As if the words, “your child has cancer” are not devastating enough, imagine not being able to pay for your child's treatment and being faced with losing your home. This nightmare started for the Reed Family in September of 2010 when their 5-year-old son, Aidan was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.During his hospital stays, Aidan was always drawing pictures of monsters, aliens and scary clowns. So his aunt came up with the clever idea to sell his artwork to help pay for his treatment. The initial goal was to sell a modest 60 prints. The orders started coming in and before they knew it, sales reached over 4000. Aidan’s drawings helped his family raise more than $50,000 and with these funds, the Reed’s were able to take their home off of the market and pay for Aidan's ongoing treatment.
"It's really cool," said Aidan, “that people are buying my drawings.” At $12 a piece, the zany monsters have continued to pay for his medical expenses. "It's overwhelming and unbelievable," said Aidan’s dad, Wiley.
"Aidan has been obsessed with monsters since he first visited a costume store at the age of 2," said Dad.
Aidan has always liked wolves, zombies, scary clowns and aliens, but no one could have ever imagined his fascination with monsters and his love for drawing would be the answer to the family’s financial tribulations.
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia is a monster that I am sure Aidan never wanted to confront, but with his endless spirit and the unconditional love of his family, Aidan will be the knight in shining armor that slays this horrible beast. Congratulations to Aidan and his family for reminding us how powerful a combination it is when mixing a child's innocence and imagination with crayons and paper.
Photo credit: Aidan Reed
