Calista

Everyday Hero” for the July/Aug Issue 2011

My Everyday Hero is my 11 year old daughter, Calista. Calista is an incredibly caring young lady who is working very hard to make a difference in the world. From the time she could talk, she has been a little teacher for her older brother, Austin. In 2005, Austin started participating in Special Olympics. Calista was only 5 at the time, but wanted to help out wherever she could. She was her brother’s biggest cheerleader and such a little helper when it came to helping him with his bowling ball for ramp bowling or chasing down softballs during softball throws.

In the fall of 2006, Calista overheard our local Special Olympics management team discussing the loss of their largest annual fundraising event and their worry about having to cut back on the number of athletes they took to regional and state competitions. She also overheard the possibility of not going at all. At only 7 years old, Calista decided she had to help. She gathered her craft supplies and set to work. A month later, she had her first craft sale and it snowballed from there. She decided she would call her fundraising project Calista Cares to help spread the word. She has added bake sales, raffles, candy bar sales and lemonade stands to raise much needed funds. To date, she has raised $11,161.00 for the program and her latest goal is to hit $15,000.00. Calista is also a Special Olympics volunteer and a Unified Partner in bocce and swimming. As a Unified Partner,Calista trains and competes with Special Olympics athletes as her teammates.

In October 2009, Calista decided that in addition to fundraising for Special Olympics, she would also like to fund a wish through Make-A-Wish. The cost of the average wish is $3,400.00 and just before Christmas 2010, Calista was able to fund her first wish! A little girl suffering from neuroblastoma will be traveling to Disney World, Universal Studios, and Sea World thanks to Calista’s hard work. Calista is now working to raise enough money to grant her second wish, which she hopes will happen before June. There is a very special wish that she would like to be able to grant, but she doesn’t have a lot of time to make it happen.

Since the start of Calista Cares, Calista has volunteered over 2,000 hours. She has not only helped Special Olympics and Make-A-Wish, but has also participated in Salvation Army Bell Ringing, food drives for local food pantries, Macy’s Believe! Campaign for Make-A-Wish, Pennies for Patients, Bike Hike to raise money for the Arc of Crawford County, trick-or-treat for UNICEF, Pizza Hut fundraiser night for the American Red Cross, Stuff the Jeep to send care packages to the soldiers, Relay for Life, Stuff the Bus to provide backpacks and school supplies to local children in need, Alex’s Lemonade Stand to help find a cure for pediatric cancer and she donated 15 inches of her hair to Locks of Love. She is planning another hair donation very soon and is currently forming her own Relay for Life team. Calista’s Caring Cuties will be walking 24 hours this June to help find a cure for cancer.

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