APOPKA, Fla. – An Apopka mother was overwhelmed with gratitude when she asked Home Depot employees for a discount on supplies to build a lemonade stand and instead received much more.
Dawn Redmon said she needed the supplies because her son wanted to build the lemonade stand to use at an upcoming fundraiser for a family friend whose 4-year-old son is battling alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare and aggressive form of childhood cancer.
Redmon originally asked Home Depot employees if they would consider donating the supplies or selling them to her at a discounted price, but when she went to pick them up, the employees had already built the stand for Redmon and offered it to her at no cost. They even threw in a large Home Depot-themed beverage cooler to complete the look.
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The surprises left Redmon so excited that she praised the team of employees on social media.
"I want to thank the manager I spoke to, Loni, and the women who helped make it!! Loni, Allenea, Solimar, and Crystal, you guys are truly a blessing. To know that people still exist and do things like this just makes me so happy!! You all went above and beyond and I cannot thank you enough!!" Redmon wrote in a Facebook post.
She shared pictures of the stand and explained just how much the kind gesture meant to her 8-year-old son, whose idea it was to have the stand at upcoming event.
"He has always wanted to have a lemonade stand to raise money for kids with cancer and now he is doing it in honor of our sweet Silas," Redmon wrote.
In the Facebook post, Redmon said her son will use the stand as often as he can, beginning with the fundraiser for Silas.
"My son will continue to do this lemonade stand wherever we can after this event and all proceeds will go to help kids with cancer," Redmon said. "Let me know if we can plan a date at any of your local businesses around the area!"
Redmon invited members of the community to join her and her son Sept. 1 at the Tractor Supply in Apopka, where the lemonade stand will make its debut. The fundraising event to benefit Silas will run from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. and will include a car wash, bake sale, silent auction and, of course, a lemonade stand.