Sierra Modawell is putting her heart into her latest project which originated in her own hospital room.
"When I was in the hospital admitted, my grandpa got me this bead set, so I started making bracelets and selling them to the doctors, and my mom was like, there's a girl who's like your age who's getting a double lung transplant," said Sierra.
She's selling handmade bracelets to fundraise for a 14-year-old girl in Montana battling Cystic Fibrosis, a chronic illness sierra knows herself. It's a genetic disorder that affects the lungs and digestive system and production of abnormal, thick mucus which can lead to severe infections.
"It just kind of changes your world, there's so much involved with everything that they do it's literally your entire lifestyle," said Sierra's father, Colt Modawell.
Kids with Cystic Fibrosis have to stay at least 6 feet apart from each other which can be isolating. Sierra, however, has a built-in support system.
"Well Maddie, my little sister, has cystic fibrosis too, so we both have to do," said Sierra.
Since posting about the bracelets on Facebook, Sierra has raised more than 500 dollars.
"She went from 10-15 orders to close to 70 or 80 overnight," said her father.
Though the two can never meet in person due to their illness, their shared experiences and fears with Cystic Fibrosis string them together.
Being admitted takes out a lot of school work, especially cause I'm in middle school, like eight different classes to work in, that's one but like, just being afraid to be admitted, sometimes just takes it," said Sierra.
Thanks to modern medicine, the life expectancy has risen from just ten years old to nearly 45 years. Sierra's family plans to keep cheering her on all the way.
"As a parent, you always want to see your kids be selfless and do things for other people and it's been very heartwarming to see she has that."
For bracelet info: http://breathinisbelievin.org/shop
