Sweet: Knicks’ Renaldo Balkman mans lemonade stand to help youngster raise money for cancer research
May 25, 2011, 6:32 PM EDT
If only every kid could have an NBA player help them sell lemonade. (And who knows — if there’s a work stoppage next season, they might). When Anthony Frederick first heard that his mother had breast cancer, the then-eight year old went door-to-door selling lemonade and his toy trucks. His mom’s cancer is in remission, but now his father is undergoing chemotherapy for leukemia. Now 13, Anthony Frederick has raised more than $17,000 through his lemonade sales, T-shirt and toys sales the past five years. But he recently gained a rather tall business partner: New York Knicks forward Renaldo Balkman.
Balkman, who played at the University of South Carolina, was checking in with old friends in Columbia, S.C., when he heard about Anthony’s Lemonade Stand, a fundraiser for cancer research organized by the the young Frederick. So Balkman decided to pitch in. He’s shown here helping Anthony at the stand at Dent Middle School.
“Selling his toys, what kind of kid does that?” Balkman said in wonder. “That means a lot.”
With Dru Frederick’s cancer in check, Anthony did not want to abandon his fight. He said there were other families in similar situations needing help. “I thought I could bring more people into it,” the teenager said.
Frederick’s father is a colonel stationed at nearby Fort Jackson and Army personnel were also on hand, as did some members of the South Carolina women’s basketball team.
The Frederick family and volunteers were also registering potential bone marrow donors. Tony Frederick is awaiting a matching bone marrow donor.
T-shirts were being sold by Gamecocks women’s basketball players Ashley Bruner, Imani Sellers and Ebony Wilson.
Balkman said he returns to Columbia every once in a while to catch up with old teammates like Carlos Powell and Brandon Wallace. This time, he’s was glad to spend some time supporting Anthony’s Lemonade Stand.
(AP Photo/Jeffrey Collins)
***
NBA’s Balkman turns lemons into lemonade [NBC Sports]
