About Dear Grown-Ups of Earth

This is us!

Dear Grown-Ups,

We’re guessing you’re here because another grown-up told you about our project. Yay! We’re so glad, because we need your help to get kids everywhere writing letters!

Who are we?

We’re a Southern California family who has set out to collect advice letters from kids… to the grown-ups of the world. Why? Because kids have great stuff to say! Because they’re (usually) way more honest than grown-ups. And because growing up doesn’t always mean getting smarter.

Our Goal:

To collect enough “Dear Grown-Ups of Earth” letters to compile a book, the proceeds of which will go entirely to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Because KIDS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE for everyone.

Any Kid Can Contribute!

Got a kid in your life? Ask him or her to write her own advice letter to grown-ups everywhere. We’re looking for ideas that are original, creative, fun, profound, silly, sweet or all of the above! All letters must be handwritten, fit onto one page, start with “Dear Grown-Ups of Earth,” and end with your child’s name and age.

Thanks for contributing!

Sincerely,

Melissa Heckscher, a Grown-Up of Earth

READY TO SUBMIT A LETTER? HERE’S HOW TO GET A GREAT ONE:

We’ve found that the less you tell your kids, the better their letters will turn out. That said, here are some tips:

  1. All letters must be handwritten, fit on a single page, and start with “Dear Grown-Ups of Earth.” In most cases, shorter is better (just a paragraph or so is totally fine!).

  2. Tell your kids to give grown-ups some advice on how they can have MORE FUN or ENJOY LIFE MORE. We’ve found that if you just tell kids to “write an advice letter to grown-ups” many will automatically churn out things like “Stop littering,” “Get off your phones” or “Don’t smoke.” And while that’s all great advice, we’re really hoping to capture the sorts of things that grown-ups don’t already know (or that they might have known when they were kids, too, but have forgotten). In other words: The good stuff!

  3. Your child must sign the letter with his/her first name (NO LAST NAMES) and age.

  4. Have a parent complete the Dear Grown-Ups of Earth Waiver.

  5. Get the letters back to me! (E-mail me to schedule a pickup if you live in the Los Angeles area or to get my mailing address.)

*Legal note: By submitting a letter to Grown-Ups of Earth, you waive all rights to its content and allow Grown-Ups of Earth to publish the letter on its website or any future publications. Also please note there is no monetary reimbursement for letters (not even for us!).