FOODFORTHOUGHT

One day l2 year old Craig Keilburger read in the local paper the story of another l2 year old a world away, Iqbal Masih, a Pakistani boy whose struggling parents had sold him into slavery when he was only 4. Masih spent six years shackled to a carpet loom until, at the age of 10, he escaped and began to campaign against child labor. Masih proved to be a riveting spokesman, perhaps too riveting. Two years later he was shot to death while riding his bike.

Masih’s story had a profound impact on Craig. “I looked at my life and his life,” Craig remembers, “and I was shocked at the difference.” Surprised to learn that no organization existed to fight child slavery, Craig asked his classmates to help. Using his family’s den as a headquarters, Craig and his 50 Toronto classmates spent that summer writing letters to political leaders and circulating petitions challenging companies to steer clear of child labor. When the kids needed cash for postage and supplies, they sold their old toys and clothes at garage sales.

That was ten years ago. The group that Craig formed in his parents’ den has grown into Free the Children, an international organization with 5,000 members in 20 countries. Free the Children not only assists local authorities in closing down illegal sweatshops, but also raises money to build schools and help poor families end the practice of selling their children.

When he was l6, Craig Keilburger continued to work for the 250 million kids around the world who are forced to weave carpets, pick crops or even work as prostitutes l2 hours a day. In his book “Free the Children” and the award winning documentary “It Takes a Child” the teenager says that the plight of enslaved children “makes you want to cry or scream. But you have to funnel your anger into action.” Being too young to vote doesn’t mean too young to help other people. “People say we’re the leaders of tomorrow, but we’re the leaders of today. There’s a feeling that shoots through your veins and out your fingers when you do good.” (People, May l0, l999.)

Christ has called all of us to exhibit this kind of generosity and selflessness, young and old, as He did on the cross. All you kids out there, BE ALL THAT YOU CAN BE - AND DO IT NOW!

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