Alex’s Lemonade Stand fundraiser held at Fox Twp. Elementary School
KERSEY- Dressed in distinctive green and yellow Lemonade Crew t-shirts, the students, faculty, and staff of Fox Township Elementary School in Kersey held Alex's Lemonade Stand recently to raise awareness and funds for childhood cancer research. The school started supporting the cause after one of their students, Connor Bobik, passed away from pediatric brain cancer in 2011 and has continued to hold the event every year.
According to Diane Bobik, event co-organizer, the event was held on election day, as the school is located next to the Community Building where Fox Township voters cast their ballots and can conveniently support the event.
The faculty and staff baked cookies to sell along with the lemonade, and every student in the school was asked to volunteer at the stand in half hour shifts from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. This year there were 80 student volunteers; some of the students stayed at the stand to serve lemonade to people who walked or drove up to the stand. Other student volunteers lined up on the sidewalk by the road to advertise the event and drum up business.
“The kids are so excited when someone pulls into the school parking lot,” noted Bobik. “This year we almost doubled last year's total, which had been the biggest one to date. We raised $1857.50. Our community is AMAZING, and they support us every year!”
Bobik noted that the lemonade stand is the first of several events for Lemonade Days. “In mid-May, we will sell lemonade to the students at recess, have a can drive to see which teachers will participate in this year's challenge, and we will have our Lemonade Carnival on May 22. We will wrap up on May 30th with an assembly that involves the teachers' challenge, a talk about why we do this, and I will talk about Connor's cancer journey and share his life with the kids. At that time, I will reveal the total amount raised in 2024.”
Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) is a childhood cancer charity that was founded by Alex Scott, a 4-year-old girl with a form of cancer called neuroblastoma that was diagnosed just before her first birthday. She set up the stand in her front yard, and her plan was to help the doctors find a cure. Her inspiring story led to the creation of the foundation whose mission is “to change childhood cancer, one research grant at a time.” When Alex passed away at age 8, Lemonade Days were being held all over the country, and more than $1 million had been raised for research into finding a cure for pediatric cancer. Currently, more than $300 million has been raised and it has funded more than 450 research projects, according to their website.
To donate to ALSF to help find a cure for pediatric cancer, visit https://www.alexslemonade.org.