Eleven-year-old Ruby Kate Chitsey loves asking the question"If you could have any three things, what would you want?" at nursing homes in Harrison. Even more amazing, she then sets out to make the residents who live in the nursing home realize their dreams.
Last May, Ruby Kate noticed a resident named Pearl staring out a window. She seemed sad. "What are you looking at?' Ruby Kate asked. Pearl said her dog was led away by his new owner because she couldn't afford to raise it. Ruby Kate and her mother, Amanda, asked around and discovered that many nursing home residents are unable to afford even the smallest luxuries. So Ruby Kate decided to do something about it.
She started by asking residents what three things they wanted most in the world. Amanda worried that people would ask for cars and other things an 11-year-old wouldn't be able to provide . Instead, they asked for chocolate bars, McDonald fries, pants that ft properly and even just prayer. Using heir own money, the Chitseys granted the wishes of about 100 people in three months. Then they started asking for donations.
The good people of Harrison responded enthusiastically, so much so hat Amanda set up a GoFundMe page, Three Wishes for Ruby's Residents, hoping to collect %5,000. They hit their goal in a month. After GoFundMe named Ruby Kate a Kid Hero and promoted her story internationally this past January, Three Wishes raised $20,000 in 24 hours and more than $250,000 in five months.
Earlier this year, Three Wishes for Ruby's Residents became a nonprofit and launched its first nationwide chapters. Ruby Kate doesn't plan to stop there. "I consider kindness to be my hobby," she says,"and I'm very good at it."
