HUDSON, Ohio _ One act of kindness can go a long way.
And when Colin Roubic of Hudson decided to give gifts for his eighth birthday instead of receive them, he experienced firsthand the far-reaching effect of generosity.
Colin and his family donated nearly 100 pieces of sporting equipment to McEbright Community Learning Center, an elementary school in South Akron, Ohio, during the students' recess Friday afternoon.
Before Colin turned 8 on Nov. 6, his mom, Susan Roubic, asked him what he wanted for his birthday.
"He just pretty much told me, 'I'm good,'?" Roubic said of her son, the middle child in a family of three boys. "He's content. He understands he's more fortunate than others."
The Roubics saw Colin's request to not receive gifts as an opportunity to give them to someone else. Colin and his parents brainstormed a way to help kids his age, and his love for sports presented a perfect way to help students in Akron Public Schools.
"I have a lot of things," Colin said. "I asked my mom if I could do it and she said yes."
The family soon got to work. Roubic researched elementary schools in need in the area, and McEbright was the first on her list.
"When she first informed me, I was shocked a young man was willing to be so giving at this age," said Jennifer Lucas, the principal of McEbright. "I readily accepted the offer."
Getting others involved
In the meantime, at Colin's birthday party, he asked for footballs, soccer balls, basketballs, kickballs and jump ropes from his friends to donate to the school.
Colin's unconventional party presented a way to broaden the reach of his good deed. The Roubics gave the nearly 30 kids at his party Target gift cards instead of gift bags and simply asked the kids to pay it forward by buying something they can donate, like dog treats for an animal shelter or toys for a toy drive.
"He thought that was really cool his friends would get to do it also," Roubic said.
Colin's parents said more than anything, the second-grader at Seton Catholic School in Hudson just likes to play sports with his friends.
"I think with an 8-year-old, the goodness is inside of them," said Colin's dad, Scott Roubic. "He understood what it means and the impact it would have on other kids."
New friends
The impact it had on the students at McEbright was immediately apparent in the smiles on their faces. After Colin donated the equipment during an assembly in the gym, the kids poured onto the playground and chatted excitedly about not having to argue over limited basketballs or use a worn-down tetherball anymore.
"We have a lot of athletic talent here," Lucas said as she watched the kids play soccer and four square with their new equipment.
In addition to more recess and gym class equipment, Lucas said she plans to award the other donations as prizes to students who demonstrate good behavior.
Dionte Palmer, a fourth-grader at McEbright, hopes he might get a new football. Dionte just moved to the school last year and already has two "jobs" there, helping kids in kindergarten get lunch and working as equipment supervisor.
"I'm going to try to keep it safe and not let it get stolen," Dionte said of the new equipment that he's tasked with bringing inside every day after recess. "I think it's very special for someone to do this."
In his act of kindness, Colin could even see a reward of his own. After a bit of prompting, he was soon playing four square right along with the students of McEbright he'd just met moments before on Friday. Susan Roubic also began helping out with a girls club at the school, making Friday just the beginning of a blossoming relationship between the Roubics and the school.
"It seems like they found a second family here at McEbright," Lucas said.
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