Can I start a business and raise money to help kids with cancer?” 9-year-old Sutton Shanahan asked her mom when she was grieving her aunt Julie, who died of cancer.

“This could give you a purpose for your pain,” her mom, Jennifer Shanahan, explained as Sutton nodded enthusiastically. “We can start a nonprofit!”

Before long, the Naples, Florida, mom-daughter duo completed the paperwork for Kidz4aCause. After telling their loved ones about their new mission, Sutton enlisted a few of her friends to help.

Her mom and other family members had always supported St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. “That’s where all the money we raise is going,” she and her friends explained as they went house to house selling Kidz4aCause stickers.

Sutton also began making phone calls. “This is important,” she insisted, and thanks to her persistence, a local performance center hosted a benefit country music show. Soon, Sutton presented St. Jude’s with a check for $11,000 in proceeds and another $4,000 from auctioning a guitar signed by Todd Rundgren.

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At a Gaithersburg, Maryland, bookstore, Emily Bhatnagar picked out six books she wanted. “Now I have to decide which one I want most,” she told her father, whom she calls Papa. Mike Bhatnagar shook his head with a smile. “Let’s get them all,” he said. Emily and her papa headed back to the family takeout […]

Sutton continued to raise money for kids with cancer, but her heart began going out to others in need, too.

When Sutton’s family-friend, Lawrence, joined the Navy, he was stationed aboard the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier. “Lawrence needs to know we’re thinking about him,” Sutton told her mom. “I’m going to write him a letter and tell all my friends to write, too.”

It wasn’t long before she was packing up 1,700 letters from kids wishing Lawrence and other sailors in his squadron.

But for Sutton, the letters weren’t enough. She started an Amazon wish list of goodies and spread the word. Within weeks, she sent a dozen Kidz4aCause care packages to the heroes.

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Then, one day her mom spotted a tweet from the Eisenhower Captain Christopher Hill with a photo of himself handing a cookie to a crew member. These were sent by somebody back home, read the caption.

That was my little girl! Jennifer tweeted back and told the Captain about Lawrence, who served under him.

The next day, another picture appeared in the Captain’s feed. This time he was treating a different sailor—Lawrence!

Sutton introduced herself to the Captain in an email. I’m going to send more boxes, she wrote, and he replied with a grateful thanks.

Sutton went straight to work, sending emails to big companies challenging them to donate.

Then, Sutton threw a big packing party, where she and her friends filled Priority Mail boxes. Inside each, she added a handwritten note: We’re thinking of you. You are all in our thoughts and prayers.

Sutton, now 13, is still partnering with corporations and doing fundraisers to mail more treats to those serving on the Eisenhower and other ships. Her goal is to reach the sailors on every U.S. Navy ship at sea.

“I want to show other kids we can make a difference, no matter what our age,” she says. “Look around your neighborhood to help out however you can. It’s a great feeling!”