Youth power

You're never too young. Four kids from Resurrection Lutheran Church, Ooltewah, Tenn., prove that point — especially when it comes to helping others.

Stuffed animals arrive at the Tri-Community Volunteer Fire Department. Young members of Resurrection Lutheran Church, Ooltewah, Tenn., donated the toys so firefighters can use them to comfort children in emergency situations.Last spring, Brad and Bria Miller, Tessa Sentell and Mary Jo Swearingen, then 5-year-olds, collected $428 from parishioners to buy stuffed animals. The toys will help firefighters comfort children in emergency
situations.

Brad brought this idea to the church's youth director, Kathy Bonham, saying he had heard of a family whose house had burned down and he wanted to help children feel better when something like that happened. Bonham worked with Brad's class to gather and decorate jars for collecting coins.