Read the entire article here in The Washington Post.

For Chelsea Phaire’s 10th birthday last summer, she asked her guests to bring art supplies instead of gifts. She evenly distributed the crayons, markers, paper and colored pencils into 40 plastic kits, and then she hand-delivered them to a homeless shelter in New York.

“That was really the starting point,” said her mother, Candace Phaire.

After seeing the kids’ happy faces, she wanted to do more. Chelsea pooled her allowance and tooth fairy money, and asked friends and relatives to check out her Amazon wish list. Donations started pouring in.

Between August and March, the Phaires made nearly 900 art kits for shelters and homes in various states. They drove from Danbury, Conn., where they live, to hand-deliver the packages. As part of the in-person deliveries, Chelsea gave an art lesson to the recipients of her kits, including a small presentation on why art is important to her.