JAKE'S STORY

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Hello, my name is Jacob, but many people call me Jake.  I am 13 years old and have been helping the homeless for 10 years.  Here is my story.

It all started on a trip to Austin, Texas, at the age of 3 years old. Jake was like any other 3 year old, curious and adventurous with an excitement for life. We had just had lunch in downtown Austin and decided to walk around and go exploring. At that time, Jacob’s idea of exploring was completely different than ours of course, but he always found a way to connect with our ideas. He noticed many adults sitting and sleeping on the streets, their dirty clothes, dirty hands and feet and became very curious to why they were there.  As his parents, we knew right there that we could ignore or turn this into a teaching moment and we better get it right. We explained to him that there are many people in this world that are homeless for many reasons. He listened carefully to the reasons we described and really internalized them for several days.  Of course, that statement put an onslaught of other questions, one right after another. He was firing them off at us like throwing darts at a board with a curiosity like no other.

At this moment, teaching him became more than just a casual discussion and moving on. He showed us his compassion for these people right then and there with a simple statement of, “Mama, if I had my banana (from the hotel) I would give it to them. I would give them all a banana.” So for the remainder of the trip, he wished he had a bag of bananas to give to each one of them.
Driving back from Austin, he couldn’t stop thinking about all the ways he could help them, the inventions he could make so that they would never be without a home, food, or clothes. This was 5 years ago and now at the age of 8 (going on 21), he continues to have this passion for helping others. In his mind Jake continues to create ideas and inventions to help the homeless, like all his Robot ideas to help grow food, make food, build houses. “One day Mama, I will have enough Robots to help build many homes and feed the homeless so they never have to go without stuff we have.”  We tear up everyday because his generosity is so huge and his compassion for others is relentless. Just last week he told me, “Mama, I know why I am here.” I said, "What do you mean?" He said, "I know why I am on earth.” I said, "Why is that?"  He said, "I am here only to help others. This is why I am here; this is why I was born.”

As mothers we are so happy and proud of Jake and want others to know him, feel his love for life, for others and his entrepreneurial spirit to help others everyday!
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Thank you all for your support! 
Much love,
Jake, Jenny and Kimber