe flooding in the southern Wisconsin town of Lodi in March 2019. Dozens of students from Lodi High School piled onto buses and headed downtown to fill sandbags. The teen volunteers stayed well into the night, working to protect their community from the floodwaters.
Teen Saved For Two Years To Help A Friend
Tanner Wilson and Brandon Qualls both attend Caddo Hills High School in Norman, Arkansas. Until recently, Brandon, who has cerebral palsy, had to navigate the halls of the school in a manual wheelchair. While working at a small mechanic shop after school, Tanner saved up cash for two years to buy a new wheelchair. He surprised his friend with the motorized chair, which teachers helped personalize with flames and Brandon’s name.
12-Year-Old Starts A School
Leonardo Nicanor Quinteros has always been a good student. His love of learning caused him to become concerned for some of his peers in Argentina, where he lives, who had fallen behind in classes or didn’t attend at all, instead spending their time on the streets. With the help of his grandmother, Quinteros started a free private school, and he rides his bike 20 minutes each day to teach a group of about 40 kids.
Siblings Quinn and Nate Mitchell were planning a joint party for their 10th and 12th birthdays. Together, they invited 50 kids to the event, asking them not to bring any presents. Instead, the group from upstate New York put together 900 sandwiches, which the siblings delivered to a nearby homeless shelter.
Eight-year-old Addie Perry is another child who chose charity over presents for her birthday. The Bryan, Texas, girl couldn’t think of anything she needed or wanted for her birthday. Instead, her dad helped her design T-shirts reading, “Play It Forward: Addie’s Gift,” which friends and family members could purchase online. Half of the proceeds from the $10 shirts went to a charity for victimized and abused children.
Eight-Year-Old Starts A Charity
When Jahkil Naeem Jackson was just 8, he helped his aunt distribute food to the homeless and his heart was touched. Wanting to make a difference, the boy came up with the idea of “Blessing Bags” filled with necessities such as socks, deodorant and toothbrushes. At age 11, Jahkil runs Project I Am and is a motivational speaker, and he continues to give out Blessing Bags.
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Middle-Schooler Saves Classmates’ Lives
It was a seemingly ordinary school day. Fourteen-year-old Cory Lewis was riding the school bus home when a car slammed into the bus. The bus driver was knocked unconscious and fell out of her seat, so Cory sprang into action. He hit the brake just before the bus careened into a ditch, potentially saving the lives of the 50 students on board.
Philadelphia teenager Dejour Williams built a successful business for himself mowing lawns in his community. He decided to use his experience to help change the life of someone else. Dejour saved up enough to purchase a second lawn mower, which he gifted to provide income for a man named Hosea Twiggs, who is transitioning from homelessness.
Cape Crusading Teens Perform Random Acts Of Kindness
Some superheroes leap from tall buildings or save the world from alien attacks. Others perform random acts of kindness. High school juniors Zade Abdullah and Kyle Nutt dressed up in heroic costumes and roamed their community doing nice things for deserving people, such as giving flowers to nursing home residents or purchasing food for a homeless man.
One October day, Arlington, Washington, students noticed something missing on their way to school. For five years, 93-year-old Louise Edlen would wave to the children’s bus through her window, but she wasn’t there that day or for several days to come. The kids learned that Edlen, whom they’d nicknamed the “grandma in the window,” had suffered a stroke. They made her a sign with a picture of the children waving through the bus window, which her husband said meant the world to her.
When Ohio teenager Chad Long learned about a missing 91-year-old man, he helped the best way he knew how. Jumping on his ATV, Chad covered rough ground that was difficult to reach for those on foot and in traditional vehicles. Long eventually found the man, whose shirt was caught on a fence, and immediately got help.
High schoolers Jacob Thompson and Jacob Monroe were heading to McDonald’s on their bicycles. When they came across a man who had gotten out of his wheelchair and onto his knees to pull weeds in his yard, they had to stop and help. The boys filled a wagon with weeds before leaving.
A thrift store shopper noticed a young man purchasing a stack of coats and asked what they were for. Nineteen-year-old Fred White stated that he bought them to give to homeless people. The Canton, Ohio, teen said later that he was inspired after seeing someone else in his community hanging coats outside for those in need.
When viewing footage from a real-time webcam, 18-year-old Eileen Eagle Bears and her mother noticed a semi-truck stuck in the Manitoba, Canada, snow and wanted to help. Eileen filled a Thermos with coffee, jumped on her horse and rode six miles to bring the stranded driver some warmth and encouragement. She returned later with hot stew before the driver was able to leave.
Eighteen-year-old David Gullette ran into a burning house in his Philadelphia neighborhood without a second thought. When he came out, he was carrying the 4- and 5-year-old children who lived in the home. After getting them to safety, he knocked on neighbors’ doors to warn them to move to a safer spot.
Driving home from school one day, California teen Rhami Zeini noticed something unusual. The 16-year-old discovered a purse in the road. Not just any purse, but one carrying $10,000 in cash. He immediately got his parents, who took him to the sheriff’s department. Authorities quickly found the grateful owner of the handbag.
Dover, New Hampshire, resident Catina Wagner’s multiple sclerosis was progressing, making it difficult for her to get around. A group of young volunteers stepped up to build a wheelchair ramp for her home. The teens labored for a week, not even stopping during a torrential downpour until the ramp was complete.
John Lopez, Jr., was working his shift as a cashier at Walmart when a customer started crying. The 19-year-old learned that the woman didn’t have enough money to pay for her groceries. The teen’s heart was touched and he paid the shopper’s $110 bill out of his own pocket.
“My parents basically taught me if someone needs help you should be able to help them and if someone is down, bring them up,” he told People.
Clara Daly and her mom were on a flight from Boston to California when a flight attendant asked if anyone knew sign language. Clara let the attendant know she’d been studying ASL. When the airline employee escorted the teen to another passenger, who was blind as well as deaf, Clara began signing into the man’s hand and spent the remainder of the flight at his side.
Students Donate Class Trip Money To Ailing Principal
Some things are more important than your senior class trip. Students at Profile Junior-Senior High School in Bethlehem, New Hampshire, decided that “something” was their principal’s health. The students handed principal Courtney Vashaw a check for $8,000. The teens considered Vashaw, who is battling a rare soft-tissue cancer, a supportive, caring leader and role model.
Student Starts Garden Movement To Feed Hungry People
When she was just a third grader, Katie Stagliano took part in her school’s gardening project and planted cabbage. One of the leafy greens grew to a whopping 40 pounds and she donated it to a local soup kitchen. Her experience sparked a movement. Katie created a garden on a plot of land donated by the school and started Katie’s Krops, helping other communities learn how to grow food to end hunger.
A Utah family’s Ring doorbell captured a Halloween occurrence that was no trick. Unable to hand out candy, the Milnes placed a bowl of treats on the porch. When a group of children approached, they found the bowl empty. Fourteen-year-old Rayce Arbon dumped his entire bag of goodies into the bowl, saying, “Do a good deed every day.”
Tricia Goss is a Texas-based writer and editor with nearly two decades of experience. She is passionate about helping readers improve their skills, gain knowledge and attain more happiness in life. When she’s not working, Tricia enjoys traveling with her husband and their dog, especially to visit their five grandchildren.
