CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Pa. — A Mechanicsburg first-grader, Holden Shirley was influenced to give back after seeing his school bus driver delivering lunches to kids that don't have food.
When he got back home, Holden brainstormed with his parents. His dad, Scoot, mentioned a national campaign "Run Against Hunger." Holden wasn't too keen on running so he changed it up to "Ride for Hunger," using the fundraising platform Pledge It. Holden Shirley's goal was to ride his bike for 25 miles and raise $1,000 to donate to No Kid Hungry, a national campaign that strives to eliminate hunger and poverty around the world.
Due to school closures, an estimated 975,000,000 student meals have been missed so far since stay-at-home orders were enforced.
“It just made me really sad and I didn’t want them to be really hungry so I just wanted to give them more food because they usually eat from school," said Holden.
Holden surpassed his goal. He earned $1,500 for No Kid Hungry who will be able to provide 10 meals for every $1 Shirley raised, equating to 15,000 meals.
PepsiCo and The PepsiCo Foundation has committed to matching all donations to No Kid Hungry until April 30, including Holden's $1,500. With this, Holden will have helped to provide $3,000 or 30,000 meals to kids in need.
But Holden wasn't finished. He had so much fun giving back that Holden extend his campaign until May 11th, which just happens to be Holden's 7th birthday, and also a new goal of 100-miles. You can help support Holden by donating here.