Teens raise money for local family in need

Two Greencastle teens are spending their summer putting the needs of others above their free time.

Nicolette Peters and Rebecca Moore, who will be freshmen at Greencastle High School in August, are raising money for 2-year-old Aidan Mitchell and his family. Aidan suffers from cystic fibrosis, and his older sister is a friend of Nicolette and Rebecca.

When the two girls found out how much money it costs to fight the disease, they decided to help.

"When I learned a little bit more about it, I thought it would be a good idea to raise money for them," Nicolett said. "We just thought it would be a nice thing to do."

So the two girls have made a summer project of it. They've placed jars to raise funds for the Mitchells at Bright Futures, Treasures on the Square and St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church.

Their summer so far has been devoted to making crafts they plan to sell at the Greencastle Downtown Farmers' Market.

"We made a lot of crafts and Nicolette made a lot of bracelets," Rebecca said.

Their repertoire includes about 35 bracelets, around 50 magnets and a number of decorated vases. Bracelets will be available for a minimum donation of $4, vases for a minimum of $2 and magnets and baked goods for a free will donation.

The girls will set up shop at Saturday's farmers' market from 8 a.m.-noon. They said the project will last all summer, but their success on Saturday and ability to keep up with demand will determine how often they return.

Nicolette and Rebecca said this project came to them without any urging by their parents and they have their parents full support.

"At this age -- they're so young and it's incredible what their doing," Nicolette's mother Velquis Peters said.