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Birthday Celebration To Double As Fundraiser To Fight Cancer

Tribune photo by FRED BELLET

Instead of celebrating her birthday with a party, Kayla Huth will honor honor cancer survivor Jackson Kiser by raising funds to fight the disease with a lemonade stand.

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By MEGAN HUSSEY

Tribune correspondent

Published: August 16, 2008

ODESSA - For her 10th birthday party this Saturday, Kayla Huth has decided to give instead of receive.

From 2 to 5 p.m. today Kayla and 15 friends will sell lemonade and healthy snacks on behalf of Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation. It's a national organization that raises funds to fight childhood cancer. Alexandra "Alex" Scott was a young girl who - starting at age 4 - sold lemonade to raise money for young cancer patients, before succumbing to the disease herself in 2004 at age 8.

"One day we went to Applebee's, and on the bottom of the menu we read about the lemonade stand project that helped raise money for kids with cancer," said Kayla, an Odessa resident about to start the fifth grade at Longleaf Elementary School. "I thought it sounded cool and looked it up on the Internet."

She and her mom Amy learned that Alex's Lemonade Stand raises funds for pediatric cancer research and raises awareness about the disease.

"This is a big, national event," Amy Huth said. "This organization covers so many areas of help for young cancer patients."

The Huth family decided to open its own Alex's Lemonade Stand at Kayla's birthday party Saturday at their home, 15305 Wind Whisper Drive in the Grey Hawk at Lake Polo subdivision of State Road 54. In lieu of gifts, Kayla is asking friends and family to make donations for the cause in exchange for lemonade and snacks.

Doing Something Positive

Amy Huth sent for a cardboard lemonade stand front from Alex's Lemonade Stand, which also supplied her with pencils, stickers, temporary tattoos and lemonade coupons. Dad Michael Huth, on behalf of his search engine optimization business Image Forward, agreed to match all funds donated that day.

"Kayla's birthday is Aug. 18, the first day of school, which is kind of a bummer," Amy Huth said. "We wanted to do something positive, something that's not so much about ourselves, but about other people.

"When cancer hits a family it takes over their lives," she added. "We're so blessed in so many ways."

Kayla agrees that, regardless of one's age, it's important to give.

"I really encourage other children to open Alex's Lemonade Stands," she said. "We can help kids who have cancer."

The Huth family, which also includes son Tyler, has a personal motivation behind the lemonade stand. About a year ago, Amy Huth read online about a prayer chain formed on behalf of the Kiser family of Tampa. Jackson Kiser had a brain tumor at age 2.

Soon the Huth family began to pray for and correspond online with Jackson's parents, Casey and Mark Kiser. Jackson is now cancer free.

"I was really sad he had cancer. ... Both me and my mom cried and prayed for days and days," Kayla said. "When we found out he was cured, we cried and laughed."

A Day To Remember

The Kiser family will be on hand today as guests of honor at Kayla's party, as will many of their friends and family and 80 to 90 representatives of the Harborside Christian Church youth group. In addition, two Christian pop bands will perform at the event. Children in attendance can play on a playset and waterslide, play with Hula-Hoops and blow bubbles.

"We started small and are going all out," Amy Huth said. "This is pretty special."

Gillian Kocher, public relations specialist for Alex's Lemonade Stand, agrees.

"Opening a lemonade stand is a simple, easy thing that people of all ages can do," she said. "This is a good way for kids to give back."

And, according to Kayla, have a great time doing it.

"This is a day I'll remember the rest of my life," she said.

PARTY WITH A PURPOSE

SOME BACKGROUND: Kayla Huth, an Odessa resident turning 10 years old Monday, will celebrate by joining the battle against childhood cancer. She will host a fundraising Alex's Lemonade Stand in honor of cancer survivor Jackson Kiser from 2 to 5 p.m. today at her home, 15305 Wind Whisper Drive, Odessa.

COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTIONS: All proceeds from this event will go toward Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, which funds pediatric cancer research.

A LITTLE HISTORY: Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation was named in honor of Pennsylvania resident Alex Scott, who raised $700,000 for cancer research.

GET INVOLVED: For information about Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, visit www.lemonadestandfor life.com/whosbehind.php.

SPONSORS: The businesses sponsoring the stand include Image Forward (Michael Huth); Buffalo Wild Wings (Mike Ellis): VIP Karate Black Belt Champions Training Center (Shidoshi Hurtado); and Albert Family Orthodontics.

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