Man Starts Pool Charity After Seeing Kids Playing in Makeshift Pool Being Made Fun Of

When Todd Arredondo from San Antonio, Texas, saw the above photo on Facebook, he was shocked – not because of the kids having a seemingly good time playing in a makeshift pool in the back of a pickup truck, but because of the comments people left on the picture.

Arredondo told Today that the now-deleted photo had nasty comments from users saying tidbits like “lazy family,” and “raising kids to love being poor.” Arredondo said it “brought tears to my eyes,” and he knew he had to do something to help.

So, thanks to social media, he was able to track the family down and bought them an inflatable pool with his own money.

However, he knew he had to do more. Arredondo thought other families could probably use pools too, so he asked his friends and family on Facebook if they knew any. That’s how Pools for Kids was born.

Pools for Kids is a project that is aiming to provide 250 families with inflatable pools. His campaign raised close to $20,000 on its GoFundMe page and originally only sought to give five families pools, but now its turned into a movement. The Facebook page has over 3,000 likes.

According to Today, Arredondo calls himself the “black-bearded Santa Claus” and says that families in need of pools can comment on the Facebook page or refer other people in need.