Super Girls Turn Bracelets into Capes

As the rest of the summer campers at Children of America on York Road run outside to throw a football around, Alyssa Needleman and Kayla Hayes stay inside at a table in the lobby, hard at work tying together colorful rubber bands into fashionable bracelets. With a list of custom orders to fill, the pair does not want to waste a single minute.

Alyssa and Kayla have been on a mission since the end of June to raise money for Tiny Superheroes, a Seattle-based charity that makes superhero capes and sends them to sick children all around the world.

"One of the camp counselors, Miss Jojo [Joanne Michener] told us about it," said Kayla, 11, from Warminster. "The capes make the kids feel stronger."

So far, the dynamic duo has raised more than $180 from selling the rubber band bracelets, necklaces and hairbands, made from kits that have lately become popular. That's enough money for six children, says Alyssa, 9, from Warrington, and the summer's not over.

"We're going to keep making them until camp is over at the end of August," said Alyssa. "We used to make them all day, but our parents say we are not spending enough time with the other kids. Now we make them between 7:30 a.m. and 9 and then at 4 p.m. until we leave."

Whatever they don't finish at camp, the girls continue to work on at home. All of the rubber band jewelry is made to order, and the girls get about 30 requests a day from campers, counselors and parents. It's $.75 for a bracelet (four for $2), and $1 for either a headband or necklace. One of the counselors, Marcus Bradham, is managing the money for the girls, while camp director Tracy Bostic and their parents keep them supplied with the rubber bands.

"It's so nice to see kids that want to make a difference," said Sue Wolfgang, a camp counselor at Children of America, as she showed off four bracelets.