Alex's Lemonade Stand COVID-19 Fund Feeds Families, Creates Good

NOTTINGHAM, PA — It's no longer unusual to hear a charity has redirected resources; COVID-19 has grown new needs alongside those that non-profits primarily address, especially the need for food.

That began to happen for Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation last year, according to its co-founder. The Bala Cynwyd nonprofit that serves the needs of families who have a child with cancer started to see that families needed food, along with gas to get to hospitals, and places to stay near their sick child.

Liz Scott, whose daughter Alex founded the non-profit by raising an initial $2,000 for kids with cancer with her own lemonade stand, spoke with Patch about how ALSF is adjusting to the pandemic. Scott shared some of the beautiful outcomes, including the story of ALSF volunteer Jalen Hurts and how the Eagles quarterback went beyond expectation in helping one family.

Scott said Alex's Lemonstand Stand Foundation has always been ready to meet whatever needs come up for a family when a child has cancer. But by mid-2020 the nonprofit had to set up a special COVID-19 Emergency Fund. The plan was to help out those families who were worst hit; it would provide food and gas cards to aid families coming and going from the hospital and keeping everyone at home fed.

"As we were planning it, we told our family services manager we didn't think it would be that many families," Scott said.

That first guess was way off. Scott said her initial estimation fell far short of what the need would be. "We started getting referrals before we even opened the COVID-19 Fund," she said.

Since early April 2020 when the fund opened, it has helped 2,200 families with $700,00o that people have donated.

She said anyone can donate directly to the COVID-19 Fund at Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, and 100 percent of those donations go to food and gas assistance, or for stays near the hospital where a child is a patient.

"The needs are just so overwhelming right now," Scott said.

Among the families who found themselves caring for a child with cancer alongside other impacts of COVID-19 was one in Nottingham whose 7-year-old son Erick was in cancer treatment. The family was one of the more than 2,000 who have needed help. They had multiple challenges hit them.

Erick was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in September 2020, his mother Amanda said. Amanda was expecting a baby at that time, and Erick also had three younger siblings. She said her husband's small landscaping business lost customers during the pandemic, as many were doing their own work because they were also under financial pressure.

"It's been a lot," Amanda said.

It was late fall when a family services manager from Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation was trying to match up a new volunteer with a special family. The volunteer, Jalen Hurts, was kind of special, too. The NFL quarterback for the Philadelphia Eagles had inquired with the charity, his agent asking what he could do to help.

Katie connected Hurts with Erick and his family, and Erick's mom said it was a really wonderful Christmas. They first met by Zoom before the holidays in Erick's hospital room. Hurts sent a TV for Erick's room, clothes, winter coats for all the children, and a Nintendo Switch.

"We didn't have to buy anything for Christmas," Amanda said. The new baby was born on Christmas Day.

"I'm really impressed by Jalen," Scott said. She said Hurts learned in a phone call more fully about the family's situation.

Amanda explained the family moved to a two-bedroom mobile home 9 years ago, when she was expecting Erick. The other children were born since, and the family has clearly outgrown their home that sits on a friend's property.

Jalen Hurts asked Amanda if there was anything "big" she wanted for Christmas, and she said her only answer was a downpayment for a house.

"I didn't expect him to do anything about it," she said.

But, of course, the 22-year-old NFL quarterback did do something. He came over to sign a jersey and football in person, received gifts from Erick and his 5-year-old brother Leo, and presented the family a check for $30,000 as a downpayment. Then he headed to Texas for his own family Christmas.

Scott said Hurts hadn't expected the visit to be filmed, much less to be reported widely in area news outlets and on social media.

The whole happy event was launched from the COVID-19 Emergency Fund, Scott said. She said the help Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation gives doesn't demand income be at any level, but the average income for a family getting help from the fund is about $30,000 a year. She said the families usually come through the recommendation of social workers who are connecting them with resources.

"It's very financially devastating to have a child with cancer. A parent often has to take time off work, there is travel to the hospital, and co-pays even if you have insurance," Scott said.

Amanda told Patch that the home mortgage process has begun for the family, who will be first-time home buyers and need at least three bedrooms with a little acreage because they do some simple farming. The older children attend Solanco schools, just over the Chester County border.

The gift money from Hurts will go directly to a mortgage lender as the process progresses, she said.

Erick's mom said her son is expected to finish chemotherapy soon, and the family hopes he will be cancer-free at the end of his treatment.

Anyone who would like to can contribute to the COVID-19 Emergency Fund at Alex's Lemonstand Stand Foundation.

To learn more about Alex's Lemonade Stand, go here.

This story is part of Patch's Headlining Hope series, which profiles local nonprofits and charitable organizations in need of volunteers and resources. If you know of a local organization that should be profiled, contact marlene.lang@patch.com.

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