Eight-year-old Liza Scott sells cups of refreshment to offset her brain surgery expenses— and sweeten the days of customers

PHOTO COURTESY OF ELIZABETH SCOTT

Liza sells lemonade at her family’s bakery, Savage’s in Homewood.

Liza’s Lemonade

Eight-year-old sells cups of refreshment to offset her brain surgery expenses—and sweeten the days of customers

BY STEPHANIE GIBSON LEPORE

During the early-morning hours of January 30, while most people in Birmingham were fast asleep, Elizabeth Scott’s daughter, Liza—then 7 years old—experienced a Grand Mal seizure. Delivered by ambulance to Children’s of Alabama, she was evaluated and released, only to suffer another seizure later that day. A return to the hospital yielded a weeklong stay, plus multiple MRIs, MRAs, EEGs, and a cerebral angiogram.

“We learned that her abnormal brain activity was predominately while she was sleeping, and she would have convulsive seizures,” says Elizabeth. “The types she was having during the day weren’t as noticeable. She would zone out or maybe her writing would get messy. It was easy to think she didn’t want to do her homework, or she was not listening to me. But she wasn’t in control. She didn’t even hear me.”

Eventually, Liza received a diagnosis. To state it very simply: Doctors discovered a rare congenital brain malformation they believed to be causing Liza’s seizures, plus a Right Parietal Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM)—a tangle of blood vessels that affects blood flow and can cause hemorrhaging—and a Dural Arteriovenous Fistula (DAVM), which, in her case, caused pressure on the veins in the brain. Because of Liza’s complex, high-risk diagnosis, a search ensued for specialized surgeons who better understood unique malformations such as Liza’s.

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Two doctors in Boston filled the bill.

“A friend of a friend introduced us to the team at Boston Children’s Hospital,” says Elizabeth. “One specialized in cerebral malformations, the other in cerebral vascular malformations. It’s all they research and study.”

For her part, Liza—astute, articulate, and smart as a whip—took the news matter-of-factly. “She didn’t feel good, but she wasn’t upset,” says Elizabeth. “She just said, ‘Okay, we have to do this,’” of her upcoming treatment and surgeries in Boston. Liza’s far-beyond-her-years awareness also clued her in to something else: sky-high medical costs.

“We were sitting in the hospital room in Boston, and the conversation turned to how expensive it was going to be,” says Elizabeth. “Liza is aware of life’s challenges. I’m a single mom running a business, so there’s no pretending, which I think is healthy.” So, Liza piped up with an idea. “She said, ‘I can put my lemonade stand out and it’ll help pay for Boston and for when you can’t work.’” The stand is a bright yellow wood crate structure Elizabeth built for Liza back in early spring 2020, to help Liza earn money for extra things she wanted, like Barbies and sparkly shoes. They set up the stand at Savage’s Bakery in Homewood, Elizabeth’s family’s business, which she runs with her father. “This was before Covid restrictions really kicked in. She would sell lemonade outside the bakery on Saturdays. It was something fun for her to do while she was hanging out with me at work. She had her own little business while we ran our business.”

Liza resumed sales—not to save toward a new toy or anything glittery, but to contribute to her medical costs. Then, one day, a reporter from CBS 42 at the time (she recently moved to a station in Tampa) wandered in for some sweet treats from Savage’s. “Malique [Rankin] saw the lemonade stand and wanted to know more,” says Elizabeth. “She ended up doing a segment on Liza, and it kind of exploded from there.”

And explode it did. Since she started, Liza has raised over $400,000 toward her medical expenses, though it’s important to note that the cost of her Boston surgeries—of which there have been two major ones and several more to check on her progression—exceeds $300,000. And though the family does have health insurance, Elizabeth notes that travel expenses and accommodations for the two-week stays in Boston total well over $20,000 and probably closer to $30,000.

Recovery is intense. After her most recent surgery in June, to remove the AVM, Liza didn’t walk for three weeks. “Not because she couldn’t,” says Elizabeth, “but because she was too dizzy.” Light sensitivity and crushing headaches followed. “I pulled her everywhere in a wagon.” The Scotts aren’t done with New England just yet. There will be a follow-up surgery next year and multiple MRIs and EEGs to ensure the AVM hasn’t come back, as it can reoccur. There will be testing to determine the genetic component of Liza’s malformations, which will help doctors know where the gene could mutate in other parts of her body. She’ll be monitored through adulthood. All of the ensuing travel will put Liza’s hard-earned lemonade money to use.

“She’s very proud of what she’s accomplished,” says Elizabeth. “It was tragic to find out she has complex medical issues that will be with her the rest of her life, and the lemonade stand gives her a sense of her life having purpose.”

The duo plan to pay it forward, already working on care packages to send to other hospital kids with similar experiences in Birmingham and Boston. “Child Life Specialists bring in toys, stuffed animals, crafts—things to make the hospital feel more like home,” says Elizabeth. “All the items are donated. That kind of love is so important for a child’s well-being and healing process.” Funds from lemonade sales will eventually be used to purchase such items so that Elizabeth and Liza can send care packages to other patients. They’ve already boxed and shipped some. Down the road, they plan to let customers donate toward or purchase a care package for another child.

“As a mom, I want to raise awareness,” says Elizabeth. “Just the other day, an AVM survivor reached out to me. She was coming through Birmingham and wanted to stop and share her story and hear Liza’s, too.” She pauses before adding, “We want to show that in the midst of hardship and tragedy, we couldn’t do this without our community and the help of perfect strangers.”

Asked if she’s eager to get back to selling lemonade, Liza nods yes, then shrugs her shoulders and says with all the confidence of a successful entrepreneur: “Well, it really sells itself.”

Visit Liza’s Lemonade Stand at Savage’s Bakery, 2916 18th Street South, Homewood, 35209.