Childhood dreams are often put away. But, for one teenager, a childhood toy gave him a way to help others. So he pulled the toys from the trash and created a children’s program. Now, he’s giving those dreams to children in California and soon across all of the United States.

Charlie Jeffers, a 17-year-old high school senior from California, his journey with Legos began at the age of 4. “My bedroom is wall-to-wall Legos on all the shelves. It’s been such a big part of my life,” he said. A few years ago, he noticed his friends started tossing away their old Lego collections.

They just go into a landfill,” Jeffers said.

So he came up with a new plan.  “Legos are expensive,” he said. “A lot of people don’t get access to them.” He began collecting unwanted Lego parts from his friends and people in his neighborhood. “The ball got rolling from there, and it’s been getting bigger since,” Jeffers said about the expansion of his project, Pass the Bricks.

Jeffers sits with his donated Legos. Photo courtesy of Jeffers

Jeffers said that most of the sets donated are missing pieces. So he and the 25 volunteers that work with him on Pass the Bricks got creative. They created new Lego sets and repackaged them for the children.

“We’re trying to make them really fun,” said Jeffers. For instance, he created one 56-piece set called “Chewbacca’s Housewarming Party” — a nod to the Star Wars character — and a 94-piece set called “Iron Man Goes to the Car Wash.”

Since Jeffers started the project in 2020, he and the volunteers have created and donated more than 3,000 Lego sets. “We’re really focusing right now on expanding Pass the Bricks to other cities across the United States and in other countries,” Jeffers outlines his ambitious plans for the future of Pass the Bricks.

“The ability to either follow instructions and make something amazing, or to go completely out of your imagination and make something from there, it creates these really awesome results,” Jeffers said.

Jeffers and his volunteers use the Lego pieces they’ve collected to create their own scenes. Photo by Charlie Jeffers

Jeffers has given sets to Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Family House, Fred Finch Youth & Family Services, Goodwill, Marin Foster Care Association, and the Bay Area Crisis Nursery, among other organizations.

“The Lego sets were a great complement to our impactful STEM programming,” said Jamin McVeigh, senior vice president of development at Boys & Girls Clubs of San Francisco. Jeffers said his goal is to inspire creativity and dreaming for children.

“I was so lucky to have access to a toy like that,” he said. “I want to give other kids the same opportunity.” Pass the Bricks aims to deliver 100,000 “new” Lego sets to kids by 2026. Watch below for a look at Pass the Bricks!

Sources: Washington Post | ABC 23