Despite poor economic and the worse weather conditions, organizers say Saturday’s Reid’s Ride for Research was a success this year.

Close to 300 people participated in the third annual bike ride through Glen Ellyn, which raised about $10,000 for brain tumor research at Chicago’s Memorial Children’s Hospital, organizers reported.

Participants aren’t resting though.

With the next fundraiser less than three weeks away, members of Reid’s Lemon-AID are continuing to expand what has become a staple of Glen Ellyn’s philanthropic scene. Including the weekend’s tally, Reid’s Lemon-AID has raised close to $110,000 in the four years since it was formed.

“It really has to do with the community,” said Kathy Colliander, whose son Reid is the group’s namesake and one of its founders. “It’s so supportive. The feedback is so positive the kids get.”

The group originated when at 7, Reid was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Located in the part of the brain responsible for motor skills, it affected his balance and ability to play sports.

After a recovery and three years of physical therapy, Reid was playing on teams again. To raise money for brain tumor research, he and friends on his baseball team decided to sell lemonade at Glen Ellyn’s Fourth of July parade — which led to the group’s name.

Now at 13, Reid and a half-dozen friends make up the group’s junior board of directors.

“They meet pretty regularly,” said Beth Fawcett of Wheaton, whose son Brad played basketball with Reid and is one of the group’s organizers. “They throw out ideas, talk about what they’re going to do to get the message out.”

Adults are needed to execute some of the group’s efforts, but the junior leaders are still the driving force, she said.

“They organize things they know they can handle,” Fawcett said.

Four years later, the group hosts six to seven fundraisers throughout the year and counts more than 100 Wheaton and Glen Ellyn children between 5 and 12 years old among its participants.

“Now it’s grown to friends, and my friends’ friends. It’s just grown to my friends’ friends’ friends,” Reid said.

The annual bike ride is usually the group’s biggest earner. This year’s event, which for the first time featured a 5k fun run, brought in less than in the past. Still, organizers are upbeat.

“Considering that it was raining (on Saturday), it really shows how a community can come together,” Reid said.