PEORIA (WEEK) — An untimely death has led a young Peoria boy to step up and help pay for funeral expenses – one Ring Pop at a time.
Rain or shine, eight-year-old Terius Wyatt is hard at work – you can find him along Sheridan Road with a big selection of snacks and drinks for sale.
Terius started his shop with one thing in mind – his family.
His aunt, Anitra, passed away earlier in the week, and once he learned of her funeral expenses, Terius took it upon himself to help cover the costs.
“He was like, ‘Mom, I want to help with the funeral,'” Terius’s mother, Markishia Wyatt said. “And my other sister said, ‘well, the urn is $207.”
In just his first day on the job, Terius raised more than enough to pay for his aunt’s urn. Word spread fast on social media, and the next day, he doubled that amount.
“That really helped me. It helped me say, ‘never give up. Just keep trying,'” Terius said.
Markishia said this is one of many times Terius just wanted to help – she said last year, he gave 50 jugs of candy out to kids on Halloween who couldn’t trick-or-treat. Plus, he helped raise money to supply 20 kids with baskets on Easter.
“Kids at eight – young kids – they don’t really think about other people and their feelings … He just likes to help people. If he sees somebody sad, he asks, ‘what’s wrong?’ Or ‘how was your day today?'” Markishia said.
Terius has raised more than $500 in just a few days. He said he plans to keep his business going, but might take a day or two to celebrate his efforts at the State Fair.
“The reason why I’m doing this is so I can learn how to save money and not spend it all the time,” Terius said.
The post Young Peorian sets up shop to help pay for aunt’s funeral expenses appeared first on WEEK.
