NEW YORK — Bake sales? So 20th century. This summer, thousands of young people will attend camps and academic programs thanks to online crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo.
Donors can help middle schoolers learn computer programming in Pennsylvania, support a leadership academy for Virginia teens or send children of incarcerated California parents to sleepaway camp.
There are no statistics for the number of children and teens whose summer activities are being financed through crowdfunding, but Kelsea Little of GoFundMe says fundraising for summer camps is skyrocketing on the site.
Amy Sarisky contributed toward a GoFundMe campaign for New York City high school sophomore Lissette Barretto to attend a summer program at Stanford University.
She says she is happy to make an impact on a young person's life.
