East High after-school program students help 4-year-old fight leukemia

YOUNGSTOWN

Benjamin Reynolds remembered having a $10 bill but no change, so he decided on the spur of the moment to donate the entire amount to help a child with leukemia.

“He’s a little boy who needed help, so I wanted him to get the money,” the East High School seventh-grader said, referring to 4-year-old Landon Fitzgerald-Green, who was diagnosed March 6 with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a fast-growing form of cancer.

Benjamin is part of East High’s Discovery 3 Afterschool program, which provides seventh- and eighth-graders with opportunities to perform community-service projects.

He and several dozen Discovery 3 members were on hand Tuesday for a meet-and-greet gathering at the East Side school on behalf of Landon and his family.

The after-school program is in partnership with the Youngstown City Schools and the Youngstown Urban Minority Alcohol and Drug Abuse program, which offers outreach efforts in the district, noted Beth McIntyre, the after-school program’s director.

Read more about their efforts to help Landon and how you can help in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.