The Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, or ALSF, is a US pediatric cancer charity founded by Alexandra "Alex" Scott.[1]
In 2000, Alex Scott wished to set up a lemonade stand to raise money for childhood cancer research. Her first lemonade stand was a success, raising over $2,000 and turned into an annual tradition. This tradition continued after the Scott family moved to Pennsylvania to pursue treatment for Alex at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. In the summer of 2004, Alex, at the age of eight, died from her cancer.
One nationwide event that ALSF is known for are "Lemonade Days," during which dedicated volunteers host "Alex's Lemonade Stands" across the country, during the same June weekend that Alex first held her original stands, from June 11 to June 13.
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The objective of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation is to:
By 2002 'ALSF' had attracted media attention and kids across the country began to hold their own lemonade stands. By 2004 the foundation was a national campaign, with lemonade stands and events in all fifty states, as well as Canada and France. In 2004 alone the organization raised over $1 million. Alex and her family were featured on Oprah Winfrey's television program, The John Walsh Show, and The Today Show, among others. Alex and her parents also wrote a children's book, Alex and the Amazing Lemonade Stand.
In 2006, the documentary "Alex Scott: A Stand for Hope," written and directed by Larry Mendte, aired in prime time on KYW-TV in Philadelphia[2] that was re-aired on 21 CBS stations across the country. The success of the documentary launched a telethon by the same name in 2007.[3] The original documentary has been re-worked and re-aired every year since, raising over three million dollars for the charity.[4]
Alex's parents, Jay and Liz Scott, work full-time at ALSF and speak about Alex and the importance of funding and raising awareness for childhood cancer at events, conventions, and seminars.
Since Alex held her first lemonade stand, the foundation has evolved into a national fundraising movement. It has become a registered 501(c)3 charity and has currently raised more than $50 million towards fulfilling Alex’s dream of finding a cure, funding over 200 research projects nationally.
Rita's, one of the nation's largest Italian water-ice companies, is one of several companies who enable the foundation to raise these funds. In 2009, throughout the month of June, more than 550 Rita’s locations sold $1 paper lemons to help the foundation raise funds to find a cure for pediatric cancer. In Rita's three years as a corporate sponsor of 'ALSF', it has raised more than $1.5 million for pediatric cancer research, and become the foundation’s leading corporate donor.[5]
Other contributors to the ALSF include singer Celine Dion and comedian Jerry Seinfeld.
The foundation has a gift shop, whose proceeds go directly to the foundation to help aid the fight against childhood cancer.
As of November 2010, Jennifer Garner was serving as a celebrity ambassador.
Other donations come from volunteers who host fundraisers, partnerships with businesses and corporations; and individual donations made directly to the foundation.
USA Beverages, Inc., which also brews Pennsylvania Dutch Birch Beer, markets Alex's Lemonade under license, with sales proceeds going to the foundation.
Kraft Foods, whose Country Time lemonade drinks are often sold at the stands, is one of the sponsors of the foundation. Indeed, Country Time is "The Official Lemonade of Alex's Lemonade Stand," and through it, Kraft Foods has provided more than half a million American dollars in support of the foundation.
The race horse "Afleet Alex" competed in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs, the Preakness at Pimlico, and the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in 2005, and his owners subsequently pledged a percentage of his earnings to be donated to the foundation.
Grants distributed from ALSF are designed to fill the critical gaps in funding, as identified by doctors and researchers across the country. Careful distribution of grants has allowed doctors and nurses to bring the latest and most promising life saving treatments to seriously ill children. The foundation has currently funded over 200 research projects at 50 institutions across the country.[6]