On May 30, James Edwards nearly drowned in his family pool in Coral Springs.
According to Local10, the toddler was found by his grandfather, who was watching him while his parents were at the hospital with their newborn. The little boy was given CPR until paramedics arrived and took him to the hospital.
The 2-year-old is currently making progress at Chris Evert Children's Hospital, according to his family's Turtle Power for James Facebook page, and may even be sent home soon, but the Edwards family is still looking at months of home care -- and massive bills.
See also: Best Brewery 2014: Funky Buddha Brewery
The brewers at Funky Buddha wanted to help. Although they have no close ties with the family, the team notes, "maybe it is because many of us at the brewery grew up in Coral Springs, because our staff is currently going through baby fever with new kids popping out daily. Or maybe it's because this awesome kid loves the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (who doesn't?). Either way, it hit home, and we are trying to help the best way we know how: with beer."
The "Funky" brewers created a "Turtle"-inspired beer -- an English Milk Porter brewed with chocolate, caramel, and pecans, assisted by Pro Bowl punter Brandon Fields, who is a home-brew aficionado. As Funky Buddha's Brand Director John Linn puts it, "We've never brewed this beer before, so we are hoping it turns out great. If not, we hope you buy it and act like it is."
On Sunday, July 20, Funky Buddha debuts the special Turtle Power brew, with 100 percent of sales going toward Turtle Power for James Edwards, a fund started by the James family to help cover expenses toward the little Ninja's recovery. In addition to individual "Turtle" porters, Funky Buddha Brewery will sell a limited number of "Turtle" growlers to take home. Customers can also make direct donations to the fund.
Each beer will cost $6 per pour, and growlers will be filled for $12 each. "We're hoping to sell all of the beer on Sunday, but we did make a 200-gallon batch, so we have a good bit of it," Linn says. "I don't really have a dollar amount in mind, but if we were to sell it all, we could generate upwards of $10,000."
So grab all your friends this Sunday and drink beer for a good cause. Is there anything better than that?
If you can't make it out to the brewery, you can donate at gofundme.com. So far, more than $70,000 has been raised to help the Edwards family. That's a lot of Turtle Power for one small Ninja!
Follow Laine Doss on Twitter @LaineDoss and Facebook.
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