A local middle school student is turning the downtime from the pandemic into an opportunity to give back, crafting dollhouses that are now fetching big bucks for charity. Isabella Zamora, an 8th-grader from Cocopah Middle School with aspirations of interior design, began her dollhouse-building journey after getting inspired by online video tutorials. Her tiny creations, detailed right down to the miniature Stanley cups and scaled-down designer purses, are more than just child's play; they're miniature investments in her community's future.

Zamora's first foray into philanthropy was when her elementary school auctioned off one of her dollhouses, raising a cool $1,000 for school programs. The student told ABC15, "At first they were just for me, but I saw how much other people loved them, and I thought what if my passion could make a difference in my community?" And make a difference, she certainly did.

Now, Zamora is setting her sights on aiding larger causes. She's currently working on two more miniature masterpieces slated for auction, benefiting the Lymphoma Society Derby Day Auction and PANDA — an organization known for spearheading groundbreaking research on childhood diseases. Her commitment goes beyond a one-time act of charity, she's set a personal goal to build two dollhouses annually until she graduates from high school to support an array of charitable groups.

Charity group PANDA, or People Acting Now Discover Answers, has made strides in the medical community since 1999, standing on the philanthropic shoulders of the Phoenix Women’s Board of the Steele Children’s Research Center. Their unique collaboration with researchers and physicians has propelled the discovery of advanced treatments and cures for childhood diseases,, a mission statement obtained from the organization's website highlighted. The upcoming auction featuring Zamora's dollhouses provides another platform for PANDA to continue their invaluable research.

For Zamora, building dollhouses is more than a hobby; it's an avenue to deploy her passion for serving others. It represents the resilient spirit of community service, as seen in a youth turning miniature bricks into the foundation for change, one dollhouse at a time.