Gabriel Clark, a 12-year-old kid from Cumbria, England, has a quite unusual hobby: woodworking.One day the child went back home with a sad expression on his face.
Then admitted to his father, Richard Clark, that he was “a little bit sad.
“His friends, he adds, told him that his woodworking interest was not cool. And having only six instagram followers were not cool at all.
Gabriel has been interested in the craft since he was about three or four years old. Teresa McCann Clark, his mother, gave him a hammer that belonged to his grandfather, and he hasn’t turned it back since it.
“I’ve always had a strong interest in it and have taught myself what I know,” the teen told People.
The only disappointment Richard have was Seeing his adored kid struggle to fit in.It was heartbreaking to him.
As a result, Richard took to Twitter in an effort to assist his son. “I’ve a 12yr kid who loves woodwork,” the supportive parent tweeted on March 25.
He spends hours on his lathe crafting bowls and cutting boards, which he sells to fund his mountain bike purchase.
So I was hoping that if any of you could help him out by following him on Instagram at @clarkie woodwork, it would lighten his day. Thank you in advance, and please retweet!”
The Clark family had hoped to get about 60 followers at first, but they were unprepared for what was about to happen. Gabriel now has more than 259,000 Instagram followers!
“I asked my father whether he could post something on Instagram or Twitter. ‘My son is a little bit upset,’he said in a tweet. Can you help him out by following him on Instagram?’ “And then it absolutely blew up,” the gifted youngster remembered.
He received over 20,000 orders for his handcrafted bowls on top of the thousands of new fans! Isn’t that ridiculous?
However, the youngster would need 32 years to complete all of those orders. In short, it was nearly impossible, especially given the amount of schoolwork he had to complete.
He opted to pay it forward while working on all those orders. Gabriel eventually made a unique bowl to show his support for Ukraine.He made a beechwood bowl with a blue and yellow ring to match Ukraine’s flag colors. “I want to know that by doing a small bit of anything in my own life, I can help some kid’s lives better,”he added.
The Clark family then set up a Just Giving website for Save the Children’s Ukraine appeal, with an aim of £5,000 ($6,420).
The following is what they said on their Just Giving page: “We are all aware of the country’s tragic suffering, and Gabriel thinks that by doing it, he will be able to pass on some of the kindness that the people have given him to children in far greater need.”
Fortunately, donations poured in from all corners. The fundraising campaign has already raised £254,678 from 14,153 donors.
A 12-year-old boy just raised over £250,000 for charity. It’s incredible!
On April 17, a donor by the name of Renuka Chapman was chosen as the winner of the Ukraine bowl. And, because more people expressed an interest in donating, the fundraising period was extended.
“The key thing about Gabriel is that he has a huge heart,” Teresa added. “He’s gifted and imaginative, but most importantly, he has a big heart.”
This boy’s ability is incredible, and his heart is even more so.
This boy is deserving of a lot of adoration!