4-H YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
4-H family creates worry monsters to spread kindness for kids in need
A Clackamas County 4-H family has turned one child’s struggle with nightmares into a community project spreading comfort and kindness. When five-year-old Ben LaMont experienced frequent bad dreams, his mother Michelle helped him design and sew a protective “worry monster.”
Inspired by how the brightly colored creature worked for him, Ben and his brother Wyatt began creating similar “worry monsters” for others, sewing more as he gained confidence and encouragement through his 4-H club. In May, Ben and Wyatt completed their 1,000th monster — a milestone recognized at the 2025 Teddy Bear Parade in Oregon City, where they donated dozens of monsters for first responders to give to children in emergencies.
4-H has given Ben a platform to share his sewing project and skills. Together with his mother Michelle, he has taught sewing workshops where children learn to make their own worry monsters.
“Many of our 4-H’ers value service, but Ben’s project is really much bigger in scope than most youth his age,” said Wendy Hein, 4-H professor of practice in Clackamas County. “The fact that he’s done it for so long and continues to be excited about it, I find that noteworthy.” Ben says his dream job, besides opening a food truck, is to be the mayor of Oregon City so that he could deliver worry monsters to every kid in the city.
Ben and Wyatt LaMont stand in their kitchen holding their cherished first worry monsters,
which inspired them to created more stuffed monsters for kids in need. (Allison Yates)