As the impending holiday approaches, we thought it would only be fitting to dedicate this blog to what we at Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer are thankful for. We are most thankful for our amazing volunteers and supporters - without you, we wouldn’t be making a difference in the world of childhood cancer – so this Thanksgiving – we are thankful for you! We are also thankful for Alex and all of the heroes who continue to inspire us every day – we are here for them. Words cannot express our gratitude to everyone who continues to be involved in the battle against childhood cancer, thank you for joining us on this journey toward a cure.
Here are what some of our hero families, grantees, and supporters have said they are thankful for this holiday season:
“We have so much to be thankful for this year, but mostly we are thankful for our son feeling well and being excited for the holidays. We are thankful for friends and family who have stood in prayer and strong support over the past four years and have helped us to be able to spend as much time together as a family as possible.”
“Thank you again for your generous support; it has been instrumental in our work to identify new pathways to target in childhood leukemia and brings us closer to curing all children with leukemia and other cancers. Preliminary results funded by Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation have also enabled us to obtain additional funding from the National Institute of Health (NIH) and other sources to carry on this important work to cure childhood cancer. Thank you again!”
“I live by the motto: "Never Drive Past a Lemonade Stand"...this gives that a whole new meaning. Thank you for inspiring greatness in the ordinary. You can truly change the world by being a positive influence on each individual you encounter.”
“We were so pleasantly surprised by a gift of gasoline cards upon enrolling in a clinical trial at Oregon. Our 12-year-old daughter has a very rare sarcoma and we will be driving down to Portland once a week for her to receive a promising investigational drug. Thank you so much for this gift - it was such an unexpected boost and we were also able to learn about the wonderful things that Alex inspired and that her foundation continues to do.”
“I would just like to thank you for featuring my son, Conlan, as a hero. We have just begun this journey so it is hard for us to be able to help out others, but I am definitely looking into hosting a lemonade stand.”
“I believe if we had more children like Alex this world would be a better place, so I thank all youth who participate in activities that make this world a better place.”
“What an inspiration Alex and all the heroes are. The stories are so moving that I cannot stop reading them. Thanks for all that you do.”
What our followers on Twitter are thankful for:
@faeriesrck – I’m thankful for a child showing us how simple it is to help raise money for a great cause by holding a lemonade stand!
@glitteratiglue - I'm thankful for my older brother surviving leukemia :)
@LalErin - St. Louis Children’s Hospital NICU staff and Dr's for saving my son’s life!!! Ah-mazing!
@groupiness - I'm so thankful for a job I love, a family who is happy & healthy, and the ability to give back to those in need!
For more of what our supporters are thankful for this year, view our Thanksgiving 2009 video, posted above.
Or – tell us what you’re thankful for on our Twitter page – www.twitter.com/AlexsLemonade
- Liz & Jay Scott, Alex's Parents
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation from football to fundraising surprises
Over the past couple of weeks, we have heard several fun-filled and heartwarming stories about Alex’s Lemonade Stand events. They took place in various parts of the country, celebrating various occasions, but they all seemed to have one thing in common – an unmistakable spirit of giving.
Pat's Steaks in Philadelphia sporting Alex's gear!
The first event was hosted by the Lemon Society of Philadelphia, the young professionals branch of Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. A few weeks ago we got a call from Frankie Olivieri, owner of the famous Pat’s Steaks and a longtime supporter of ALSF. Frankie had an idea – why not hold a day-long lemonade stand at Pat’s prior to the Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles football game. Frankie knew Pat’s would be busy prior to this game between rivals, and he thought what better time to fundraise! So the Lemon Society of Philadelphia took it upon themselves to set up a lemonade stand, and Frankie threw in some great incentives to help the fundraising along. The most popular incentive of the day – a “cut the line pass” allowing the highest bidder to be escorted to the front of the line. The most expensive pass of the day went for $100! Another donation of note, the family of Dallas Cowboy’s owner Jerry Jones stopped by to grab some food before the game and made a $100 donation. All told, over a dozen members of the Lemon Society manned the stand throughout the day, and several other familiar faces came by to say hi and show their support, helping the foundation to raise $6,600 that day! Amazing!
