Success Kid

[7] Eventually, the interpretation of the image shifted, focusing on the boy's facial expression and clenched fist as a gesture of self-congratulation, adding captions that boasted of small personal victories and good fortune.

Laney Griner disliked the "I Hate Sandcastles" meme as she felt it made her son– who in fact loved sandcastles– look like a bully, but she embraced the "Success Kid" concept.

[4] In 2013, she hired "meme manager" Ben Lashes to represent her son and his interest, which led to deals to have the image put on T-shirts sold by Hot Topic.

[5] The tweet included a link to a report that suggested that immigration reform could lead to cutting the US deficit by nearly $200 billion within 10 years, and was intended to raise support for the legislation in Congress.

[13] In January 2020, Laney Griner issued a cease and desist letter to United States Representative Steve King after he had used the Success Kid image as part of a fundraising campaign without her permission.

She was initially reluctant to associate the campaign with the "Success Kid" meme, wishing for it to focus on her husband's medical need, but changed her mind, and in the first five days it received donations of nearly $9,000 from 300 people.