Bradenton girl raises more than $5,500 for St. Jude hospital

In 2016, then 8-year-old Francesca Friedel of Bradenton decided she wanted to build a lemonade stand so she could raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

So, she went to her uncle, Vince Friedel, and grandfather, George Friedel, to help get her started. But they had much bigger plans.

Thus was born the chili/hot dog/lemonade stand. And thanks to food donations from local businesses and flyers made up by Francesca, it was a huge success, raising more than $3,200.

And it just got bigger in 2017.

The Friedels hosted their second St. Jude fundraiser at their swimming pool on March 25 and raised more than $5,000 in about four hours. Food sponsors included Aldi, Dellcor Management and Publix. And door prizes were provided by Swordfish Grill, Anna Maria Oyster Bar, Budweiser, and Fire & Stone Pizza.

“I want to thank everybody for coming and your kind donations and to the people who help put this together,” Francesca Friedel said in a letter to the Herald.

The final total of money raised was $5,559.

This story was originally published April 2, 2017 at 1:21 PM with the headline "Bradenton girl raises more than $5,500 for St. Jude hospital."