First Graders and Best Friends Jonah Pournazarian (Left) and Dylan Siegle (Right)
When 7-year-old Dylan Siegle told his parents he wanted to raise money to help his sick friend Jonah Pournazarian, they assumed he meant putting up a lemonade stand in the front yard. But Dylan had an other idea: “I want to write a book”.
Dylan wasn’t kidding. He has since published his book “Chocolate Bar“- which has already helped raising more than 30,000 for glycogen storage disease – the disease his friend Jonah has been battling since he was a baby. Glycogen storage disease affects 1 in a million children and is a severe disorder that prevents the liver from releasing sugar. Jonah consumes most of his meals (usually cornstarch with chicken soup and vegetables) through a tube, his father said.
The 16-page illustrated book titled “Chocolate Bar,” uses term “chocolate bar” as a slang term for “cool.” The book begins with, “Disneyland is so chocolate bar,” and ends with, “I like to help my friends. That is the biggest chocolate bar.” Whole Foods has since donated hundreds of chocolate bars to help charity efforts.
Dylan’s efforts have already raised 30,000. But while other first graders are busy learning simple addition and subtraction, these two best friends are keen on one big number: 1 million. Dylan is on a money raising mission and hopes to arrive to his $1 million goal to find a cure for his best friend’s disease.