MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WFRV) - A group of West De Pere Middle School students is proving that anything is possible when you set your mind to it, even if the outcome is completely unexpected. They organized a lemonade stand across two days in August to raise money for causes important to their friend's sister, Ella Winters, Children's Wisconsin hospital and the Ronald McDonald house in Milwaukee. 10-year-old Ella was diagnosed with leukemia nearly six months ago, and her sister Ava and fellow seventh graders took a trip to Milwaukee to present the checks to the two organizations after taking a tour at each of them. “I’m so excited, I think that we worked so hard and it’s just so amazing to be able to celebrate it now," Ava said. “We just had an idea because we wanted to give back to the people that helped Ella and our family through this time. We just thought of a simple lemonade stand and it spiraled, we had a goal of $500 and it’s turned into so much more. We passed our goal two times, we had to make another goal sheet.” The group of a dozen girls started with $500 in mind, and ended up with more than $14,000 to split between the two organizations. “It was really cool to see how much my sister and her friends did that day," Ella said. “We had people that I don’t know, and still don’t know, will never know, who are so generous to us," Andrew Winters, Ella and Ava's father, said. “It makes you feel good as a parent, obviously, but just more proud of the girls and who they are as people. Their initial goal was $500, and they raised over $14,000. They showed us something we didn’t know was in there, but we’re certainly proud of them.” Staff at the organizations are amazed by the efforts that the girls took in organizing the lemonade stand and getting the word out to reach such a high level of success. “It takes dedication and perseverance to be able to do this," Children’s Wisconsin nurse Heather Schaewe said. "We have adults that do very large events and don’t raise this kind of money, so it’s amazing that these girls set their mind to it.” Even though Children's Wisconsin and the Ronald McDonald House are more than 90 minutes south, the organizations play an important role in the northeastern Wisconsin community. It came as no surprise that the lemonade stand was so well-backed by locals for Ronald McDonald House Charities Eastern Wisconsin president and CEO Laurie Bertrand. “More than 40% of our families are from the Green Bay-Fox Cities area, so it’s no surprise that that community really rallied around Ella to support her lemonade stand and what this house means to all those families," Bertrand said. Amid the check presentations, one of the highlights of the day for Ella was being able to show her friends what she has been through, and the inspiring people and places that helped her through her cancer journey. “I thought it was really cool that I could show them everyone and everywhere, all the places that have helped me and all the places I knew that I really liked," she said. But the most unexpected moment came in the middle of the day, right after the girls presented the supersized check, both in dimensions and in value, to the Bertrand. Andrew took a phone call, and a couple minutes later enthusiastically announced, "I just got off the phone with Children's, and this girl does not have a single ounce of cancer in her body." The reaction was an explosion of cheers, cries, applause and hugs as everyone began embracing whoever was within arm's reach. Andrew and his wife Amanda shared a long, tearful embrace, while Ella was swamped with a massive group hug from her sisters and friends. The Winters knew that they would get the latest, most advanced test results back this week, but had no idea that they would the day of their tour of the facilities. It was a wonderful coincidence in that all of Ella and Ava's friends got to see the peak of overcoming cancer, as they had seen so many low points the prior six months. No sound was more welcome than Ella ringing the cancer-free bell at Children's Wisconsin. “When we actually got the all clear I was very excited and I was really excited to ring the bell and I was just overjoyed," she said. “I felt so happy because I didn’t think I could do that.” She beat cancer, all while passing along a big win to Children's Wisconsin and the Ronald McDonald House, which the donations will pay for enriching materials that pediatric cancer patients otherwise would not have. “I just want people to know that it’s ok if you have cancer, it might seem really scary but there are so many people that will help you," Ella said. “You just have to be brave and you’ll get through it.” The girls say that they hope to have another lemonade stand next summer. “I want to change the world, but we can start one step at a time," Ava said, already well on her way.