Hot cocoa stand

Caleb Byelich, 8-year-old student at Neidig Elementary School in the Quakertown Community School District, wanted to help the homeless and decided to hold a hot cocoa stand on Dec. 9.

Much to the second-grader’s surprise, thanks to Facebook and a lot of flyers that he handed out, a steady stream of people, and even an occasional line formed at his stand from 2 to 5 p.m. His goal was to raise $100 for Advocates for the Homeless in Upper Bucks - Upper Bucks Code Blue Homeless Shelter. He surpassed that goal by $1,500.

Additional donations in the days following the cocoa stand brought the grand total given to the homeless shelter to $1,715.

Neighborhood children decided to help out by providing live music every hour. Students at the Sixth-Grade Center in Quakertown, Jaiden Byelich (Caleb’s brother) and Elijah Thomas, Haunah Thomas (seventh-grader at Strayer Middle School) and Mazie Mitchell, all played Christmas carols for those who came to the stand.

Caleb’s friend, Ben Gregory, also a second-grader at Neidig Elementary, also made baked goods and helped at the stand and friend Justin Miller, a 9-year-old home-school student, also assisted. His brother Cameron Byelich, a 15-year-old student who attends Quakertown Community High School, created a logo and made sure there was always a back up of hot chocolate made in the house.

Caleb’s parents are Loren and Alicia Byelich.

“The community came together in an amazing way,” wrote Alicia Byelich. “There were probably 125 to 150 people that came through. It was really amazing; we had no idea a little hot chocolate stand would end up raising a total of $1,600.”