Last night’s Good Sort is a 6-year-old boy who raised more than $7000 for charity by selling his felt-tip masterpieces, muffins and running raffles.
Riley Crook from Wellington began selling his drawings after a health scare several years ago left his family confronting the possibility of cancer.
“I kind of had a lump on my neck,” he said.
The young artist’s mums, Jo and Lee, feared the worst when their doctor searched for a list of causes of the lump.
“The top of the list was absolutely nothing and the very bottom thing was it was a lymphoma,” said Jo.
While it ended up being the former, the scare got Riley and his mums thinking about those who don’t get good news.
“It actually broke my heart, because for some families, that’s their reality,” said Jo.
Not long after, Riley began selling his artwork with all proceeds going to the Child Cancer Foundation.
“One of them, they paid $800 because it was really awesome,” he said.
Since then, Riley has expanded his fundraising efforts.
Among the contributors was a local store owner named Jane, who didn’t hesitate when Riley asked for help.
“I just had to,” she said. “It affects so many of us.”
When Jo was later diagnosed with a heart condition, Riley turned his focus to the Heart Foundation. He sold chocolate bars and raised another $2000.
“My mother used to have a broken heart,” he said. “So I sold chocolate bars.”
Jo has since recovered, and Riley has returned to raising funds for child cancer – this time through bake sales.
“We’ve been blown away by how supportive people are,” Jo said.
