By Matt Trotman
AFTER hearing the story of a young boy in need, 11yearold Stephen Sell decided to act.
With a little help from family and friends the Nar Nar Goon boy organised a fruit stall and raffle at a local farmers market to raise some money for an important cause.
The cause was Ben Horsburgh, a sevenyearold who suffers from a rare condition known as bladder exstrophy.
Ben’s family must raise $300,000 to travel to the United States for a lifechanging operation.
Stephen said it was an easy decision to help Ben out.
“I had to complete a fundraising section for my compass award and after hearing Ben’s story I decided to organise the stall,” he said. “I thought it was a very worthy cause.”
Stephen said the highlight of the day was having Ben and his family attend the market.
“Ben came down with his parents and grandparents and his sister,” Stephen said.
“His grandma and grandpa were crying because they couldn’t believe someone was so keen to help out.”
Stephen’s role on the day included collecting items to be raffled, selling fruit from the stall, and raise awareness of Ben’s condition.
The stall was a success, raising nearly $1000. But according to Stephen’s mother, Linda, it also raised awareness of Ben’s plight.
“Since the market lots of people have been coming forward wanting to help out,” Ms Sell said. “It’s early days but we have the ball rolling.”
After the success of the first stall Stephen has plans to raise more money for the Horsburgh family.
“I grow my own zucchinis so I will probably donate some of the profits from those,” he said. “We will also place a tin on our stall at the Farmers’ Market because every little bit helps.”
For information or to donate contact Annie Kracht on 5997 5635 or 0417 013 702.