IT DOESN'T TAKE A LOT OF WORK TO MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE

KELOWNA – A Mission family is using a novel approach to teach their kids that a small gesture can make a big difference.

Lucy de Haas is only 11 years old but with a little help from her dad and a local pizza shop, last week she managed to raise $363 for the Kelowna Food Bank. What’s most impressive about the donation, says Lucy's dad Harry, is how easy it was to do.

The idea came to him while he was scrambling to put together lunch for his two kids, Harrison and Lucy.

“Whenever I’m tasked with making or delivering lunch, I sometimes default to just swinging by Mr. Mozzarella,” he says.

It was while driving home after making one of those pizza drops that he got the idea to approach the owners of the pizza shop on Lakeshore with a proposition.

“I thought what if I called the owner and asked if they would be willing to donate some pizzas and we’ll use them to raise some money,” he says.

Leon Wojciechowski is one of the owners of Mr. Mozarella on Lakeshore. He jumped at the idea and agreed to donate 12 large cheese pizzas free of charge.

"We heard that the Food Bank was having a hard time getting donations so we thought it was a good idea," Wojciechowski says. "Anything to get young kids involved in helping the community is really important."

Once the commitment to donate the pizzas was made, Harry and Lucy began printing the 90 flyers they needed to inform students at Anne McClaymont Elementary that pizza would be available by donation that Friday.

“On Friday I went by the school and picked up a cheque for $363.73. It was magic," Harry says. "I figured we’d raise maybe a couple hundred bucks."

Harry says he chose the Kelowna Community Food Bank because of their focus on helping locals and their ability to stretch their funds.

“The Food Bank is direct,” he says. “That $363 represents $1000 because they get wholesale prices and have all the connections.”

As for why he decided to involve his daughter, he said he believes kids need to be taught the importance of charity.

“We’re born with a survival instinct not a charity instinct so kids need to be taught how it works," he says. "The Food Bank is thrilled and Lucy learned that it doesn’t take a lot of work to make a big difference.”

To contact the reporter for this story, email Adam Proskiw at aproskiw@infotelnews.ca, call (250) 718-0428 or tweet @AdamProskiw.