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10-YEAR-OLD SAYS DO CHORES TO HELP WORLD.


Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
  • Dennis McCarthy (composer), (born 1945), an American composer
  • Dennis McCarthy (congressman), (19th century) Lieutenant Governor of New York in 1885
  • Dennis McCarthy MBE (radio presenter), British radio presenter
 

There were just the three of them in 1995 -- Kevin and Pat Moore, with 5-year-old Matt -- sitting in the children's section of Northridge Library and waiting for story time to begin.

Madison hadn't been born yet, but Pat could feel the baby inside kicking -- again. Their daughter was going to be a real fighter, she joked to Kevin.

It was the first night the Los Angeles Public Library
This library serves the city of Los Angeles. For the library serving the county, see County of Los Angeles Public Library.


The Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) system serves the residents of Los Angeles, California.
 system was offering a story time in sign language so kids like Matt, who was born deaf and was learning to sign, could be included.

The night was important for the Moores. They were looking for Looking for

In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with.
 a key to help unlock some of the mysteries inside their young son's mind.

``We know there's an imagination in there trying to get out,'' Kevin told me that night 11 years ago. ``We're hoping that when Matt sees the person signing at story time, he'll understand and let that imagination run free.''

Matt's 16 now. And that year he spent at weekly sign-language story times did help his parents find that key, the Moores say today.

``It definitely helped Matt start to connect the dots and get that imagination out,'' Kevin said.

Kevin and Pat were talking about that long-ago experience after dinner a few months ago while 10-year-old Madison played nearby with her brother.

Madison listened to every word as her parents went on to talk about the CHARGE Syndrome CHARGE is a congenital syndrome (formerly known as CHARGE association) first described in 1979.

In 1981, the term "CHARGE" came into use as an acronym for the set of unusual congenital features seen in a number of newborn children.
 Foundation, which works to find the myriad causes of severe birth defects birth defects, abnormalities in physical or mental structure or function that are present at birth. They range from minor to seriously deforming or life-threatening. A major defect of some type occurs in approximately 3% of all births. , and which is holding its biennial biennial, plant requiring two years to complete its life cycle, as distinguished from an annual or a perennial. In the first year a biennial usually produces a rosette of leaves (e.g., the cabbage) and a fleshy root, which acts as a food reserve over the winter.  conference in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850.  next year.

Dozens of renowned doctors and experts will be there sharing their research and findings. It was too bad, the Moores said, that so many parents from around the country would be unable to attend because they couldn't afford the trip.

Even with the best medical insurance, the Moores knew, families with children suffering from severe birth defects often live hand to mouth.

``I want to help,'' Madison interrupted in·ter·rupt  
v. in·ter·rupt·ed, in·ter·rupt·ing, in·ter·rupts

v.tr.
1. To break the continuity or uniformity of: Rain interrupted our baseball game.

2.
. ``I'll open a lemonade stand
''This article is about the 1970s-1980s video game. For the business model, see Lemonade Stand (business)
Lemonade Stand is a basic economics game created originally by Bob Jamison of the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium in 1973 and ported by Charlie
 or have a carwash for them.''

Her parents smiled. That's nice, honey, they told her. You keep at it. The $10 or $20 she could make at that lemonade stand would help.

But the little girl with the big imagination did the math and figured it out for herself: 20 bucks doesn't go very far.

A few days later, she walked into the kitchen and hit her parents with a brainstorm.

``When I'm home, you let me earn extra money doing chores,'' Madison said. ``What if hundreds or even thousands of kids did chores for their parents and neighbors for charity?''

The little ones young children.

See also: Little
 could help set the table, clear the dishes and get the mail. The older ones could take care of pets, wash the car, vacuum or mow the neighbor's lawn.

You get enough kids doing enough chores, and who knows how many families you could fly to L.A. or help in some other charity?

``Kevin and I just looked at each other, smiled and nodded,'' Pat said. ``She was right. It could work.''

So, that's what Madison and her mom were doing last Saturday at the Granada Hills street fair -- standing in front of the Rotary Rotary can refer to:
  • Rotary engine, a type of internal combustion engine from the early 20th century
  • Rotary Woofer, a type of loudspeaker capable of very low frequency sound
  • Rotary International, a service organization
  • Rotary milking shed
 Club of Granada Hills booth, handing out fliers and talking to Noun 1. talking to - a lengthy rebuke; "a good lecture was my father's idea of discipline"; "the teacher gave him a talking to"
lecture, speech

rebuke, reprehension, reprimand, reproof, reproval - an act or expression of criticism and censure; "he had to
 parents and kids about a great idea.

It made a lot of sense to dozens of parents who stopped to talk. It also made sense to Cleveland and Miller High in Reseda, where Matt is a student, to sign on to Chores-4-Charity as a service learning project.

It made sense to several local churches and charities, and to dozens of people who have already checked out Madison's Web site -- www.chores-4-charity.com.

And, finally, it made sense to the Los Angeles Public Library system, which has invited the Moores to distribute and post their fliers at all branches citywide.

It turns out that Pat Moore was right 11 years ago while she sat with her husband and son in the children's section of Northridge Library and waited for story time to begin in sign language.

Her daughter was going to be a real fighter.

dennis.mccarthy(at)dailynews.com

(818) 713-3749

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo:

Madison Moore, 10, and her brother, Matt, 16, put away silverware, one of their joint chores. She founded Chores-4-Charity, in which kids do chores for relatives and others in exchange for donations to charity.

David Sprague/Staff Photographer
COPYRIGHT 2006 Daily News
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2006, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Publication:Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
Date:Oct 10, 2006
Words:740
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