When Jackie McGrath started her first stand at the age of 10, her goal was a modest $500. At the end of the day, she had earned close to $2,000. She donated all of it to cancer research.
Now 13, the Heritage Academy eighth-grader will set up her third annual lemonade stand as a cancer fundraiser at the Trotter Convention Center on Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
About a dozen of her friends and classmates with help. Their slogan: “Finding a cure for cancer one cup at a time.”
“She wanted to have a lemonade stand,” said her mother, Trish McGrath. “We discussed that she would need to do it to benefit someone else, not for her own personal gain.”
This year, half of the money she raises will go to Alex”s Lemonade Foundation, an organization started 10 years ago by a 4-year-old girl named Alex Scott who had been diagnosed with cancer just before her first birthday. Scott didn”t win her battle, but the foundation has raised more than $30 million for children with cancer.
The other half of the money McGrath and her friends raise will go to Camp Rising Sun, a camp for kids with cancer hosted by the YMCA”s Camp Pratt.
“Half stays right here in our own community,” McGrath said, noting community response has been warm. “There have been cancer survivors who have come all the way across town to share their stories with the girls.”
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You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 24 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