From football to fundraising surprises – in Denver, Colorado, one of our longtime supporters Chuck Boyle and his girlfriend Courtney Pugh were celebrating Chuck’s birthday. As a surprise, Courtney sent Chuck on a scavenger hunt throughout the city, completing various tasks to get to the prize at the end - a surprise visit from his parents who live outside of Chicago. One of the tasks of the day – collect $10 in donations for ALSF from strangers. Can you believe that the first person Chuck stopped on the street and told the story of Alex to, was so inspired that they donated the whole $10 on the spot? It’s true, and Chuck has photo evidence to prove it! What an amazing supporter Chuck is, he became involved when his former fiancé Page Turner was battling her own cancer, Ewing’s sarcoma. Page and Chuck were passionate about Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, and after she passed away, Chuck continued their dedication to the cause. Since that time, Courtney has become equally passionate and even more involved, as evidenced by the scavenger hunt! Another example of Chuck and Courtney’s continued support – they hold an annual lemonade stand, and Courtney gives a portion of the proceeds to the foundation from her ahlivv website.
Finally, from fundraising surprises to family - Jay and I attended a surprise 50th Anniversary celebration for my parents last weekend in Rhode Island. It was a day of family (over 60 family members attended), friends (25 close friends of the family were also there), and fundraising for ALSF. While organizing the party, my siblings requested donations to ALSF instead of gifts! The party raised over $1,000!
These three events took place across the country, and though one of them did in fact have a lemonade stand present, they were about so much more. They were about continuing what Alex started in unique and inventive ways. It is amazing to me that what Alex started in our front yard has taken over the world famous Pat’s Steaks for a day; has made it to Colorado for a scavenger hunt; and has forever changed the celebrations in my own life. Though these are only three examples of the thousands of events that took place over the last year, and the hundreds of amazing people who are picking up where Alex left off - they have all changed the path that Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation is blazing on the way to finding a cure for all childhood cancers. Thank you to everyone who continues Alex’s dream – we truly couldn’t be making such amazing progress in the battle against childhood cancer without you.
Pat's Steaks in Philadelphia sporting Alex's gear!From football to fundraising surprises – in Denver, Colorado, one of our longtime supporters Chuck Boyle and his girlfriend Courtney Pugh were celebrating Chuck’s birthday. As a surprise, Courtney sent Chuck on a scavenger hunt throughout the city, completing various tasks to get to the prize at the end - a surprise visit from his parents who live outside of Chicago. One of the tasks of the day – collect $10 in donations for ALSF from strangers. Can you believe that the first person Chuck stopped on the street and told the story of Alex to, was so inspired that they donated the whole $10 on the spot? It’s true, and Chuck has photo evidence to prove it! What an amazing supporter Chuck is, he became involved when his former fiancé Page Turner was battling her own cancer, Ewing’s sarcoma. Page and Chuck were passionate about Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, and after she passed away, Chuck continued their dedication to the cause. Since that time, Courtney has become equally passionate and even more involved, as evidenced by the scavenger hunt! Another example of Chuck and Courtney’s continued support – they hold an annual lemonade stand, and Courtney gives a portion of the proceeds to the foundation from her ahlivv website.
Finally, from fundraising surprises to family - Jay and I attended a surprise 50th Anniversary celebration for my parents last weekend in Rhode Island. It was a day of family (over 60 family members attended), friends (25 close friends of the family were also there), and fundraising for ALSF. While organizing the party, my siblings requested donations to ALSF instead of gifts! The party raised over $1,000!
These three events took place across the country, and though one of them did in fact have a lemonade stand present, they were about so much more. They were about continuing what Alex started in unique and inventive ways. It is amazing to me that what Alex started in our front yard has taken over the world famous Pat’s Steaks for a day; has made it to Colorado for a scavenger hunt; and has forever changed the celebrations in my own life. Though these are only three examples of the thousands of events that took place over the last year, and the hundreds of amazing people who are picking up where Alex left off - they have all changed the path that Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation is blazing on the way to finding a cure for all childhood cancers. Thank you to everyone who continues Alex’s dream – we truly couldn’t be making such amazing progress in the battle against childhood cancer without you.
- For more unique ways to get involved with the foundation visit our website!
- OR if you have a unique idea, tell us about it!
Friday, November 13, 2009
This week's blog has been pre-empted by some exciting news!
Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation, with the help of founding sponsor Volvo and with support from Summit Entertainment, is giving one lucky Twilight fan, and 49 of their closest friends, the opportunity to see New Moon before it hits theaters. Starting today, Friday, November 13, 2009, Twilight fans will have the opportunity to enter a fundraising challenge at AlexsLemonade.org to win a pre-screening of the new Twilight movie for 50 people. The challenge will end at noon Eastern Time on Monday, November 16, 2009, at which time the individual who has raised the most funds for the childhood cancer charity will be awarded a private screening of the movie for Thursday, November 19, one day before it is slated to hit theaters. The screening will take place at an available theater in the United States and within the geographic region of the winner.In order to enter the fundraising challenge, Twilight fans will need to follow three easy steps:
- Create a fundraising page on AlexsLemonade.org
- Tell all of their friends
- Raise funds for the battle against childhood cancer! The challenge will end at noon Eastern Time on Monday, November 16, 2009.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Curing Childhood Cancer – through treatments and care
As you probably know by now, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for all childhood cancers. While on the surface, this statement seems to allude to medical research (which of course is true and vitally important), there is so much more that goes into the everyday lives of children and their families fighting the disease. In 2007, in an ongoing effort to improve the lives and care of kids with cancer, we introduced a Nurse Researcher Grant Program.
These grants are given to nurses to help them find better ways to care for children undergoing cancer treatment. If you have ever been in the hospital for even an hour, you probably know that the person you see the most is your nurse. Nurses have a unique view into what patients go through, and in the case of childhood cancer patients, this is no different. Nurses have an understanding of what simple changes can make a huge difference in recovery times, and overall comfort levels.
Here’s what I mean:
During the first year of this program, one of our grant recipients had the idea that cancer patients’ recovery times could be quicker if their sleep was uninterrupted. We all know that sleep can be your body’s best defense, but when a patient is staying in the hospital they are often woken up in the middle of the night. If they were allowed to sleep uninterrupted throughout the night, without their trash being emptied, or being disturbed for medicine and procedures that could wait until morning, would they have a better recovery time?
Another grant recipient looked into the impact of a teen weekend on the quality of life of adolescents with cancer. These kids had certainly seen other kids with cancer, but they were likely in hospitals or a setting that wasn’t conducive to sharing life experiences. What if they were taken out of that element and allowed to just be? She found out that while they didn’t spend large amounts of time discussing their diagnosis, they did share information and experiences that helped them to better process their own cancer. This study helps to better understand the overall needs of this population, and the subtle ways that we can make their lives better.
2009 Teen Weekend
Having gone through this battle ourselves with Alex, we of course want to see her dream of a cure for all childhood cancer, but we also want to simply make the lives of cancer fighters better in any way that we possibly can. Nursing grants help us to garner tangible results, and results that can make a difference in the lives of these patients now, while the medical researchers are out there doing their job as well. Check out our website for some more information on our Nurse Researcher Grant programs and of course to read about the most recent recipients!
- Liz Scott, Alex's Mother
These grants are given to nurses to help them find better ways to care for children undergoing cancer treatment. If you have ever been in the hospital for even an hour, you probably know that the person you see the most is your nurse. Nurses have a unique view into what patients go through, and in the case of childhood cancer patients, this is no different. Nurses have an understanding of what simple changes can make a huge difference in recovery times, and overall comfort levels.
Here’s what I mean:
During the first year of this program, one of our grant recipients had the idea that cancer patients’ recovery times could be quicker if their sleep was uninterrupted. We all know that sleep can be your body’s best defense, but when a patient is staying in the hospital they are often woken up in the middle of the night. If they were allowed to sleep uninterrupted throughout the night, without their trash being emptied, or being disturbed for medicine and procedures that could wait until morning, would they have a better recovery time?
Another grant recipient looked into the impact of a teen weekend on the quality of life of adolescents with cancer. These kids had certainly seen other kids with cancer, but they were likely in hospitals or a setting that wasn’t conducive to sharing life experiences. What if they were taken out of that element and allowed to just be? She found out that while they didn’t spend large amounts of time discussing their diagnosis, they did share information and experiences that helped them to better process their own cancer. This study helps to better understand the overall needs of this population, and the subtle ways that we can make their lives better.
2009 Teen WeekendHaving gone through this battle ourselves with Alex, we of course want to see her dream of a cure for all childhood cancer, but we also want to simply make the lives of cancer fighters better in any way that we possibly can. Nursing grants help us to garner tangible results, and results that can make a difference in the lives of these patients now, while the medical researchers are out there doing their job as well. Check out our website for some more information on our Nurse Researcher Grant programs and of course to read about the most recent recipients!
- Liz Scott, Alex's Mother
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