This Tri-Cities 9-year-old has raised nearly $1,000 to help Ukrainian refugees
What started with a Richland girl worried about the invasion of Ukraine has turned into dozens of sugar cookies and nearly $1,000 to help refugees.
About a week ago, Sage Egbert, 9, couldn’t sleep because she was worried about the Russian invasion and what it would mean for the people living in the country.
Her mother, Sara Egbert, noticed she was still awake and they started talking about what was bothering her. They came up with an idea to make cookies and sell them on the corner.
Then Sara suggested putting them up for sale on Facebook. They weren’t expecting the response.
“Everyone was like, ‘I want three dozen,’ or ‘I want four,’ or I want one,” Sage said.
By Friday afternoon, they had orders for 60 dozen cookies sold at $10 per dozen. As word spread, some people donated extra and others from out of Washington state, simply wanted their cookies given to police officers, firefighters, hospitals or the mail carrier.
“She gave a dozen to the garbage collector,” Sara said. “Then we’re going to ship some ... to Utah and we’re shipping some to Oregon.”
Sage also hopes to deliver some of the cookies to Ukraine and perhaps give a taste to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“What if we gave a little tiny crumb to him, and he would be like, ‘Hmm. That’s good. Stop the war. Stop everything. We must eat cookies,’” she said.
Cookie baking
They started baking on Tuesday afternoon and had some of Sage’s friends come over to decorate. A counter full of yellow and blue cookies — the colors of the Ukrainian flag — were sitting on plates ready for delivery Friday afternoon.
Along with the ones Sage had made, others have brought over already finished cookies for decorating.
The Jefferson Elementary student feels good being about to help people who are suffering.
“A lot of people in my school said, ‘Oh, kids can’t do anything,’” she said. “I wanted to prove them wrong.”
This isn’t the only time Sage has tried to help others, Sara said. She likes to do anything she can to help people.
They both know people in the Ukraine, and it’s hard to see the war going on.
“I think the thing that’s really neat with this too is that it’s bringing people a lot of hope,” she said. “It brings me a lot of hope and her a lot of hope because it does feel kind of like a hopeless situation.”
People interested in getting cookies can contact Sara at Saratree@gmailcom.
Family connection
The money they are raising is going to help with efforts in Corvallis, Ore., to help their sister city Uzhhorod in Ukraine. Sage’s grandmother, Alice Rampton, is helping with raising money.
The donations are for a special fund as part of the Corvallis sister cities association aimed at helping refugees in that area.
“Because Uzhhorod is located in the most western region of Ukraine, thousands of refugees are fleeing each day to our sister city,” the association said.
About 70,000 refugees have either passed through or ended up in the city, and the people there are trying to provide
The fund will provide food water, medical supplies, clothing, and bedding to help people
People can find more information about the sister cities program and their fundraising efforts at the Corvallis Sister Cities Association Facebook page or website.
This story was originally published March 15, 2022 at 10:46 AM.