Megan Wallis and Paige Wallis, United Hebrew

Cousins Megan and Paige love to bake. They also hate knowing that so many children go to bed hungry every night. So, for their b’not mitzvah project, they decided to combine their love of baking with helping others.

Daughters of Amy and Barry Wallis and Sally and Corey Wallis, both of Chesterfield, Megan and Paige baked and sold chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies with all the profits going to Share Our Strength, an organization whose mission is to end childhood hunger.

Share Our Strength provides awareness, education, and support to thousands of families in America with the goal of ending childhood hunger by 2015. To meet its goal, the organization calls upon various corporations and individuals to host bake sales across the country to raise money for the cause.

“As part of our effort, we sent e-mails to family and friends and went door-to-door pre-selling baked goods,” the cousins said.  “Several weeks later, we baked, bagged and hand-delivered over 50 dozen cookies, raising $871 for the organization,” they continued.  Duncan Hines then matched each dollar that was submitted in the month of September, thereby doubling their contribution to $1,742.

“We loved doing this project,” said Paige, a student at Parkway Central Middle School. It felt really good to know that we helped make a difference.”  Megan added. “We knew that for every cookie bag we sold, there would be one less starving child. Doing this project again would be fun and we hope to do so next year.”

A student at Parkway West Middle School, Megan participated in a mitzvah project of her own.  She walked in the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Walk in Forest Park last September. She chose to support this organization because a classmate of hers passed away from leukemia.

The walk funds research for people battling blood cancers.

This was Megan’s second year to participate and she raised over $400. She plans to make the walk a yearly event.  

For more information, please visit their web site at www.lightthenight.org.  Visit www.nokidhungary.org for more information about the Share Our Strength organization.