Two families in Cincinnati, Ohio, have raised thousands of dollars for a children’s hospital after a photo of their kids’ lemonade stand went viral online.
Hillary Weidner and Amanda Zerbe, who each have three kids, posted a photo of four of their children to Instagram on Labor Day weekend in hopes of raising money to donate to the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital:
Local lemonade stand goes viral, earning thousands for Cincinnati Children's Hospital https://t.co/3qT9Ha9cnP pic.twitter.com/CFV9ODyhia
— WCPO (@WCPO) September 30, 2019
The two moms were amazed when the post quickly went viral on social media, garnering a lot of attention for a cause that is close to their hearts.
In 2015, Weidner’s then-six-month-old daughter Bea was diagnosed with a rare, life-threatening pediatric liver disease called biliary atresia.
However, doctors discovered that Weidner was a match, and she gave part of her liver to her child in an effort to save the little girl’s life.
Today, Bea is a healthy five-year-old.
“Because I was was a match for her, I was able to donate before she became too sick,” Weidner said. “There are many kids and adults who don’t have that luxury.”
The young mother said her family wanted to give back to the hospital that performed the life-saving surgery.
“It was a crazy, traumatic, amazing experience,” Weidner said. “We owe so much to the hospital.”
On Monday, Weidner posted another photo to Instagram of the children holding a giant check for the initial $148 they raised and asked anyone who wants to help to send donations to her Venmo account.
The post read:
THEY’VE GONE VIRAL! what started out as a $148 donation from their lemonade stand has turned into over $50,000 in matching donations to @cincychildrens. and the number is GROWING! want to help us? venmo: @hillary-weidner to match their donation and follow along in my instagram stories!
People took her up on the offer, and the amount has since grown to over $125,000 with no signs of stopping.
Weidner said she believes that people stepped up to donate because they want to be a part of doing something good for others.
“The news can be so negative. There are shootings, deaths, car accidents. We wanted to show that there are good people out there,” she commented, adding that her job as a parent is to raise kids who are generous givers.
“This was our teeny way of showing them that they can raise money for people who need it more than they do. We hope that when they’re older they will look back on this and feel excited and empowered,” she concluded.
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