'How much chemo will $1,000 buy Cara?' Boy, eight, wins scavenger hunt... and promptly donates his prize to two-year-old neighbour who's battling leukaemia

Wyatt Erber, from Edwardsville, Illinois, 'floors' mother of girl with donation

$1,000 matched by non-profit organisation Edwardsville Neighbors in Need



Most young boys who win money in a scavenger hunt might use it to buy toys or games.



But Wyatt Erber, 8, stunned his neighbours in Edwardsville, Illinois, by donating his $1,000 prize to their daughter, Cara, 2, who is battling leukemia.



Wyatt said: 'I wanted to give it to them. I didn't know what to do with it.'



Generous: Eight-year-old Wyatt Erber, pictured left, donated $1,000 prize money to his neighbour, two-year-old Cara Kielty, pictured right, who was diagnosed with leukemia a few months ago

Big win: The youngster won the money in a scavenger hunt organised by First Clover Leaf Bank

Cara's mother, Trisha Kielty, recalled in the St Louis Post-Dispatch when Wyatt phoned her with his suggestion.

But she admitted she never thought Wyatt would win.

'He said: 'How much chemo will $1,000 buy Cara?'. I'm completely floored by him. To step up and donate his winnings … is crazy.'



The Erbers, Kieltys and several other families had been raising money for Cookies for Kids' Cancer, a national organisation devoted to research, for more than a year even though they didn't know anyone with the illness.



Mothers' pride: Wyatt, right, phoned Cara's mother Trisha, left, with his suggestion after he won the money



Battle: Cara is already undergoing chemotherapy for her leukemia, which was detected in May

Thankful: The families celebrate the generous gift at the bank. A local charity matched the donation

It wasn't until antibiotics failed to cure Cara's suspected ear infection that the youngster's parents took her to St Louis Children's Hospital where she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in May.



It is the most common form diagnosed in children and has a 90 per cent cure rate. Young Cara is now responding well to treatment, which she will have to continue for about two-and-a-half years.

Wyatt's donation has caught the attention of Edwardsville Neighbors in Need, which matched the youngster's $1,000. A man in Canada has also written to Wyatt and rewarded him with $100.

Rachel Case, a spokesman for First Clover Leaf Bank, which organised the scavenger hunt, said: 'It's just the sweetest thing that he's been playing all summer for her.'



'We got goose bumps when we heard. I don't know any 8-year-olds who would do this.'