Two Boys Who Aren't All About 'Me-Me-Me'

Birthday, Bar Mitzvah Gifts Help Others

Two upcounty youths celebrating milestones this month used the occasions to show that it really is better to give than to receive.

For his eighth birthday party, Chance Leo of Germantown asked for donations to Shady Grove Adventist Hospital instead of presents. He raised $350 for the Rockville facility's pediatric unit.

And Andrew Fink of Gaithersburg decided to take the giving component of his upcoming bar mitzvah to a higher level, collecting more than $1,500 to fund a basketball tournament for Israeli and Palestinian youths.

The roughly 20 people who celebrated Chance's birthday each gave $10 to $25, said his mother, Diane Leo. At the "helping hands" party, guests made handprints and signed a banner for the pediatric unit. They ate cake decorated with multicolored plastic hands and received small stuffed versions of the unit's mascot, a golden retriever named Sunny, from the hospital's foundation.

"One day, me and my mom were watching Oprah, and there was this kid who donated all these presents to people who needed things, so I said we should have a donation party," Chance said last week after touring the pediatric unit with his parents and 2-year-old sister, Faith.

Chance, an animal lover, became interested in giving to charities after seeing an episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" that depicted puppy mills. However, he chose a hospital for his gift because he wanted to help other kids, Diane Leo said.

"We raised Chance that way, that you give, and if you don't have a lot to give, every little bit helps," she said. "This is not something you force on a child, because there's going to be resentment, and they're not going to get it."

Nancy Shulman, executive assistant at the hospital foundation, said she was not aware of any other donations from a child's birthday party.

"It's awesome, especially in this day and age, when kids are so me-me-me, to have them do something for others," she said.

Youths preparing for their bar or bat mitzvahs complete service projects to help them in their spiritual growth. Many donate a portion of the money they receive from friends and relatives to charity, said Andrew Fink's mother, Amy Fink.

Andrew, who will turn 13 on Jan. 31, took the call to service even further: He organized a youth three-on-three basketball tournament in Gaithersburg this month.

The money raised, $1,500, went to PeacePlayers International, a nonprofit group that organizes youth basketball tournaments in historically divided communities such as Northern Ireland, South Africa, Cyprus and New Orleans. Andrew's efforts will fund two tournaments in the Middle East for Israeli and Palestinian youths.

"I really felt the connection there," said Andrew, who plays league basketball.

He rented a gymnasium, printed fliers, recruited teams, found sponsors, enlisted cheerleaders, collected entry fees and recruited a neighbor to design T-shirts for the 29 players. He also organized a pizza night at Potomac Pizza in Kentlands, where 20 percent of purchases went to the Washington-based nonprofit group. He said he plans to donate some of his own money as well.

"I feel like I've accomplished something," he said.

PeacePlayers donated prizes for the winning teams, and Andrew's parents provided some organizational help. But he was the driving force and did most of the work.

"It's a fine line. As a parent I wanted him to do it himself, and he really rolled up his sleeves," Amy Fink said. "The greatest pleasure was afterwards he was like, 'Wow, I just did that.' A 13-year-old can make a difference in the world."