Lethbridge father and daughter turn building birdhouses into way to give back

Rob and Aubree Burton raised $2,400 for the Lethbridge Food Bank through their birdhouse-building initiative. (Submitted)

Lethbridge, Alta. — Over Easter weekend Aubree Burton and her father Rob Burton were building little birdhouses at their home when they decided to build a few extra to drop off to friends.

But after building those, eight-year-old Aubree had an idea and asked her dad if they could make way more — sell them and donate the money to a good cause.

They set a goal of $500 and that the money would go toward the Lethbridge Food Bank.

"She and her dad started with that $500 goal," Aubree’s mother Amy Burton said. "And then we just kept getting more and more messages, so we got to $700 and had a party, but it kept growing from there."

After sharing the project on Facebook and Instagram the interest continued to climb.

Three days and 90 birdhouses later, the Burtons had raised $2,400 and the interest wasn’t contained just to Lethbridge or Coaldale, where a local contractor bought ten. Some people from British Columbia even wanted to donate to the cause.

"We also had some people that would buy three birdhouses and pay $300 instead of only $20. Lots of people threw in an extra $5, some people didn’t even want birdhouses and just said 'here’s some money for the food bank,' which was amazing to see," Amy said.

Amy said the experience was incredible for her daughter Aubree, who never in a million years even expected to get to the initial goal of $500.

"It was really neat to see the community come out and buy these birdhouses that they both had so much joy making, and then to make such a difference for the foodbank is super cool."

The family has been in touch with the Community Foundation of Lethbridge and Southwestern Alberta to facilitate the matching funds for charities announced by the provincial government, beginning on April 15.