KSHB 41 reporter Claire Bradshaw covers eastern Jackson County, including Blue Springs and Independence. Share your story idea with Claire.
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A Blue Springs teen has turned her compassion into action, running her own nonprofit organization dedicated to helping other nonprofits keep people warm during the winter months.
Reagan Gallaway, 13, founded K'ing the Cold when she was just 9 years old, inspired by learning about a family member who lacked basic necessities as a child.
"So when I was 9, I learned about a family member that didn't have the best childhood and didn't have a bed to grow up on, to sleep on," she said. "And so we were talking about it, we're sitting at the dinner table. I was like, yeah, I really want to help people."
The nonprofit's name comes from a softball term meaning to strike out the cold. Reagan collects cold-weather items, including blankets, sleeping bags, gloves, stocking hats, socks and hand warmers for people in need.
Rather than distributing items directly, Reagan gives her donations to other nonprofits like Shelter KC and Many Parts, One Body, allowing those organizations to focus their limited resources elsewhere.
In her first year, Reagan collected 132 blankets. This year, she has set an ambitious goal of collecting 6,000 items and already has a garage full of donations.
Reagan's mother, Christie, serves as her "manager" and biggest supporter. Last year, K'ing the Cold officially became a nonprofit organization.
"This year has been really cool because she has talked about wanting other kids to get involved. So we officially started an ambassador program," Christie Gallaway said. "We became a nonprofit last year, so our board approved this to where other kids can essentially go and fundraise, and if they're in other parts of the states, they can identify organizations that they want to support and donate to, as long as it falls into our mission."
Reagan said her mission includes showing "little kids," those around 5 or 6 years old, how their actions can help others.
"... Having them help, it's like showing them what the world kind of looks like outside of what they have," Reagan said.
People who want to help Reagan can donate through her Amazon wish list or follow her Facebook page for information about collection events.
Current collection opportunities include Small Sliders in Blue Springs, with a Culver's fundraising night scheduled for Tuesday.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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