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In Their Shoes: Quincy Girl's Sweet Thank You To Children's Hospital

QUINCY (CBS) - Talkative? She's not. Cute as a button? Definitely. Tough as nails? No question.

Six-year-old Elizabeth Dawe of Quincy has had three open heart surgeries. All of them done at Boston Children's Hospital.

If you ask Elizabeth about it you won't get very far. She isn't big on talking to the media. Getting a microphone on her was like getting a kid to eat Cauliflower. She's spunky. Sassy.

"She's just the sassiest girl you'll ever meet. The funniest, friendliest, biggest heart. No pun intended," says her dad Greg Dawe.

Her heart became part of her story when she was just hours old. Doctors heard a murmur.

"I knew something was wrong when they didn't bring her back from intensive care." Her mom remembers it like it was yesterday.

The problem was with Elizabeth's aortic valve. It was deformed and needed to be repaired.

When it comes to that tiny little valve, life had handed her lemons. Cue the ironic lemonade.

Elizabeth Dawe
Elizabeth Dawe of Quincy (WBZ-TV)

"Jen said 'can you build me a lemonade stand' and I said 'sure why not.'" Dad got working and built a traveling, money-making lemonade stand.

The Dawes have raised thousands. Though when little Elizabeth is running the stand, we noticed she likes to drink some of the supply. Dad had a defense. "Best way to get kids to drink it is to show how good it is!"

Though she may need another heart surgery when she gets bigger, Elizabeth is doing great.

The Dawes may not have a talker but they have a fighter. And she makes sweet lemonade.

If you want to help the Dawes raise money for Boston Children's Hospital visit www.ChildrensHospital.org/walk.

The hospital has its annual fundraising walk at Assembly Row in Somerville on Sunday, June 14th.

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