Teen Siblings Donate Savings to Goodwill!

Katie and Adam Kessler seem like pretty traditional suburban teenage kids. They go to school and do their homework, they enjoy listening to music and hanging out with their friends and they love watching their favorite shows on TV. But to Goodwill of Greater Washington, these two kids are anything but traditional. On December 20th, Katie and Adam walked through the front door of Goodwill’s headquarters in northeast Washington , DC and brought with them a check for $147 made out to Goodwill. They had been putting away money weekly in what is called a “Tzedakah Box”, which is part of an ancient Jewish tradition of giving. Katie and Adam along with their mother, Leslie, were given a tour of the Goodwill facilities and had an opportunity to speak with Charlie Sheets, a Goodwill employee who is also a graduate of Goodwill’s job training programs. After hearing from Charlie about how Goodwill changed his life, Katie and Adam said they had a greater understanding of what it means to “donate to Goodwill”, a phrase they had heard often while growing up in Bethesda , MD. Their grandfather is a past Board Chairman for Goodwill of the Chesapeake in Baltimore , MD. He and his wife taught their children the value of giving back to the community, and now their daughter, Leslie, along with her husband, Joe, is teaching that same lesson to their children. As a result of their efforts, Katie and Adam now have a better understanding of the importance of Goodwill’s mission. As Charlie said when he met these two amazing young teens, “I know adults who don’t make the effort you made. You’re good kids, and you must have great parents."

On behalf of all the people who will be helped by the generous donation of Katie and Adam Kessler and the matching gift provided by their parents, we’d like to say, “thank you”!