The Learning Experience Bordentown raises $5,035 for Make-A-Wish

Preschoolers, families and staff at The Learning Experience in Bordentown, New Jersey, raised $5,035 during the center’s April Let’s Grant Wishes campaign for Make-A-Wish. The effort tied fundraising to early childhood lessons on kindness and empathy while adding to a nationwide program that has raised more than $11.5 million since 2018.

Why it matters: - The Bordentown preschool campaign helped support Make-A-Wish, which grants wishes for children living with critical illnesses. - The effort also used fundraising to teach young children about kindness, empathy, generosity and community service. - The campaign shows how an early childhood program can connect classroom learning with real-world giving.

What happened: - Preschoolers at The Learning Experience in Bordentown ran the center’s annual Let’s Grant Wishes campaign during April. - Preschoolers, families and staff raised $5,035 for Make-A-Wish. - The fundraiser included donations, events and classroom activities. - Children also wrote encouraging letters to wish children.

The details: - Center leaders Casey Bonchi, Kiran Jhurani, Rachelle Quon, Jyoti Jhurani and Danielle Robinson guided the campaign. - The preschool’s philanthropic mascots, Grace the Greyhound and Charity Chihuahua, were part of the effort. - Children took part in hands-on activities tied to compassion and helping others. - The Let’s Grant Wishes campaign is part of The Learning Experience’s proprietary philanthropy curriculum. - The curriculum introduces age-appropriate lessons on kindness, inclusion, generosity and community service. - The Learning Experience said the campaign extends learning beyond the classroom and helps children see how small acts of giving can strengthen communities. - Brad Wahl, chief operating officer of The Learning Experience, said the company is committed to high-quality childcare and early education that goes beyond academic basics and aims to inspire the next generation of philanthropists. - Since 2018, children, families and staff across The Learning Experience centers nationwide have raised more than $11.5 million for Make-A-Wish.

Between the lines: - The Bordentown fundraiser is both a local charity drive and a brandwide reinforcement of The Learning Experience’s mission. - The campaign doubles as a marketing and education tool by turning philanthropy into a family and classroom activity. - The nationwide fundraising total suggests the Make-A-Wish partnership is a long-running part of the company’s identity.

What's next: - The Learning Experience is likely to continue the annual Let’s Grant Wishes campaign at centers nationwide. - The Bordentown center can build on the April fundraiser with future classroom and community service activities tied to the same curriculum. - The company also continues to expand, with more than 480 centers open and over 240 additional locations in development across the U.S. and U.K.

The bottom line: - The Bordentown preschool turned a month-long fundraiser into a lesson in empathy, while adding $5,035 to a national Make-A-Wish effort that has topped $11.5 million since 2018.