HANCOCK COUNTY — Kids need to smile more — that’s Addison Brown’s assessment.
The 10-year-old, a fifth-grader at Greenfield Intermediate School, has a big heart and plenty of compassion for doing things for children struggling through tough times.
After watching a few of her close friends sputter while going through the adoption process, Addison thought it would be a good idea for children in the midst of stressful situations to have some kind of object to focus on to take their minds off the trouble.
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She came up with the plan to make Smile Bags — sacks and tote bags full of tissues, crayons, dry erase boards, markers, books and a hand written note from Addison.
“My mom and dad have taught me from a young age that we should always give back,” Addison said. “Even if we’re not the richest people in the world, we can still give our time.”
Children love to color, some for stress relief, and Addison thought it would be neat to have a bag with things children can do when they’re going through difficult moments, such as an accident, or seeing a parent arrested.
“Her hope is to put a smile on a child’s face,” Addison’s mother, Stacy Brown, said.
Since coming up with the idea, Addison has made dozens of Smile Bags and filled them with supplies she’s collected from various donations for children of all ages, including babies.
After making the Smile Bags, Addison contacted local law enforcement officials and donated them to help officers break the ice when they’re working with children.
While police officers have numerous tools to use when performing their jobs, the Smile Bags add to their tool box and assist officers when working with young children who have been involved in a traumatic or stressful situation, New Palestine Police Chief Bob Ehle said.
So far, Addison has donated several dozen bags to the Greenfield Police Department, the New Palestine Police Department and the McCordsville Police Department. She has plans to drop some off at the Fortville Police Department.
The goal is to make sure as many police departments who want the bags have them, her mother said.
Police were thrilled to see the bags contain dry erase boards because they can help law enforcement officials communicate and gain trust when working with smaller children, Ehle said.
Several law enforcement departments already use stuffed animals as comforting agents, but officers like the idea of the Smile Bags because of the variety of items inside the bags.
“She’s made it a lot more personal,” said Chief Jeff Rasche, of the Greenfield Police Department. “They’re easy to transport, and we’ve already used several of them.”
Rasche and other law enforcement officials say they’re trilled to see a young member of the community step up and think of others.
Making Smile Bags is just the beginning of what Addison wants to do, she said.
Addison hopes to someday be an actress and start her own charity, but in the meantime she’ll continue making Smile Bags while working on her next plan, to host a bowling fundraiser for local K9 units.
She’s also collecting stuffed animals for the Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital at St. Vincent Indianapolis.
