At just 17, this Indiana teenager turned her own childhood health struggles into a mission to help people experiencing homelessness, she has now raised $6,800 and distributed 100 blessing bags

Natalia Kleinrichert (Image Credit: Bishop Dwenger High School via Today’s Catholic)

At 17, Natalia Kleinrichert has turned difficult experiences from her childhood into an effort to support people experiencing homelessness in Fort Wayne, Indiana. According to 21Alive News, Kleinrichert founded a grassroots initiative called R.E.A.C.H. after navigating her own medical challenges as a child. In 2025, Kleinrichert raised $6,800 and distributed 100 ‘blessing bags’ to people experiencing homelessness.Now a senior at Bishop Dwenger High School, Kleinrichert continues to collect food, toiletries and other essential supplies for people who may not have consistent access to basic necessities. Her work shows how a personal experience can become the motivation for a wider community effort.

Turning personal struggles into action

Kleinrichert’s motivation to help others did not begin with a large organisation or a formal nonprofit. It grew from her own experiences with health challenges when she was younger. That experience influenced how she viewed people facing difficult circumstances. Rather than keeping the idea of helping others separate from her own life, she created R.E.A.C.H., a grassroots initiative focused on reaching people experiencing homelessness. The initiative has developed over several years, with Kleinrichert and her mother organising events to raise money and collect donations for people in need.A 2025 profile by Today’s Catholic reported that Kleinrichert had been helping people in need for several years. She had previously collected hundreds of boxes of Girl Scout cookies for The Rescue Mission and later developed R.E.A.C.H. as a way to continue her efforts. The initiative’s name stands for “Reach Everyone Always with a Caring Heart.” The initiative focuses on providing practical support, including food and other everyday necessities.

Image Credit: Facebook/ @R.E.A.C.H. the Homeless

$6,800 raised and 100 bags distributed

In 2025, Kleinrichert raised $6,800 and distributed 100 blessing bags to people experiencing homelessness in Fort Wayne. The bags were intended to provide useful supplies to people living without stable housing. While individual donations may seem small, bringing them together allowed the teenager to distribute a substantial number of care packages.Her family has also seen how quickly those supplies can be needed. In an earlier interview with 21Alive News, Kleinrichert’s mother, Amy Kleinrichert, described how quickly the food and blessing bags were used, saying the response demonstrated the level of need in the community.Kleinrichert has continued to expand the initiative through additional donation drives and community events. Her past efforts have also reflected the idea that people experiencing homelessness need support throughout the year, not only during the holiday season. That approach has also shaped the kinds of items she collects. Instead of focusing exclusively on financial contributions, R.E.A.C.H. accepts practical supplies such as food, toiletries and other essentials.

A community effort that keeps growing

Kleinrichert planned a donation drive outside Parkview Field during a Fort Wayne TinCaps game on August 9. She used the event to encourage members of the community to contribute items for people experiencing homelessness. The supplies collected included food, toiletries and other essential goods. Rather than distributing everything herself, Kleinrichert planned to deliver the donations to M.I.S.F.I.T.S. Ministry, a nonprofit that works directly with Fort Wayne’s homeless community.

Kleinrichert encourages people to help when they see someone in need. In an interview ahead of the August donation drive, she pointed to the basic protections many people take for granted, such as having a home that provides shelter from extreme temperatures and bad weather. She said that any opportunity to provide support should be acted upon.For Kleinrichert, the project is not simply about the amount of money raised or the number of bags distributed. It is also about encouraging other people, particularly young people, to recognise that they can make a difference in their communities. Her efforts have grown from small acts of giving into a continuing grassroots initiative. With R.E.A.C.H., she continues to turn that commitment into practical action, one donation, one care package and one community effort at a time.