December 15, 2022 - Daily Herald

If you follow the challenges in Kendall Ciesemier's life, and that of the charity she founded at the wise old age of 11, a pattern emerges.

One bobs, one weaves - interlacing to form a resilient fabric.

As Kendall struggled to recover from two liver transplants in 2004, Kids Caring 4 Kids - launched by her $360 donation - worked toward its modest goal of raising $60,000 for African children affected by AIDS.

September 20, 2022 - TribLocal.com

Kendall Ciesemier distinctly remembers meeting one of her role models, Bono from U2, in eighth grade. He visited the Nordstrom store in Chicago to spread awareness about the new ONE Campaign t-shirt and the Edun clothing line.

“Everyone swarmed him, and I thought ‘I’m not going to get to meet him,’” Kendall reminisced as she sipped passion fruit iced tea lemonade at the Starbucks in downtown Wheaton.

September 2008 - Teen Ink Magazine

Last January I had the opportunity to chat with Kendall Ciesemier, the 15-year-old founder of the Kids Caring 4 Kids organization, which provides impoverished African children with food and education. She appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” last year with former President Bill Clinton, who came to her high school and spoke at a surprise assembly.

September 2008 - Campus Life's Ignite Your Faith on ChristianityToday.com

When Kendall Ciesemier saw an Oprah Winfrey TV special about orphans in Africa, she was shocked by the different world they lived in. She was in fifth grade at the time and empathized with a girl her age who was forced to raise her younger sibling. Their parents had died from AIDS. "I was just in awe of how they could handle that at such a young age—both dealing with grieving the loss of their parents and being responsible for their own lives," says Kendall, now a high school sophomore. "Instead of crying, I got online and searched for a way to help them."

April 25th, 2008 - ProgressiveU.org
 
A few months ago I had the opportunity to chat with Kendall Ciesemier, the 15-year-old founder of the Kids Caring 4 Kids organization, which provides impoverished African children with food and education.

This past September, she appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” with former President Bill Clinton, who came to her high school and spoke at a surprise assembly.

January 2008 - Chicago Magazine

Kandall was named as one of Chicago Magazine's "Chicagoans of the Year" for 2007.  Below is the orignal article.

In December 2003, 11-year-old Kendall Ciesemier descended the stairs from her bedroom holding an envelope stuffed with $360 of her own money and asked her parents for a stamp.

November, 2007 - WGN.tv

Visit WGN to view this news clip or read the transcript below:

September 4, 2022 - Oprah.com 

Anyone can make a difference in the world—no matter how old you are. Kendall was just 11 years old when she watched Oprah's ChristmasKindness.

"That really touched her heart and when Kendall saw those kids suffering, she just instantly put herself in their shoes and wanted to do something," says her dad, Michael.

September 1, 2022 - Daily Herald

Oprah Winfrey usually is associated with "The Color Purple."  But Wheaton's Kendall Ciesemier may always link the television star to the color green -- as in money.

The unsuspecting Wheaton North High School freshman went to school Friday expecting nothing more exciting than a morning assembly. What she didn't realize was, the assembly, featuring former President Bill Clinton was in her honor.

May 24, 2022 - ABC7 Chicago

Watch Kendall as she appeared of Chicago's ABC 7 News on Harry Porterfield's segment "Someone You Should Know".  Below is a transcript of the news segment.