KEARNEY, Mo. — This week’s Reaching 4 Excellence young achiever is only 9 years old, but has made it his mission to help the victims of hurricanes Irma and Harvey, Dogwood Elementary fourth grader Karson Harris.

“I want to show not only that the students at Dogwood, but through the district that we can come together and help through a fundraiser,” Karson read from a letter.

“When I received the letter, it just touched my heart completely. It truly makes it an inspiring story not just for myself but for this entire community,” Kearney School Board member Matthew Hunt said.

He calls Karson’s story inspirational.

“You can only hope that your child will be like him one day,” Hunt said.
#HelpKarsonHelpHouston is the hashtag trending around the Kearney area these days.

“I feel bad for everybody who had to go through that,” Karson said.

Karson has a heart of gold — and is busy these days fundraising for the victims of two hurricanes who lost so much.

“The goal was $50 and right now we have like roughly around $5,000 almost,” he said.

With the help of his pal, Matthew — Karson created a Facebook page — it’s gaining in popularity by the day.

“My mom sharing it to somebody and then they shared it to somebody, so they keep sharing it to people,” Karson said.

He’s even set up shop in front of local stores — and with his bright smile and charm it’s no wonder he’s surpassed his goal by thousands.
“It makes me feel very excited because I didn’t know that would happen,” he said.

When you donate on Karson’s Facebook page — the money is wired directly to the Red Cross. He says he plans to continue to collect money for the next few weeks.