A fundraiser for 10-year-old Cullen Steele, a Kent boy needing a double lung-heart transplant, will run from noon to dusk Nov. 21 at TOP Food & Drug in Lakeland Hills.
Steele, the son of Brian and Colleen Steele, attends fifth grade at a school in Auburn, where he participates in the band and drama club. He has been diagnosed with pulmonary atrial hypertension. Doctors at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif., recommend a life-saving transplant for him.
Events at TOP Foods, located at 1406 Lake Tapps Parkway E., Auburn, include a bratwurst barbecue, drawings, a car show and entertainment by Ryan Coleman, a Buddy Holly impersonator. Donations are sought for the bratwursts, which will be accompanied by chips and a beverage. Prizes are available through drawings, including a BMX bicycle, skateboard, wine tasting for eight and a special dessert each month for a year. The drawing tickets are available Sunday for $1 apiece at TOP Foods and can be designated for the prize of the buyer’s choice.
The Children’s Organ Transplant Association, a nonprofit organization founded in 1986, is helping local volunteers raise $75,000 for transplant-related expenses. It’s estimated that meeting the goal will cover two years of out-of-pocket expenses the Steele family will incur. All funds raised are used for transplant-related expenses; COTA doesn’t charge a fee nor keep a percentage. Approximately $30,000 has been raised since May.
Volunteers are needed to assist with fundraising activities. Individual and groups interested in more information should contact Amy O’Donnell-Riley, community coordinator for COTA, at (253) 333-1755 or arjunyer@yahoo.com.
Checks or money orders should be made payable to COTA with “In Honor of Cullen S” written on the memo line. For more information or making secure credit-card donations, visit www.COTAforCullenS.com.
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