When Lorelei Darling was just a month shy of eight years old, she took her first steps into the world of philanthropy. As the holidays approached, the young activist-to-be collected gifts to give to kids in foster care. Within a week, Lorelei collected a table full of gifts and decided to host the Holiday Toy Drive for Penny Lane Centers annually.
At age twelve, Lorelei began to notice a lack of support for older youth in foster care. She researched the struggles of teens in the system, such as “aging out” of foster care, and the unfortunate tie between foster care and homelessness. She changed her Toy Drive to an annual Teen Holiday Drive. Instead of toys, Lorelei collected gifts for teens and Transitional Age Youth such as clothing, books, school supplies, hygiene kits, gift cards, and more. Lorelei came to a realization: she craved doing more for the older youth with Penny Lane. When she entered her first year of high school, she started a nonprofit of her own called Teens4Teens.
December of 2022 marks the 10 year anniversary of Lorelei’s Teen Holiday Drive. To celebrate, she not only collected and distributed gift bags to the youth but also threw a holiday party for everyone to enjoy with dinner, music, and friends.
Lorelei just graduated from high school, and is off to begin her next adventure! She has written a young adult novel, which will be published by the end of 2023, and will soon be traveling the world, starting with a trip to Puerto Rico through a work-exchange program She is so grateful for Penny Lane, and the incredible experiences she’s had with them over the past 10 years. Full of excitement, Lorelei is moving into young adulthood, and is ready for the new experiences that will come with her upcoming travels and book publishing process! Adventure awaits! Penny Lane Centers thanks Lorelei for her support over the years. Wishing her safe travels and lots of success in her new endeavors.
If you want to follow Lorelei footsteps or are inspired to donate or support a specific program, please go to www.pennylane.org.
Check out some more photos of Lorelei below!
