Community Corner
Record-Chasing, Tie-Wearing First Grader Ups Fundraising Goal
Nesconset's James Funaro, who is wearing a tie to school every day to raise money for the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Suffolk County, now wants to raise $2,000 for the charity.
For James Funaro, a Nesconset first grader who wore a tie every day to raise money for the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Suffolk County, raising $1,466 for the charity isn't enough, even though he blew past his $1,000 goal.
“I might as well keep going,” he said.
The six-year-old, who is still wearing his ties, initially launched his tie-wearing campaign to land in the Guinness Book of World Records for most consecutive days wearing a tie, now says he'd like to raise $2,000 for Make-A-Wish.
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The idea actually came from Guinness. After wearing a tie for picture day at school, the six-year-old thought it would be fun to wear one all the time. While checking out the requirements for achieving a world record on the website, he noticed the organization suggested combining a challenge with raising money for a charity.
While the family found out verifying his tie-wearing record would be difficult, Funaro decided to still raise money for a charity and picked Make-a-Wish. The nonprofit organization grants the wishes of children with life threatening illnesses.
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One local contributor was John Feal of the FealGood Foundation, a local support and advocacy group for Ground Zero Workers. Funaro said Feal lives in the same neighborhood as his family and donated $250 and a t-shirt.
James also continues to receive donations from local residents. The first grader said he recently received money from a teacher and a classmate. His brother and brother’s friend also donated $30 they earned from shoveling snow.
Funaro said has led to donations coming in from around the country, with checks received from people who live in Texas, Illinois and Florida.
To meet this goal the young philanthropist now plans on wearing a tie until the end of second grade. If he could, he said he would raise a million dollars for Make-a-Wish.
His advice for other young people who would like to raise money for a good cause is to hang up flyers. The Funaro family has hung up flyers at the library, in the faculty room of his school and at a local pre-school to spread the word.
If you would like to help James reach his new goal of $2,000, you can make a check payable to the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Suffolk County. Checks can be sent to: James Funaro, P.O. Box 128, Smithtown, NY 11787.
