'Child's Fund-Raiser Marks 10 Years, $30 Million for Cancer'

SUYIN SO, AOL
AOLnews.com

(JUNE 11) -- When life gives you lemonade, make lemonade. One young Pennsylvania girl did just that, turning a major life lemon -- cancer -- into millions of dollars of aid to children and families that keeps pouring, 10 years later.

In 2000, Alex Scott, then 4, told her parents Liz and Jay that she wanted to open a lemonade stand to help doctors at her local hospital, where she was being treated for neuroblastoma.

Before long, her efforts had raised $2,000, and news spread of the little girl with a big cause. By the time Alex died in 2004, her lemonade stand against cancer had raised $1 million for pediatric cancer research and had attracted national media attention.

"It's the spark of Alex and other people sort of following the example," said Liz Scott, who with her husband continues her daughter’s work through Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. The Wynnewood, Pa.-based foundation has raised $30 million to end pediatric cancer.

Star power will spike some of the lemonade this weekend, when more than 10,000 volunteers will host 2,000 lemonade stands to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Alex’s first lemonade stand. Supermodel Cindy Crawford will pour lemonade in Hollywood along with other celebrity thirst-quenchers.

Crawford, whose brother Jeff died of leukemia, told AOL News by email that what she loves specifically about Alex's Lemonade Stand is how it demonstrates that "no effort taken by an individual is too small."

"What started out as one neighborhood stand -- which is something we are all familiar with -- has grown into a national foundation raising millions of dollars," Crawford wrote. "This is the message my mother tried to instill in me and my sisters when we organized our first dance marathon after our brother died."

And singer/songwriter Jordin Sparks, who won one of Alex's favorite shows -- "American Idol" -- urged youngsters to participate in Lemonade Days this weekend in a special video public service announcement. Sparks said in an email statement that she was "honored" to participate in Lemonade Days.

"Alex would be pretty thrilled," Liz Scott said about getting help from an American Idol. Still, she thinks her daughter would stay focused on the mission.

"She would be really happy with what we’ve accomplished," Liz said, "but not lose sight to fact that we’re not there yet."
According to the National Cancer Institute, childhood cancer is the leading cause of death by disease for children between infancy and 15 in the United States.

Liz told AOL News that the foundation's mission to end all childhood cancers was very important to Alex, who wanted to help all children, not just those who had the same diagnosis she had.

"She said, 'That is so selfish. All kids want their tumors to go away,' " Liz recalled.

Liz likened the foundation to a sort of incubator for researchers testing early-stage innovative techniques and methods. Often, grant recipient apply for larger grants using results and data funded by the the foundation.

One grant recipient won a multimillion dollar research prize based on research funded by the foundation, effectively turning a $200,000 grant into much more.

"We can fill a gap that government can’t -- that’s what philanthropy is there for," said Liz.

"We don’t care if we are the biggest pediatric cancer research fund out there," she added, "But we want to be the best."

http://www.aolnews.com/philanthropy/nc/article/childs-fund-raiser-marks-10-years-30/1112575