Turning a simple backyard game of rock-paper-scissors into an act of purpose, Matthew Mayle, a senior at St. Francis de Sales School, raised enough money to feed hungry children for a year.
He said he was inspired by his parents’ regular contribution to Thrive, a global nonprofit that works to fight childhood hunger in Bangladesh and the Philippines.
“This past summer, I decided I wanted to become more involved than I have been, so I decided that I need to start a fund-raiser and do something,” the 18-year-old said. “I thought about it for a little while, and my parents and I decided that a rock-paper-scissors tournament would be a really fun thing to do because it’s something that everyone can participate in.”
The Perrysburg teen set a fund-raising goal of $1,200.
The backyard tournament styled after March Madness — complete with brackets, a $20 buy-in, a taco food truck, and the family pool open for summer fun — brought out about 64 participants who ranged from 4 years old to 84.
“It was just so amazing when we counted up the money after the tournament, to see how much we had, and to know that we hit our goal of $1,200, and we [nearly] doubled it,” Matthew said.
The $2,200 raised will provide lunch for 20 needy children for a year.
“It’s really humbling to know what — not only me, but all those people that donated and spread the word about the tournament — were able to do to help those kids. It’s really hard to put into words how it felt, but it was just a blessing,” he said.
The teen’s efforts earned him the title of youth ambassador for Thrive, a program that inspires teens to foster change right in their own communities.
“He came up with this tournament on his own. I think he’d been doing it in the past with family members, and he wanted to just make a more meaningful difference,” Mrs. Gabel said. “The youth ambassador program is an award that students get if they raise over $1,200, which would feed 10 kids for an entire year, so I think that’s what sparked his interest — and then he just blew that goal out of the water.”
While living in Bangladesh, where her husband worked for the U.S. embassy, and working as a teacher, Mrs. Gabel said she witnessed many children begging for food on the streets and others who couldn’t attend school because they needed to beg for food. Thrive’s lunch program encouraged children to attend school by guaranteeing them a meal.
“Gina told me that not only are we feeding the kids physically, but also mentally, because when they have food coming into their schools, the school attendance goes up 20 percent which is really awesome and beneficial for these kids in the future. It’s been a great, great experience,” Matthew said.
Founded in 2012 by Mrs. Gabel and two fellow expat mothers in Bangladesh, Thrive has served more than 4.5 million school meals in 13 years.
It was 12-year-old Piper Culling who clinched the rock-paper-scissors title, earning a coveted trophy and $200 in prize money — half of which she donated back to the cause.
“As a parent, one of the proudest moments was when she decided, without being asked, to donate half her winnings back to the charity,” said Sally Culling, Piper’s mom. “I guess she must have internalized that philosophy from both home, church, and school, and I was very, very proud as a parent.”
The simplicity of the game made it a perfect choice for the fund-raiser, said Andrew Mayle, Matthew’s father.
“Anybody can play — 1-2-3 shoot — and then people who couldn’t come, we had a web page where people could donate online,” he said. “And it was absolutely awesome to see our friends, neighbors, and even people we’d never met come together for something meaningful. It was a blessing.”
Matthew, a three-year letterman and middle linebacker at St. Francis, plans to pursue sports management in college to explore his interest in the business and culture of sports. His goal is to make the rock-paper-scissors tournament an annual event, aiming to raise even more next year.
“I’ll shoot for maybe $3,000 or $3,500, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we smash that,” he said.
Donations are still being accepted at Matthew’s page at classy.org. For more information about Thrive, visit thrive-global.org.
First Published October 27, 2025, 3:06 p.m.
