Customize for a Cause
Kid Reporter gets the scoop on designing a Mini Cooper car for a child in need
The new customizable mini MINI Cooper S, the latest model in the RIDEMAKERZ lineup. (Photo courtesy RIDEMAKERZ)
Do you think it would be cool to design your own Mini Cooper? Ridemakerz, a new company that offers kids the opportunity to customize and "trick out" their very own toy replica "ride" (car), can help you do just that. But this holiday season, Ridemakerz is asking you to customize for a cause.
Ridemakerz has teamed up with Mini USA—the manufacturers of the Mini Cooper cars—to support the United States Marine Corps' Toys For Tots Foundation. The Foundation collects unwrapped new toys during October, November and December each year, and distributes them as holiday gifts to needy children in communities throughout the United States.
Ridemakerz and Mini USA are donating 2,000 of the toy replicas, called Mini Ridez, to the Marine Corps' Toys For Tots Foundation. They made their not-at-all-small announcement at the Mini of Manhattan car dealership in New York City, and I was there.
Larry Andreini, CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of Ridemakerz, Jim McDowell, the vice president of Mini USA, and Nickelodeon star Jansen Panettiere unveiled the new toy replicas of the Mini Cooper S. Together, they presented 100 cars to 8 uniformed members of the United States Marine Corps.
After the donation ceremony, children from New York City's Madison Square Boys and Girls Club and the Latino Pastoral Action Center Family Life Academy Charter School participated in a workshop in which they were able to create their own one-of-a-kind Mini Cooper Ridez.
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| Toy replicas of the Mini Cooper Car by Ridemakerz. (Photo courtesy Ridemakerz) |
I asked Andreini how he thought the children who receive these cars would feel. "I hope they feel like they have something special that is an expression of their own style and taste," he said. "No two cars will [look] the same," Andreini added.
The Marine Corps' Toys for Tots Foundation delivered more than 19.2 million toys to about 7.5 million children in 2006. You and your parents can help this year's toy donation operation by going to the Ridemakerz Web Site and choosing one of the four Mini Ridez designated for the Toys for Tots toy drive. You can make your selection and your donation online, so it's easy!
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Michael Carboni is a member of the Scholastic Kids Press Corps.
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