Serious Request star Tijn gets own monument
Serious Request star Tijn, a terminally ill boy who raised over a million euros for the Red Cross with his nail polish fundraiser, now has his own monument in the Red Cross' new office in The Hague. The 6-year-old boy is commemorated with a wall full of nail polishes. Tijn's parents and brother officially opened the monument by placing the last three bottles of nail polish on Tuesday, almost a year after Tijn's death, NOS reports.
"Tijn colors our world more beautiful", is written above the nail polish wall. On Twitter the Red Cross said that their young hero will never be forgotten.
Tijn suffered from brain stem cancer. His last wish was to raise as much money as possible for the Red Cross. He did so by painting people's nails and calling on others to paint their nails and donate to Serious Request. He raised over a million euros, the largest amount ever raised by an individual action for the 3FM fundraising event. The money Tijn raised is helping to buy a machine for the Netherlands that will help treat brainstem cancer in children. The machine helps place catheters on the brainstem, so that medication can be administered more effectively.
"Sometimes we almost forget what he achieved, he is firstly our son", Tijn's father said to newspaper AD. His dad is especially proud of his Tijn's mention in a textbook. "He is in a chapter about social entrepreneurship. Tijn has become part of Dutch history."
