It all began three years ago when a young boy from Blackfalds decided he wanted to make a difference by helping sick kids get better.

When Haylen Astalos of Haylen’s Ice-Cream Shop, celebrated his eighth birthday on Friday, you could feel a special type of excitement in the room.

Over the past three years, Haylen has been selling ice-cream and donating the money he’s earned to the Ronald McDonald House in Red Deer. To date, Haylen has raised over $18,000 and counting.

“I got to choose where I wanted to donate the money and I chose the Ronald McDonald House because I wanted to help lots of kids,” said Haylen.

Rhanda Bonet-Graham with the Ronald McDonald House in Red Deer said it’s been an amazing journey and the money raised has gone a long way.

“Our family recreation programs that act as stress relievers for our families, the Home for Dinner program where we have a coordinator to coordinate different groups that come in and cook dinner for families and we have volunteer bakers that come in.”

“All of those things have costs associated with them and fundraisers like the one Haylen does are so important for us to cover those costs.”

His mom Tabitha couldn’t be prouder of her son and said he’s learning so much at such a young age.

‘It’s so amazing that he’s picked it up so early in life. Most kids don’t understand the concept of helping other kids and he’s got that from day one when we first started, when he was five years old.

“He has no end in mind. He wants to keep doing it, he talks about when he’s an adult and how he’s going to own his own ice-cream shop.”

His mom is right, there’s no slowing down for Haylen, as he teamed up with Lacombe’s Cilantro and Chive, creating “Haylen’s Ice Cream Sandwich.”

For each sandwich sold, $1 will be donated to Ronald McDonald House Charities Central Alberta.

On top of selling ice-cream, Haylen has begun selling customized fidget spinners with profits going towards the charity.

To purchase one, you can private message him on his Facebook Page.