Charlton teenager raises money for PMC by writing children’s book
CHARLTON – As part of her and her sister’s efforts to raise money for the Pan-Mass Challenge and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 16-year-old Clara Dowdle of Charlton has written a children’s book inspired by the annual PMC bike ride.
Together with their friends Jenna and Sarah Miller, the Dowdle sisters support cancer treatment and research at Dana-Farber by selling flowers straight from their parents’ gardens, candles and homemade jewelry. The bike-loving friends have even playfully given themselves the name “Daughters of Anarchy.”
Clara said she had always wanted to write a children’s book, it was just a question of what it should be about. Since she and her sister have dedicated time year after year to raising money for the PMC, Clara thought a story about the bike ride would make sense.
Her book, Dragonfly Magic, is the result of her conversations with riders on previous PMC bike tours when she was not yet old enough to ride a bike.
“There were so many people with dragonfly necklaces and dragonfly tattoos and I asked my mom: Why? Why are there so many dragonflies?” Clara said. “So we started talking to people about it and they had all experienced a loved one who loved dragonflies dying or a dragonfly showing up and reminding them of that person. They all had really good experiences, which motivated me to write about dragonflies in the book.”
Clara’s father also had an encounter with a dragonfly on his bike during a ride that motivated him to keep going, she said. Her father, a high school teacher, had lost a student to cancer, which is why he started cycling.
“I always had ideas about what I wanted to write about. I would say I spent half a year thinking about what I wanted to write about (like dragonflies),” Clara said. “It took me about a month to write it because the actual story is based on experiences I had when talking to people about dragonflies.”
This is Clara’s first time riding at the PMC. Her father, she said, plans to ride on the PMC track soon but is busy with work.
“It’s pretty nerve-wracking because I’ll be riding about 111 miles. It’s kind of overwhelming to think about it,” Clara said. “But I’ve been training. I’m excited, the nerves are good. Cycling will help a lot of people.”
The goal of her book, she said, is to show children and adults how to be charitable. Dragonfly Magic also aims to show children how to appreciate kindness and the continuity of life. All proceeds from sales go to the PMC.
“It’s a story about helping others in the PMC. I’m really proud of it,” said Clara. “It’s meant to send a message to others that it’s good to raise funds and help others.”
This year’s PMC will take place on August 3rd and 4th.
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