Gabriel Clark, a 12-year-old boy from Cumbria, England, discovered that his passion for woodworking was considered unusual by others.

One day, he came home feeling down, revealing to his father, Richard Clark, that his friends thought his love for woodworking was “uncool” and teased him about it. Adding to his disappointment, he had only six followers on Instagram.

Gabriel’s interest in woodworking began when he was around three or four years old, sparked by a hammer passed down from his grandfather, given to him by his mother, Teresa McCann Clark. Self-taught, Gabriel developed his skills over the years, driven by his deep affinity for the craft.

Seeing his son struggle, Richard felt the pain any parent would and decided to help by turning to Twitter. On March 25, Richard tweeted about Gabriel’s passion for woodworking, asking people to follow his son on Instagram to brighten his day.

The response was overwhelming. Initially hoping to gain about 60 followers, Gabriel’s Instagram account skyrocketed to over 259,000 followers.

The tweet went viral, and Gabriel received around 20,000 orders for his handcrafted bowls. However, realizing that fulfilling all these orders would take decades, Gabriel decided to use his newfound popularity to help others.

Gabriel crafted a unique beechwood bowl with a blue and yellow ring, symbolizing the Ukrainian flag, to support Ukraine. The Clark family then launched a Just Giving page to raise funds for Save the Children’s appeal in Ukraine, aiming for £5,000 ($6,420). To their surprise, donations poured in, raising a total of £254,678 from 14,153 contributors.

On April 17, a drawing was held to determine the recipient of the Ukraine bowl, with the winner being a donor named Renuka Chapman. As interest in the fundraiser continued, the campaign remained open for additional contributions.

Gabriel’s mother, Teresa, highlighted his kindness, stating, “The most important thing about Gabriel is that he has a really big heart. His heart is even more astounding than his incredible talent.”

Gabriel’s story is a testament to the power of kindness and generosity. If you’d like to support him and the children in Ukraine, consider donating to the Just Giving page he set up.