Gaithersburg, MD – November 18, 2020 – When it comes to standing up to help his community, 7-year-old Cavanaugh Bell, Chief Positivity Creator of the nonprofit Cool & Dope, is the first to spring into action. To celebrate his upcoming 8th birthday, on November 20, Cavanaugh will be kicking off a full week of philanthropy, culminating in a large Thanksgiving Care Pack distribution on Wednesday, November 25 in partnership with Sprouts Farmers Market and the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation.
From 3 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Cavanaugh will lead his team of kid positivity creators in Gaithersburg to service more than 100 families in need. The Thanksgiving Care Packs will include a variety of fresh produce from Sprouts Farmers Market, loaves of bread from Maryland-based H&S Bakery, and hygiene items.
The partnership came about through the Foundation’s generous $10,000 food credit donation presented to Cavanaugh on World Kindness Day by Drew Barrymore on the November 13 episode of The Drew Barrymore Show.
“Giving back makes me feel really beautiful inside and with my birthday coming up, I want to help even more. So, I’m getting kids together for Thanksgiving to help people who are in need because with love we’ll get through this pandemic together,” Cavanaugh shared in a recent interview at his home.
“Cavanaugh’s efforts to help support his community during the pandemic are truly inspiring,” said Lyndsey Waugh, executive director of the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation. “When young people are empowered to take action – and the broader community steps up to support their leadership – our world becomes a better place. It is truly our pleasure to help Cavanaugh with fresh, healthy produce for every Care Pack and wish him a happy birthday on behalf of our entire team at Sprouts!”
The Maryland second grader has also garnered recognition for his bullying prevention and pandemic outreach work from a number of notable celebrities and public figures, including Barbra Streisand, Jimmy Fallon, and Romeo Miller. Cavanaugh has supported more than 10,000 individuals in his community and recently provided critical COVID supplies and food to over 1,000 families on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, one of the poorest communities in North America.
About Cool & Dope
Cool & Dope is a kid-led nonprofit, started by then six-year-old Cavanaugh Bell who after being bullied and told that he was too young to volunteer set out to prove to the world that anyone can have an impact. By speaking with federal, state and local lawmakers, raising awareness about the effects of bullying, and by spreading acts of kindness in his many kid-inspired community campaigns, Cavanaugh and his tribe of Positivity Creators are on a mission to end all bullying worldwide by 2030.
About Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation
Founded in 2015, the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation aims to inspire, educate, and empower individuals, especially children, to live healthier lives. With a focus on nutrition education and fresh food access, our nonprofit partners teach children both how to grow and prepare fresh foods, as well as why such foods are important to their bodies. Knowing that kids who learn these lessons from a young age are more likely to grow up eating healthier food as adults, we reach children at every stage of development, providing hands-on learning and tasting of fresh fruits and vegetables as they grow. Sprouts Farmers Market covers all of our operational expenses, ensuring that every dollar raised goes directly to programming.
About Sprouts Farmers Market, Inc.
True to its farm-stand heritage, Sprouts offers a unique grocery experience featuring an open layout with fresh produce at the heart of the store. Sprouts inspires wellness naturally with a carefully curated assortment of better-for-you products paired with purpose-driven people. The healthy grocer continues to bring the latest in wholesome, innovative products made with lifestyle-friendly ingredients such as organic, plant-based and gluten-free. Headquartered in Phoenix, and one of the fastest growing retailers in the country, Sprouts employs approximately 35,000 team members and operates more than 350 stores in 23 states nationwide. To learn more about Sprouts, and the good it brings communities, visit about.sprouts.com.
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