Girl gives up Disneyland trip to help boy find a family


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KAYSVILLE — A 7-year-old girl gave up a trip to Disneyland so a young boy from South America could have a family of his own.

Brooklyn McKenzie spent her summer going door to door selling jars of jam her mother made.

“The first couple of jars of jam was for Disneyland,” said Melanie McKenzie, Brooklyn’s mother. “But then we got looking into the RODS Racing website and saw Vaughn. … And she realized Vaughn needed a family."

Brooklyn's cousin, Gabe, came to his family in the United States from Russia in February with the help of RODS Racing, a nonprofit organization that helps families adopt children with Down syndrome by covering some of the cost.

“They help by racing in races, so I wanted to help, too,” Brooklyn said. “So what I’m doing is I’m selling homemade jam.”

She sold a lot of jam — $562 worth. Then she donated the money to RODS Racing.

“I thought that he needed a family more than I needed a trip to Disneyland,” the girl said.

Melanie McKenzie said she couldn’t be more proud of her daughter.

“It was some pretty proud news to have her help somebody else, and not just help herself, which is a very grown-up thing,” she said.


I thought that he needed a family more than I needed a trip to Disneyland.

–Brooklyn McKenzie


RODS Racing founder Brady Murray said he was amazed by Brooklyn's charity. Murray's son, Nash, was born with Down syndrome in 2007. He learned that children with Down syndrome in other countries are often placed in orphanages, and he wanted to help them.

In 2012, he created Racing for Orphans with Down Syndrome. Now, he and more than 50 other runners dedicate their races to helping these children find loving parents.

Murray said there are hundreds — if not thousands — of families willing to adopt children with Down syndrome, but the cost of international adoption is too high, sometimes as much as $40,000.

“Money is the only thing that’s standing in the way of these orphans who have Down syndrome of having a loving home,” Murray said.

He's worked with many volunteers and donors over the 18 months, but never anyone like the girl he met Monday.

“We were about $500 short (of a $15,000 goal) up until this past weekend, when I heard that you had been fundraising, and that you had raised $562," Murray told Brooklyn. "That pushed us over the top. That’s a very, very unique thing that you were able to do. That’s pretty amazing. We’re very, very happy.”

Murray said he knew Brooklyn gave up a trip to Disneyland, so he made her an honorary member of the RODS Racing team.

Brooklyn said she's happy that Vaughn will soon have a chance to have a family of his own.

“Every child needs a family,” she said.

But Brooklyn said she's not done. She plans to spend next summer doing the same thing.

“Even if you’re 7, you can make a difference,” she said.

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