Starlyn Webb has a children’s book she’s trying to get published and is in the process of applying for sidewalk cart-vendor license for her lemonade and hot cocoa stand. On top of all that, she just launched a GoFundMe campaign, raising money so single moms can have a night out while she provides childcare. And the real kicker? She’s only 14.
“I’ve raised about $140, but it’s only been two days,” said Webb, a rising freshman at Bend Senior High School. “My services are completely free. I don’t want to take any money from my GoFundMe to pay for my hours, because three hours of time for me doesn’t really affect my day, but it can change a single mom’s evening by a lot. That money in my GoFundMe would just go to her going out to dinner.
“I think this is a way of giving back to my town and my community, and especially since I’m in babysitting, I know that people are always looking for help,” said Webb, who was certified as a babysitter through Camp Fire Central Oregon while attending Cascades Academy as a middle schooler. “I love getting to know new people and just being able to help out.”
Webb said she ultimately hopes to get local businesses on board to donate meals, activities or space for future nights out through what she’s calling Minutes4Mothers. She only planned to run the GoFundMe long enough to cover one night out for a single mom, but since she met her goal in two days, she’s continuing it so she can raise more funds to be used by single parents for some “me” time. She plans to select a different single parent each month to receive childcare and meal money.
She’s also organizing a group of teens, including her younger sister, Roxy, 13, and her best friend, Ava Brown, 14, a rising Summit High School freshman, to form a babysitters club. They’ll connect each other with paying childcare gigs and offer their services gratis with Minutes4Mothers. She hopes to have a group of babysitters get together in a donated space monthly to offer their services, so single parents get a few hours alone for a meal or activity, also hopefully donated by business owners.
Webb’s mother, Angelica Webb, was raised by a single mom. That, coupled with the teen’s minding of her own younger siblings, fostered Webb’s desire to help single parents who seem to be, “on the clock 24-7” without time for themselves.
“She realized the difficulty of that as she was babysitting for single parents, mostly moms, but there was also a single dad here and there, too,” Angelica Webb said. “Her general babysitting experience led her to understanding the difficulties of being a single parent. She said ‘I want to be able to do something locally that can help out. That would be fun and allow people to have some time to themselves.’”
Contributions are still being accepted at the Minutes For Mothers; First Night Out page on GoFundMe. Those interested in donating their services, meals, activities or space can reach Webb at minutes4mothers@gmail.com or 971-678-1874.
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