McKinley messaged us at Nash FM to tell us about this AWESOME bake sale going on, and she and her younger brother Coleton raise so much money for the St. Jude Runners every year! I can’t tell you the story better than McKinley can, so here’s what she wrote!
Hi there, my name is McKinley Zobrist. I have an awesome event going on this weekend and wanted to know if you can help me get the word out! 9 years ago we started a bake sale in Congerville, Il to raise money for St. Jude. At the time my brother and I were 6 and 2. When my brother was one, he was referred to St. Jude because of some abnormal blood work. While there my parents met the most amazing people, including a St. Jude patient named Laura. Laura was the first face they met. She opened the door to the clinic and took my brother under her wing. She played with him and took him around the clinic. While she was doing that my parents had the opportunity to net her mom as well as some other parents. It was in that moment that they realized what an amazing place we were in. They took us into their family within moments of meeting them. They prayed with us and made sure we knew we were in the very best place we could be. Our parents got called back to see the doctor who reviewed Coleton’s case and reassured us that he was fine. He did not need St. Jude. They were so thankful. When we went to leave Laura’s mom came up to us, without knowing what we were told. She gave us a big hug and told us they would be praying for us. It was in that moment that a part of my mom’s heart stayed at St. Jude. She could hardly hold back the tears because she knew that we didn’t have to come back and here she was praying for us while her daughter was fighting for her life.
Fast forward a few years. Coleton and I had a very small bake sale at a garage sale and earned 20.00. We were so excited to decide what to buy. On the way home we saw the Memphis to Peoria runners and Coleton started asking questions. Mom shared the story from when he was younger, and he decided he wanted to give his money to the kids of St. Jude. So we walked out to 150 in Congerville and he handed his money to the runners. They were so thankful for this small amount, and they made such a big deal about it. While walking home Coleton told my mom he wanted to do something bigger because he wanted to raise more money to give the runners next year. So, after lots of planning, the Kids Helping Kids Bake Sale was born. It has been run every year with the help of our parents. Our first year we raised over $1,000. Every year our sale has grown. As of right now, we have raised over $38,000 for St. Jude. This year is our big 10-year anniversary, and we are hoping to raise our total to over $50,000!!! Our town is very small (only 500 people), but they’re so generous and giving. Our sale is on Aug 5th at Main Street Mercantile starting at 8:00 am. We go until around 1 pm, when the Memphis to Peoria runner come though Congerville. They stop at a church right outside of town, where we meet them and give our donations then. We have so many baked goods. Breakfast items, cookies, muffins, bars, whole pies, and so much more. We would love to share our story and hopefully have more people attend our sale. St. Jude has such a special place in our hearts!
How can you NOT make these plans after reading that! It’s amazing how St. Jude is such an inspiring place, that it inspired two small children to create something so huge! Thanks for sharing your story, McKinley, and if anyone gets a sweet tooth on Saturday (or even if you don’t), stop by Congerville and support these kids! These are the type of people who will change the world, one delicious baked good at a time!
