If one were to ask the average 11-year-old girl what they wanted for their birthday, responses such as “a new iPad,” “a gift card to Forever 21,” or “a pony” are likely to follow.

Emalee Foote, of Dowagiac, had only one item at the top of her wish list: money to donate to the Borgess Tree of Love, a charity that provides funds for cancer treatment.

“I decided I wanted to donate money this year, since I liked going to [the lighting ceremony] last year,” Foote said.

Friends and family ended up gifting $112 to Foote during her Oct. 19 birthday party, which she gave to the hospital during the Tree of Life lighting ceremony that took place Wednesday evening. During the ceremony, attendees had the opportunity to purchase a light for $8, which is named in honor a friend, family member or anyone else the buyer wishes.

Foote was able to purchase 14 lights, nine of which she named in honor of those who donated money for her birthday, three named in honor of family who passed away this year, one in honor of her aunt, Kim Owmby, a cancer survivor; and one for a woman she met last year that is battling cancer.

Foote’s decision to donate to the Tree of Love in particular isn’t a major surprise to her mother, Vicki. The lifelong Dowagiac resident had the cost of a diagnostic mammogram screening paid for by the charity, after an initial test showed signs of abnormalities, she said.

Both Emalee and her mother have attended the Tree of Love lighting ceremony for more than 10 years. They began going to show support of Vicki’s sister, who battled cancer for three years before she was eventually cured.

After Emalee told her friends and family her plans for her birthday gifts, they were immediately supportive of her plans.

“My friends said that I was really nice, and their parents told me that I was making a difference,” Foote said.

Foote said she was heartened by the support she received from everyone during her birthday party.

“I’ve been trying to donate money to the Tree of Love for a while,” she said. “I never thought I would donate this much.”

For the young fifth-grade Justus Gage student, giving back to the less fortunate comes naturally, her mother said. For the last several years, she has done what she can to contribute to the needy, including volunteering at the local soup kitchen during the holidays.

“She’s always wanting to help others out,” Vicki Foote said. “Whenever the family would take a trip down to Chicago, she would ask us for money to give out to the homeless.”

Her birthday wasn’t the first time she asked to forgo presents in favor of donation items. Last Christmas, Foote asked for canned goods to donate to the ACTION ministry network’s food pantry.

“I like to donate as much I can,” she said. “I like making a difference in the lives of people who don’t have as much as I do.”