State Honoree

Micah Pinson, 12, of Shady Shores, Texas, a seventh-grader at Corinth Classical Academy, has conducted an annual holiday toy drive over the past six years that has gathered more than 25,000 toys and games for patients at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children as a way of giving back to the hospital for the free care he received there. Micah was born with a left hand that was missing three and a half fingers, but now, after two surgeries at Scottish Rite, “there is almost nothing I can’t do,” he said. The hospital not only treated Micah’s hand, but also hosted a “hand camp” where Micah could meet other kids and counselors with hand differences and realize that he was not alone.

Grateful for all the hospital had done, Micah and his father met with an officer there to find out how they could help Scottish Rite. That’s when Micah decided to collect toys that the hospital could give to its patients throughout the year. So now, every year between Thanksgiving and Christmas, Micah and his family knock on doors and place collection boxes at businesses and other community locations, often with the help of local high school students and other volunteers. A few days before Christmas, Micah gathers all of the items that have been donated and delivers them to the hospital. “There are many ways to give back to causes that are important to you,” said Micah. “I am thankful for the opportunity to support Texas Scottish Rite Hospital.”