He meant to raise one hundred euros for a special Christmas charity event by polishing other people’s nails. But after two days 6-year old Tijn from the Netherlands has raised over one million euros.

Tijn wanted to take his last big opportunity to help others. Last May he was diagnosed with DIPG, a rare form of brain cancer which is incurable. Tijn most likely has less than a year to live.

Tijn is raising money in order to support the Red Cross. This  humanitarian institution is campaigning for African children suffering from pneumonia, a curable disease that still is one of the main causes of death for children under the age of 5 in many African countries.

tijn-actieFoto: SeriousRequest 3FM Tijn raising money by polishing nails

The Red Cross campaign is part of a Christmas charity event called ‘Serious Request’, an annual fundraising event organized by a Dutch public broadcaster.

During the event two radio-dj's lock themselves up in a Glass House for 6 days and try to raise as much money as possible, but private initiatives such as Tijn's are welcomed as well.

Tijn's campaign was inspired by the Ice Bucket Challenge: people are asked to donate at least 10 euros if they refuse to have their nails polished by Tijn, or to get their nails polished and donate at least 1 euro.

The initiative of the 6-year old boy started last Wednesday and quickly went viral in The Netherlands. Numerous celebrities - amongst them well known dj's like Armin van Buuren and Hardwell - got their nails polished by Tijn. Friday morning Tijn passed a symbolic threshold by raising over 1 million euros.

Helping out

Meanwhile, friends of the boy's family have launched a seperate campaign for Tijn and his family, who have been suffering considerably.

"Despite the terrible news, [his parents] Gerrit and Jolanda continue trying to help Tijn. They have been to Nijmegen and Amsterdam visiting the best hospitals for research and looking for the best treatment for Tijn. Ries, Tijn’s younger brother, also needs a lot of attention during this terrible period. Luckily lots of friends and relatives are trying to lend a helping hand. But Gerrit and Jolanda's biggest wish is to spend as much time as possible with Tijn and Ries", the initiator of this campaign says.

The money raised for Tijn and his family will be donated to a foundation aiming to prolong the life expectancy of children with brain cancer. As of Friday, more than 100 thousand euros had been donated.