Most three-year-olds are concerned with ABCs, cookies and cartoons.
For Bethany Bibb, it was the year she was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis.
Now 16 years old, Bibb needs a double lung transplant, according to WSAZ News. The surgery will cost an estimated $35,000.
Her community responded by combining efforts with the Children's Organ Transplant Association (COTA) to set up a fund for voluntary donations.
COTA, a nonprofit organization, coordinates and organizes fundraising for expenses garnered by transplant surgeries. Their services are free of charge for families in need of financial and emotional support as their children struggle with life-threatening illnesses.
So far, they have helped raise $16,871 for Bethany's surgery.
In Ironton, Ohio, where Bethany has lived her entire life, many local organizations have joined COTA in their search for funds. High schools, church groups and others have donated to her cause.
Their kindness does not go unrecognized. Bibb keeps a blog, on which she records messages of gratitude for those who have helped her:
"It's so awesome to see the community come together and work toward a common goal like this."
While the fundraising goal for Bethany's surgery is still long off, supporters in Ironton -- and across America -- can donate to help Bethany on the Children's Organ Transplant Association website.