WASHINGTON – Mix some lemons, sugar and water – that’s a key recipe in the fight against childhood cancer.
It all began in 2000, when Alexandra “Alex” Scott, a 4-year-old cancer patient, set up a lemonade stand in her front yard to raise money for a cure.
The little girl from Connecticut died in 2004, but Alex inspired thousands of children across the country. Every year, these inspired kids set up their own lemonade stands on a designated weekend in early June to raise funds for Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation.
Among those inspired by her story is 4-year-old Hooper Andrews, who will run a stand this weekend with his mom and dad in Capitol Hill, right across from Eastern Market.
“I am going to be selling lemonade all day,” says Hooper, as he plays with his dogs and then cuddles in his mother’s arms.
Gloria Totten, Alex’s mom, says the idea to have a stand was her son’s from the very beginning.
She says she was reading a magazine article about Alex Scott when Hooper started to ask her about the girl in the picture with no hair.
“I told Hooper about the little girl, Alex, who had cancer, and she got sick and lost all of her hair,” says Totten. “And so Hooper said,