11-Year-Old Collecting Toys For Fairdale Tornado Victims
CHICAGO (CBS) -- In the face of disaster, a Chicago boy's acts of kindness continue to grow. Samuel Love is organizing another toy drive, this time for the victims of last week's deadly tornadoes.
A lot of people like to think helping others is just human nature, but a lot of us have to wait until a certain age to spring into action. At 11 years old, Sam Love has most of us beat.
Sam just couldn't forget the images of homes and lives in and around Fairdale blown apart, so the 5th grader decided to share some love.
"I saw homes that were just torn down to the ground, cars flipped over, trees smashed," he said.
The budding philanthropist has organized a toy drive for the victims of the Fairdale tornado.
It's not the first time he's collected toys for disaster victims. He also sent hundreds of toys to children who weathered their way through Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast in 2012, to kids coping with homes and belongings washed away in the Colorado floods in 2013, and to children affected by tornadoes in Arkansas last year.
"Whenever these types of devastation happen, I would think about the kids that were affected by the storm," he said.
He organized his first toy drive after watching footage of the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy on TV, and realizing children affected by the storm might not get any gifts that Christmas, because their parents couldn't afford it.
Samuel's calls to action are now so powerful, he can hold a press conference at City Hall in Chicago, backed up by an impressive chorus of politicians and businessmen, all listening to an 11-year-old lead the way in times of need.
"He has a service heart, and so that makes him great. He's always concerned and compassionate about other people, and he looks forward to blessing other people," Pastor Keith Williams said.
Sam said he wants to help others in need, "because it just makes me feel better that I know that all these kids are getting what they want."
He hasn't collected toys only for victims of natural disasters far from his home. Sam also collected about 3,000 toys for homeless children in Englewood this past Christmas.
The toy drive runs through May 24. New unwrapped toys can be brought to Josephine's (Capt. Hard Times) Restaurant, at 436 E. 79th St.; or Beasley Elementary School, at 5255 S. State St.; or the Studio Movie Grill Chatham Theater, at 210 W. 87th St.