Seven-year-old raises $200,000 for Haiti victims

Seven-year-old Charlie Simpson from Fulham, west London had hoped to raise just £500 for UNICEF's earthquake appeal by cycling eight kilometers (five miles) around a local park, and ended up raising almost $200,000.

"My name is Charlie Simpson. I want to do a sponsored bike ride for Haiti because there was a big earthquake and loads of people have lost their lives," said Simpson on his JustGiving page, a fundraising site which launched his efforts.

And with that simple call, messages of support flooded the site. "Such a big heart for a young boy, you're a little star!" wrote one supporter. "Well done Charlie. A real celebrity," said another.

David Bull, UNICEF UK executive director described Simpson's efforts as "very bold and innovative. … It shows he connects with and not only understands what children his own age must be going through in Haiti. … "The little seed -- his idea -- that he has planted has grown rapidly and his is a place well deserved in the humanitarian world.”