COEUR d'ALENE - When it comes to Press Christmas for All, Molly Whelan is all in.

The 11-year-old Holy Family Catholic School fifth-grader, as she has done in recent years, saved all her change for a year to help spread Christmas cheer to local families in need. The result: A small fortune of $101.87 and a very big dose of benevolence.

"Kids should have a good life when they are young," Molly said as she turned in the money Wednesday at The Press. "There's some people at my school who are pretty poor. There's a single mom with eight kids who needs some money."

Her effort inspired Ron Nilson, CEO of Ground Force Worldwide. When Nilson dropped in to The Press on Wednesday and was told about Molly's generous donation, he matched Molly's amount with a $100 bill.

Molly said Christmas is a lot about taking care of others and "sharing our blessings."

"The money is kept in a big bottle, and I brought it in today to share it," she said. "It's good to give to people in need. Christmas is a time for giving. It's not all about presents, trees and lights.

"You should give to people who are less fortunate than you."

Molly said Christmas is a special time for her and her family - and it should be for others as well.

"We want to help make it special for everyone else," she said.

Molly said she could have easily treated herself with the change, but she preferred to help others.

"There's other people who need it," she said. "There are kids starving out there who need it way more than me."