One Costa student, Avery Ward, is taking her passions to the next level to help others.

This past September, Avery and three of her friends – Annaliese Snowhook (Palisades High School) and sisters Alicia and Becca Schomer (Da Vinci Charter High School) – created The Bella Foundation, a non-profit organization, as a way to make a difference in the lives of others through charity-driven projects.

The Bella Foundation is “teen-founded, teen-governed, and teen-driven.” In creating the Foundation’s bylaws, the teens came up with two rules: 1) the girls would take turns leading each meeting, and 2) there must be chocolate at every meeting.

Shortly after creating the non-profit, The Bella Foundation Directors raised money to make micro-loans to women in developing countries, giving them the funds to start or expand their own business.

The Foundation kicked off its first official project at the Richstone Family Center community event and hopes to tackle many more projects in the future.

If you wish to donate to The Bella Foundation, email Avery at [email protected].