8-year-old’s annual cereal collection drive is crackling

Xander O’Brien has already brought in nearly 200 boxes of his 300-box goal for the Bag Brigade.

A Belle Vernon Area elementary school student is showing that it’s never too early to start giving back to your community.

Eight-year-old Xander O’Brien, with help from his parents, Kevin and Sarah, and his younger brother Henry, has been collecting hundreds of cereal boxes to donate to the Bag Brigade.

Their effort coincides with the Bag Brigade’s annual cereal box domino drop at district’s elementary schools.

Xander, a second-grader at Rostraver Elementary, has witnessed the yearly domino drop since starting at the school. He and his mom have volunteered for the Bag Brigade for two years, which motivated Xander to contribute even more.

Sarah noted that during last year’s domino drop, Xander collected 125 cereal boxes, which helped the Bag Brigade reach more than 1,000.

The nonprofit provides food for hundreds of children in the Belle Vernon Area School District, mainly during weekends. Sarah said it’s important for Xander to learn how to help his community at a young age.

“They have so much available for them that they’re not always aware that not everybody else has that type of stuff,” Sarah said. “Just to kind of have him understand that there are some kids that don’t always get to go home and pick all the snacks off of the pantry and stuff like that.

“I think it’s just one of those things; it’s good to start early for kids to understand that not every child has the same things that they have.”

Xander has set a collection goal of 300 boxes this year and is already up to 194. The O’Brien family has started an Amazon page where local residents who are interested in donating can order a cereal box that will go directly to Xander’s drive.

Xander’s Amazon cereal registry can be found at https:// www.amazon.com/registries/ gl/guest-view/2X3Z517XNDZVM.

The cereal collection will continue until March 15.

“I definitely think people need to understand this is not something that goes somewhere else,” Sarah said. “This is all staying in the Belle Vernon school district. So you’re feeding children within your own community. You pay taxes and everything, and you live here, but you probably have no idea that there are people who don’t have enough food to make it through a weekend with their kids.”

Sarah said Xander also enjoys helping pack meal packages for families in the school district, and has put together around 40 bags in just one night.

Xander and his family expect to continue the annual cereal drive for years to come. In the future, they expect 3-year-old Henry to play a bigger role as well.

“I’m sure every year the goal is going to go up,” Kevin said. “So whatever we end at this year, I’m sure we’ll add 50 or 100 onto the end of that one. And he’s only in second grade now, so he has at least four more years at Rostraver.”