You’ve come to expect it from us, right? From our annual Mustache-a-Thon to our 24-Hour Theater event to our, ahem, robot store, the Liberty Street Robot Supply & Repair, our organization seems inextricably linked to the idea of making money in original, unusual, and/or hilarious ways.

And now, it seems, we’ve inspired our students and volunteers to do the same. Take Sofi St. John, for instance. She’s been coming to our workshops for a couple of years now. A few weeks ago, she celebrated her twelfth birthday (which actually happened in April), with a party. Sofi asked that her guests bring donations to 826michigan instead of presents. In total, she helped us acquire: $35, paper towels, stamps, colored cardstock, pencils, cleaning supplies, and some index cards.

Here’s Sofi:

And here’s what she had to say about her party:

“I just started the donation party a couple of years ago. My friend Katie had a party and she collected bike helmets and elbow pads for a local charity. I thought it was a really good idea. I had done other charity events but I never thought to have my friends brings things for someone else instead of me. I wanted to help someone but I really did not know what to do. My mom told me about this library she knew of in New Orleans that was damaged during Hurricane Katrina. Since I love to read it made me sad to think about all those ruined books. I had a big party and my classmates helped me collect fifty-five books! This made me feel really good so I wanted to do a charity party again. Last year I had a regular party but I used my birthday money to adopt a manatee named Dana. That was really cool! I even have pictures of her. Finally, I wanted to help you guys out. 826 is one of my favorite places and I wanted to do something to help out. Most of my friends think it is really cool but one was really surprised that I did not want presents.”

Pretty impressive, right? We have such a wonderful group of thoughtful students! Many thanks to Sofi for her generous heart and great ideas. Sofi: Happy birthday! We’re glad you were born!

And Sofi isn’t the only young person to donate to 826michigan! Our good friend Arthur Nusbaum, who taught us an awful lot of interesting stuff about William S. Burroughs over the weekend, has a son, Caleb, who just celebrated his Bar Mitzvah. Caleb gave a very generous part of his Bar Mitzvah gifts to 826michigan. Thanks to Caleb!

Former volunteers are doing their part too. Take, for example, Josh Fischel. Josh, one of our funniest and most creative volunteers, moved last year, regardless of our pleas begging him to stay. I mean, look at this guy:

He’s clearly the type of person you want around! Well, no surprise, someone snatched him up, and this August, he’s getting married. He and Cameren decided to give their wedding guests the option of donating to 826michigan for their wedding presents. Thanks to Josh and Cameren, and congratulations!

Want to donate to 826michigan? It’s easy! You can also visit our online store!