PALMYRA TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- A teenager from Wayne County is putting her artistic abilities towards a good cause. The teen is helping endangered wildlife, especially those harmed by wildfires in Australia.
While some teenagers sit in their rooms and play games or surf the internet, Hailey Hopkins spends her time crafting. But this isn't your normal craft project. The Wallenpaupack Area High School student formed her own business to make charms to benefit endangered wildlife.
"I was reading about climate change in school, and I wanted to help this, so I came home, and I did research on it, and I found the Wildlife Conservation Society," Hailey said.
So Hailey bought some polymer clay and supplies and got to work. The recent wildfires in Australia have affected millions of people and animals. She quickly came up with what she wanted to sculpt next and plans to donate all of her proceeds from the sale.
"I get so sad every time I see it, so I knew I wanted to do something special for it. I saw a picture of a koala, and the koalas were just awesome to do."
Only hours after posting that she would make and sell 20 koala charms, she sold out. That's when she went back to work making more. The intricate details are time-consuming, but Hailey has it down to a science.
"Koalas definitely take a little bit longer to make, but usually I can make one from start to finish in probably 10 minutes, but I don't do them like that. I actually have some of them here. I make all of the individual parts, and then I put them together, so it's more like an assembly line so I can make ten in an hour."
Hailey is making more than just koala charms. She's doing other animals, and half of the proceeds from those sales go to other charities. You can check out her products on her website -- Endangered Animal Charms.