ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A St. Petersburg 4th grader at Shorecrest Preparatory School is making a big difference in the world and now he’s being honored for the incredible work he’s doing to protect oceans.
9-year-old Miles Fetherston-Resch said he’s pretty much a normal kid. Yet, his feats are anything but ordinary.
Miles started an organization called “Kids Saving Oceans.” He sells items like hats, t-shirts, metal straws, water bottles and stickers made out of recycled materials for a good cause.
“I donate all the money I make to organizations that help save our oceans,” Miles explained.
Miles was just named among the finalists for the Times Magazine Kid Of The Year. Just 20 kids nationwide were honored as finalists.
What started with $13 from his piggy bank as a 6-year-old has grown to $26,000 raised for ocean conservation.
Miles has even met with leaders in Washington D.C. and helped co-write a book called Kids Saving Oceans: Olivia Makes a Difference.
“It’s about a kid named Olivia and she doesn’t want to just help her dad in the kitchen, she wants to impact the entire world so she does her research and finds out the oceans are in trouble so she starts with a basic beach cleanup and it rockets off from there,” Miles elaborated.
Jess Fetherston-Resch, Miles’ mom, said she couldn’t be more proud of her son. “It’s been incredible. I don’t think any of us anticipated it growing as much as it did, as quickly as it did. When he came to me as a 6-year-old saying he wanted to start a business, it’s hard to take a 6-year-old seriously, but he’s really persevered through it,” she explained.
Miles said he’s honored to be among the top kids in the country named by Time Magazine. “I think it’s one of the biggest awards I’ve ever received and I’m very proud of myself,” he said with a smile.
Mrs. Madeline Stoddard, Mile’s 4th grade teacher at Shorecrest Preparatory School said other students in her classroom are inspired by Mile’s momentum and are realizing that age has no bearing on success. “Seeing what a change maker Miles is just blows my mind even from an adult perspective like ‘I need to get out there and I need to be doing more.’ It shows that it doesn’t matter how young you are, everyone has the capacity to create change,” Stoddard said.
Miles has an impressive goal: To raise $1 million for ocean conservation by the time he turns 18. He also hopes to inspire all of us to do one small thing the next time we visit our favorite sandy shoreline.
“If you see a piece of trash on the beach, pick it up, you might save a life in the sea,” he said with confidence.
You can find out more about Miles’ organization, by visiting kidssavingoceans.com.
To read more about the Kid of the Year finalists, visit https://time.com/6146158/time-kid-of-the-year-finalists/.
