Ten-year-old Girl Raises $100,000 Selling Cookies to Fight Rare Children’s Diseases

Ten-year-old Girl Raises $100,000 Selling Cookies to Fight Rare Children’s Diseases

April 6, 2021 by Cathy Stack

Remarkably, Dana Perella has raised over $100,000 baking and selling cookies to fight rare children’s diseases. She was motivated to start her mission when she found out that her new friend was sick with a rare and life-threatening disease called Batten. Thus began her quest to find a way to help her friend and other sick children by funding research to discover lifesaving cures.

Dana’s first idea was to sell lemonade but since she lives in Colorado, she knew her selling campaign would be limited to the summer season.  She had to come up with an alternative concept.  Dana and her mother had a fun habit of baking together during which time the inspiring idea to bake cookies popped into her head.  She knew that most people love cookies and indulge in the treat all year long.  She called her newly created campaign, Cookies4Cures. 

Dana started her caring mission when she was only seven years old.  She and her mother typically spent two days a week baking the cookies right in their home kitchen.  Dana would then hit the streets every weekend, pulling her little red wagon around her block attempting to sell the cookies door to door to her local community.  Her first goal was to make $1,000 in sales.  “It was so hard, it took us three months,” Dana recalled of her first tiring yet rewarding sales attempt. 

Dana soon decided to move her Cookies4Cures campaign online and that was when sales really started to take off.   At the end of the year, she had surpassed her goal and raised a whopping $56,000.  The concept was simple, she baked the cookies and then invited others to donate online to fund research for rare diseases in exchange for her delicious, mouthwatering cookies.  Her page went viral and soon she had so many requests she decided to have her family and friends chip in and help bake. Together they held cookie pop-up events which resulted in a unique opportunity to educate people on the rare diseases they are helping to fight.  The campaign has quickly grown, and they now have almost 100 volunteers.

Cookies4Cures is now focused on raising awareness for the Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) disease.  Her friend Ben who suffers from SMA, a disease which weakens muscles, is clearly impressed with Dana’s outstanding sales efforts. “It is truly impressive how much they are raising.  They are going to give 50,000 for my disease,” Ben excitedly said.   

Without a cure, it is scientific research that provides hope to children and their families that one day one will be discovered.  It is this hope that motivates Dana to keep busy baking and boxing for causes dear to her heart.  Each box is a labor of love with a variety of cookies for a mission to save children’s lives.  

PassItOn recognizes Dana Perella as a hero for going the extra mile in the fight against rare and fatal children’s diseases.  Her efforts will help give children the greatest chance to live the very best lives they can.  Her compassion and cookies campaign are a great example of the value “Do Your Part.”  Dana strives to help eradicate children’s diseases by baking one cookie at a time.  Please help us honor this young hero by sharing her heartwarming story.

Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/k2yqO74WLyo

Please tell us about your everyday Hero. The Heroes among us are ordinary people whose actions leave a lasting and positive impact in their communities and demonstrate the potential in all of us. Their heroic acts uphold our shared values. Help honor these individuals by creating a billboard and sharing their story at:  http://www.passiton.com/your-billboards/create

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Your Comments
Lynise Tarring from Hilo, Hawai'i  APRIL 8, 2022
Outstanding job Dana, you truly showed us all what love and hope is. God Bless you with joy and lots of love. Thank you for being our family of faith. Much love,

Donna from Louisville KY APRIL 7, 2022
Heartwarming how can you buy these cookies

Linda White from Oregon APRIL 8, 2021
With kids like this, the world has a chance. Kudos to her entire family, especially her mother for supporting her and teaching her compassion by example.

Kaydience Brundage from Washington graham frontier middle school  APRIL 7, 2021
Omg tell her thank you she is amazing and She is a very kind person

Marcia and Mike Nelson Pedde from Victoria, BC APRIL 6, 2021
WoW!! Sending applause and hugs from Victoria, BC

Lynise Tarring from Hilo, Hawai'i  APRIL 6, 2021
I am so happy, proud, and sincerely grateful for your love. You are a ray of sunshine and God has blessed us with YOU. Thank you for you being the YOU our Father made.


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