PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — A ten-year-old on the First Coast is collecting stuffed animals for children in Ukraine.
Sage Goodall said he got the idea while watching the news about the war. He said he wants children in Ukraine to have something to hug when they're scared.
“I felt very bad because they don’t deserve it," Goodall said. "All they deserve is to have fun and not be sad or scared, so I knew there was something I could do to make the kids feel happy and not sad or scared, collect stuffed animals so when they’re scared or sad, they can hug onto it," he said.
Since the start of the month, Goodall has collected more than 1,000 stuffed animals. He's working with Aspire Church in San Marco, which is periodically bringing donations to Ukraine's border, including the stuffed animals.
Goodall said he won't stop collecting the stuffed animals until the war is over. If you'd like a donation box to put outside of your business or your home, you can contact Goodall's mom, Rhonda Goodall, at goodallrlg@aol.com.
Goodall is also holding a fundraiser at Mr. Chubby's Wings in Ponte Vedra Saturday from 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m. The restaurant is making a special drink and half of every sale of that drink will be given to Goodall to buy more stuffed animals.
There are drop-off locations around the area, including the following spots:
- Aspire Church
- Mr. Chubby's Wings in Ponte Vedra
- PVPV/Rawlings Elementary School
- Emtec Inc
- Trasca & Co Eatery
- The Cabana Beach Club
- Winn-Dixie in Ponte Vedra
- Two Dudes Seafood Restaurant
- Publix in Ponte Vedra
- Flo's Premium Ice Cream
- The Jacksonville Brain Balance Center