Your kids are collecting what now?

Look—I'm gonna be real with you. There are a lot of things that make St. Louis, well, *St. Louis*. We got our baseball, our toasted ravioli, and our insistence that Forest Park is bigger than Central Park. But then there's stuff like this: Lindbergh preschoolers, down in South County, have collected literally thousands of aluminum can tabs for the Ronald McDonald House. Thousands! For over a decade, these little ones in Teresa Darr’s Caterpillar Room at Lindbergh’s Early Childhood Education West Campus have been on a mission, proving that even the smallest hands can make a big difference. It's not just a cute story; it's a testament to how folks in the Lou still roll up their sleeves for each other.

### Why This Matters for the Lou

This isn't just about a school project. It's about a deep-seated commitment to community that you see all over this city. The Ronald McDonald House here, right by SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital and St. Louis Children's Hospital in the Central West End, is a lifeline for families. And these kids? They're learning that lesson early.

* **Generational Giving:** This isn't a one-off. It’s been happening for *ten years*. That’s multiple cohorts of preschoolers learning about helping others.

* **Small Actions, Big Impact:** A can tab might seem small, but thousands of them add up, providing real support for families staying at the Ronald McDonald House.

* **Teaching Empathy:** It shows that even in the suburbs like Sunset Hills and Affton, where these kids probably live, the spirit of looking out for your neighbors, even ones you’ll never meet, is alive and well.

I mean, where'd these kids go to high school? Just kidding, mostly. But seriously, it’s this kind of quiet, consistent effort that makes St. Louis what it is. We might argue about Highway 40 versus I-64, or whether provel cheese is a gift from God, but when it comes to helping out, we're all on the same team. That’s the Lou — we're still here and we're not leaving.

My man Marcus and the whole crew on the Morning Wire break down stories like this every day — catch it live at mornings.live.