This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

'Determined Little Guy' Moved to Action at the Sight of Kids Living in Cars

Kindergartner Vincent Temple set his mind to making a difference, and on Tuesday, he received an official commendation from DuPage County Board.

Like many Sunday nights, Kate Temple and her family watched 60 Minutes over the Thanksgiving weekend.

“The segment they showed was really great,” she said. “It was so powerful in that it showed these homeless families, many of them with little kids, who were living in cars.”

The families were from Florida, and many of the kids had to shower at hospitals or gas stations before going to school.

Find out what's happening in Elmhurstwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

As she was tucking in her youngest son, Vincent, that night, he told her, “Mom, I think we should help those kids in Florida.”

“None of us really knew how much Vincent was paying attention,” Temple said. “I think it really impacted him.”

Find out what's happening in Elmhurstwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The next day, she received an email from Vincent’s kindergarten teacher at Patricia Fox.

“I guess he told the kids in great detail about these kids in Florida who really needed their help, that he was doing a food drive, and that they needed to go home and tell their moms to bring cans,” Temple said. “I didn’t know anything about it until his teacher contacted me and said, ‘I think you should know about this.’ And people started bringing cans. It was amazing.”

Before long, kids at Visitation School, where Vincent attends afternoon kindergarten, also got into the act.

Despite the fact that there were other food drives going on at the same time, Temple says the community’s generosity was overwhelming.

“The parents were really going above and beyond, sending the food with their kids and dropping stuff off at our house,” she says. “It was the sweetest thing to watch these kids walk up and hand him a bag of cans, or cereal. The more we got, the more excited Vincent got.”

Soon, her dining room was piled high with nonperishable food.

Instead of shipping the food to Florida, Temple convinced Vincent that the food should be delivered somewhere local.

On Dec. 20, Vincent helped his mom fill her SUV with food—a carload for the kids living in cars—and deliver it to the DuPage PADS in Wheaton.

And, at the Jan. 10 DuPage County Board meeting, Vincent was honored for his efforts. County Board member Jeff Redick of Elmhurst (District 2), who was moved by Vincent’s kindness and charity, introduced a proclamation in his honor, which was approved by the board.
 
“Most kids are watching cartoons at age 5, and most adults who are watching ‘60 Minutes’ don’t wake up the next day and start a food drive. Vincent saw a problem and went after a solution. He is a true example for all of us to follow, regardless of age,” Redick said.

Temple began to realize how many teaching moments Vincent had created, she said.

“Not just for Vincent, but for my other boys (John, 10, and Frank, 8). They watched their younger brother do this and saw how important it is to do something,” she said.

“That’s how Vincent is. When he sets his mind to something, he doesn’t let it go. He’s just a determined little guy.”

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?