CRAIGSVILLE, W.Va. — At just 13 years old, Quinn Raffo, of Nicholas County, has raised thousands of dollars for children in her community without adequate food, especially during the summer months.
The Craigsville native had to fast for more than 24 hours, due to medical reasons, three years ago. During that time, Raffo said she realized how difficult it was to experience true hunger.
“I could only eat jello and popsicles,” Raffo said. She had to fast before a colon procedure.
“I really thought it was going to be awesome, but I got hungry a lot, so I just thought, while I was doing that procedure, I thought of kids who got hungry and couldn’t do anything about it.”
Raffo then created “Hunger Heroes” — a backpack feeding program that relies on donations and volunteers.
“It’s in the summer. It lasts about 10 weeks. Kids come in, they get their bags and it’s filled with breakfast, lunch and snacks for the week,” she explained.
U.S. Cellular awarded Raffo with a $2,000 scholarship for creating a charity to serve others. She was one of four young humanitarians in the nation selected following an online contest. The contest was through the The Future of Good program, which is designed to give young people a voice for their causes. Raffo’s scholarship money will be put toward her “Hunger Heroes” program.
Over the years Raffo has also hosted a car wash where she raised $1,400 and a softball tournament where she collected $1,700.
“That went toward my program — buying the food because that really helps. Any money, I just put toward buying the food,” she said.
Raffo, an eighth grader at Richwood Middle School, said there is a need to serve hungry kids in her area.
“We live in a really poor and rural area, so it’s just hard for them to get food. There’s a lot of kids. We typically have about 20-25 kids that come,” she said.
It costs about $8 to $10 for food for each backpack, Raffo said. The program has been able to provide more than 5,000 meals over the last three summers.
Using her experience to give back to those in need is something Raffo said she’s proud of.
“It feels good,” she said. “I just want anyone to follow their dreams and hope this makes more people want to help out in their community.”
Raffo remains active in the community through 4-H, cross country and track. She is also a member of the Richwood Middle School Marching Band.