What began as a young girl's dream to see more people of color represented in arts and books, has turned into a nationwide campaign seeing support from all over the country.
Eight-year-old Madison Wilson, an African-American elementary school student in the Santa Ynez Valley, wished there were crayons that represented all colors of skin so children could accurately draw themselves.
Madison says she wants kids to have more options for skin colors than just peach and brown.
As a result, this past summer, Madison asked her mother, Vashti, if she could raise money to bring multicultural books and crayons to local schools.
With her mother on board and $40,000 donated to her fundraiser, Madi's Treasure Box, she planned to provide 14 U.S. schools and the nonprofit, Children's Bureau, with multicultural books and crayons.
After trying unsuccessfully to purchase the thousands of multicultural crayons needed for the treasure boxes, Madison had another idea - to come up with her own boxes of crayons.
With her mother by her side, the new crayon boxes were created.
Each 24-pack of crayons consists of 16 skin colors, four hair colors, and four eye colors.
Madison and her mother named them 'World Changer' crayons because when Madison was asked in an interview what she wanted to be when she grows up, the eight-year-old's response was, "a world changer."
Andra Martinez, Vice President of Communications and Development at Children’s Bureau, Inc., believes that Madi's gifts of crayons and books will promote understanding.
“For children, being able to draw themselves accurately or read a book that has characters that look just like them provides a sense of belonging and helps them feel less isolated in the world," Martinez said.
Madison's mother, Vashti, explained that they recently turned Madi’s Treasure Box into a nonprofit organization which they believe will allow "the movement to grow exponentially."
Vashti stated their "mission is to provide multicultural tools to schools across the United States in order to foster a more diverse and inclusive environment.”
The mother-daughter duo hopes to raise an additional $50,000, which will allow them to donate multicultural tools to additional schools.
Those interested in donating can do so directly on the website: www.MadisTreasureBox.com starting Friday, October 9, 2020.
Another way to support the organization is to pre-order Madi’s World Changer Multicultural Crayons before their November release.
Madison will also have a show on YouTube, debuting on October 30, called "Madi's Corner."
