11-year-old Bedford girl raises over £2,500 for charity in just four days

A schoolgirl from Bedford has raised an incredible £2,500 for charity in just four days – and is aiming for £4,000 by the end of the year.

Dia Kumari, who is in year 6 at Edith Cavell Primary School, wanted to do something for others to celebrate her 11th birthday.

“Dia turned 11 years old on 20th December, and she wanted to give back something during what has been a challenging year for everyone,” said Dia’s mum, Jag.

“In these tough days of lockdown we had to think about what was possible and after some brainstorming we came up with an Zoom party with people donating and raising money throughout the day.”

The all-day Zoom party included karaoke, a cook-a-long, art classes, a Bollywood dancing masterclass and a DJ to end the day in style.

More than 100 people took part throughout the day.

Dia Kumari

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“So far the fantastic fundraising efforts have seen more £2.3K donated for four different charities around the world,” said Jag.

“People have really been inspired by this little girl’s big heart.”

Fundraising and giving to others is nothing new to Dia. She climbed Kilimanjaro in 2019 aged just nine-years-old and become one of the youngest British Asian people in the world to summit the mountain.

That challenged inspired her to fundraise for the Msandaka School for the deaf and mute which is a the bottom of Kilimanjaro.

“When we were there we were able to see how important the school was to their way of life and Dia was eager to help when she got back to the UK,” Jag told the Bedford Independent.

“We also raised money for the Five Talent Community church in Malawi to help fund their water pump generator project. Dia wanted to support homeless people in the UK through the Nishkam SWAT charity while the Khalsa Aid Charity supports causes around the world.”

Not content with hitting over £2,500 during her birthday celebrations, Dia is determined to reach £4,000 for her charities by the end of the year.

“I’ve realised in 2020 just how lucky I am,” said Dia.

“I am so lucky that I have a home, loving parents, an education, easy access to food and water, and all I wanted to do was be able to give back as a gift for my birthday.

“This is the donation link and we want to reach our target of £4,000 by the end of the year.”

If you would like to make a donation to help Dia reach her target, visit crowdfunder.co.uk/we-are-raising-money-for-4-charities.

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