HOLDEN (NEWS CENTER Maine) -- Her infectious laugh fills the house. It's a house named after her mother: Sarah's House.
"I would do anything for this place," said 12-year-old Morgan Robinson.
Morgan was only 5 years old when her mother, Sarah, passed away after battling a brain tumor.
This place, a home away from home for cancer patients and their caregivers, was her mother's dream.
"It's really fun and really special to me to be able to serve the cancer guests, as they might be going through something that I can relate to, or like their caregiver, with seeing my mom when she was sick," said Morgan, who sat down one-on-one with NEWS CENTER Maine Monday morning.
Since Morgan was so young when her mother was sick, Sarah's identical twin sister, Lindsay Turner, helps Morgan remember that time in their lives.
“Wait! Hold on! I was six,” said Morgan.
“I love you,” said Lindsay.
“It never really clicked what was going on until she died," Morgan said, reminiscing on the many things she was too young to know at the time.
"She comes in and [the guests] treat her like family and they are so touched by everything Sarah did and then on to what Morgan continues to do and it's really special," Lindsay said.
“I feel like it’s good for me to interact with [the guests] and to just make them feel as welcomed and like they’re very special," said Morgan.
As a seventh-grader on her summer break, Morgan could be at summer camp, hanging out with friends, or doing any number of things besides volunteering.
"I really try to be as much like my mom as I can," Morgan said. "I really look up to her and I wouldn't really call this working. I would call it just having fun. It's a lot of fun here."
Morgan was involved with Sarah's House, before there even was a house, by fundraising from a young age to make her mother's deathbed wish, a reality.
“From my perspective, I thought we were just saving up for more bunk beds in our basement," Morgan said, fighting back laugher. "That was Momma’s original idea was, ‘we need more bunk beds for people to stay that are getting their treatments.’ So, it’s incredible here. It’s above and beyond what any of us, I’m sure, would’ve imagined.”
Morgan and Lindsay also recalled a lemonade and chicken egg stand Morgan set up to begin fundraising for Sarah's House when she was only 6 years old. Morgan ended up raising $2,000, planting the seed for fundraising efforts to come.
“Morgan’s involvement is really important for a number of reasons," adds Lindsay. "I think as a very young girl when she lost her mother, it was such a tragedy, but she’s been able to persevere in life and has grown into such a beautiful young woman even at this point, in this moment."
Morgan has fundraised for Sarah's House as a young girl, she is involved in events, and volunteers at the house every Monday during school vacation.
"I like to bake a lot here," Morgan said. "It's really fun to just be able to use all these awesome [appliances] and be able to serve other people. My dad likes to cook a lot and he has taught me a bunch of what he does and so it's fun to be able to share the things that I do with him, with the guests."
In the future, Morgan hopes to continue volunteering at Sarah's House with the possibility of one day taking on more responsibility.
"Morgan and I will have a constant role in the organization, just helping keep awareness and giving people the opportunity to have a 'home away from home,' knowing what we all went through when Sarah was sick and just how much of a toll that takes on a family," Lindsay said. "We want to have the opportunity to always give back."
A 12-year-old, setting an example with her volunteerism, to all in her community.
“Morgan is really an inspiration for the youth in the community in just showing them that anything’s possible and even under bad circumstances or tragedy, that you can rise above that and still do something good for the community," Lindsay said. “It’s nice to have her set an example for the youth in the community and I think it worked. I think a lot of kids see her and what she does and are inspired and want to do more.”