CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Drake Middleton, 10, made it his holiday mission to collect hundreds of sleeping bags to give to the homeless in his community.
For several weeks this month, the young boy gathered donations at school for new or gently used sleeping bags.
He said the idea first came about after a recent family camping trip in 30-degree weather. He said, in that moment, he could only imagine what those experiencing homelessness must feel.
“I imagine they felt cold and scared in the dark and I just want to make them happy,” Middleton said.
In all, Middleton saif they managed to collect 153 sleeping bags. Some of them have already been delivered to those in need. Middleton said the response was well worth it.
“They were really happy and one of them almost cried,” he said.
Since October 2019, there have reportedly been more than 3,000 people experiencing homelessness in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg County area.
Middleton planned to deliver the rest of the sleeping bags to the homeless on Saturday. He’s also already looking forward to next year when he says he hopes to surpass his goal and collect more than 200 sleeping bags next time around.