Fletcher eighth grader raises funds for earthquake victims by baking cookies

Dean Hensley, Hendersonville Times-News
·5 min read
Fletcher's Elliott Stay, an eighth grader at Christ School, makes his plates for a bake sale he is doing to raise funds for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.
Fletcher's Elliott Stay, an eighth grader at Christ School, makes his plates for a bake sale he is doing to raise funds for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.

FLETCHER - Moving to Fletcher three years ago from Doha, Qatar, the Stay family still has strong ties to the Middle East.

That's a big reason why Steven Stay said it warmed his heart when his son, Elliott, an eighth-grader at Christ School, began a fundraising campaign to raise funds for victims of last week's earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, where the death toll has surpassed 40,000 people, according to The New York Times. Elliott's fundraiser is selling cookies, and in just two days of sales, the 13-year-old has reached $295.

At the beginning of this school year, Elliott's first at Christ School, the family learned students must meet the school's annual service requirement of 15 service hours per student. Elliott decided to bake a cookie for each of the 300 students in the school at the rate of a dozen a week, Steven Stay said.

Elliott Stay works on his cookies with his mother, two younger sisters and his younger brother.
Elliott Stay works on his cookies with his mother, two younger sisters and his younger brother.

"The school magazine, The Galax, ran a feature article about that effort this month. Students and teachers alike keep begging him to start selling the cookies so they don't have to wait for their turn on his randomized list," Steven Stay said.

After seeing news coverage of the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, it prompted the Stay family to pray frequently to "know how they could best help the victims while teaching their kids the importance of serving."

"So I asked Elliott whether he'd like to use the existing strong community interest in his cookies to do some good, and he jumped at the idea," said Steven Stay, registrar and executive assistant to the Christ School head of school.

Elliott said since so many students at school keep asking him to sell his cookies, he felt like this was the best opportunity to do it and also do some good.

"I thought it was a good idea since I had gotten questions about selling cookies before," he said. "I'm shocked that I've already raised so much money and I'm glad that people like these cookies."

At a recent school assembly at Christ School, Fletcher eighth grader Elliott Stay does his presentation about a bake sale he's doing for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.
At a recent school assembly at Christ School, Fletcher eighth grader Elliott Stay does his presentation about a bake sale he's doing for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria.

Three years ago, the Stay family, who lived in Doha, Qatar, were on vacation in London when they found out they couldn't return home because the Doha airport was closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. So they came to America, found a new home in Fletcher, and the Stay family ... stayed.

"That was quite the adventure," Steven Stay said. "We were in London on vacation with two suitcases and four kids, and then suddenly we couldn't go home to Doha."

The Stay family called Doha home for eight years.

"We lived in Qatar from when Elliott was 3 years old to when he was 11 years old, so it warms my heart to see that Elliott still feels strong ties to the Middle East," Steven Stay said.

A man walks amid the rubble of destroyed buildings on Feb. 15, 2023, in Hatay, Turkey. A 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit near Gaziantep, Turkey, in the early hours of February 6, followed by another 7.5-magnitude tremor just after midday. The quakes caused widespread destruction in southern Turkey and northern Syria and killed more than 30,000 people.
A man walks amid the rubble of destroyed buildings on Feb. 15, 2023, in Hatay, Turkey. A 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit near Gaziantep, Turkey, in the early hours of February 6, followed by another 7.5-magnitude tremor just after midday. The quakes caused widespread destruction in southern Turkey and northern Syria and killed more than 30,000 people.

There is another connection to the earthquake victims, much closer to the Stays' new home.

"One of our cafeteria employees from whom Elliott has taken a few Arabic cooking lessons has family in Syria affected by the quake, and he immediately made that connection when we talked about it," Steven Stay said.

"I feel proud of his hard work and what a compassionate young man he is. It takes a lot of self-control to look outside of yourself, see the needs of others, and then do something about it," Rachel Stay, Elliott's mom, said.

Elliott's mom lends a hand whenever it's needed to help Elliott with his cookies.

"She has helped when it got past 10 p.m. the first night and he still had orders to fulfill," Steven Stay said on Feb. 15. "She also prepped a batch yesterday before he got home from school because he wouldn't have time to do all the day's orders himself due to an after-school activity. But he has been personally involved in every batch."

A woman stands in the rubble hoping her relatives to be found by rescuers in Hatay on February 13, 2023, as rescue teams began to wind down the search for survivors today, a week after an earthquake devastated parts of Turkey and Syria leaving more than 35,000 dead and millions in dire need of aid.
A woman stands in the rubble hoping her relatives to be found by rescuers in Hatay on February 13, 2023, as rescue teams began to wind down the search for survivors today, a week after an earthquake devastated parts of Turkey and Syria leaving more than 35,000 dead and millions in dire need of aid.

Steven Stay said Elliott has been baking desserts for two or three years for fun.

"... probably because he felt we parents weren't serving desserts often enough ourselves. He gets cookbooks from the Fletcher Library to find recipes he wants to try," Steven Stay said.

But now his baking has a much more important purpose.

"I'm very pleased with Elliott's concern for those affected by the quake. We've tried to teach our four kids that God loves all His children of all religions and nationalities equally. It's nice to see that Elliott is taking that to heart," Steven Stay said. "And the Christ School community was clearly ready for a chance to help the earthquake victims. Several employees have simply donated without asking for any cookies in return. One senior ordered three dozen cookies right away and then shared them with all his classmates when they were delivered. That senior said, 'I sure wasn't going to eat all of them myself. Besides, the main thing is the money went to the victims.'"

The money Elliott raises will be sent to the UNICEF, Red Cross and Red Crescent charities. In addition, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Arden has considered recruiting his church youth group to help bake if interest in the fundraiser grows.

As far as pursuing a baking career, Elliott said that's not for him.

"I do enjoy baking, but I don't see a career for me in making cookies," he said.

Dean Hensley is the news editor for the Hendersonville Times-News. Email him with tips, questions and comments at DHensley@localiq.com. Please help support this kind of local journalism with a subscription to the Hendersonville Times-News.

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: Fletcher eighth grader raises funds for earthquake victims by baking cookies