‘Success Kid’ meme boy who became a viral star is all grown up at 10 years old | Daily Mail Online

A baby who became a viral meme thanks to his determined expression and clenched fist now looks almost unrecognisable.

Sammy Griner from Jacksonville, Florida, was 11 months old when he was dubbed the ‘success kid’ after his mother Laney posted a picture on Flickr of him playing on the beach.

However a new photograph of Sammy, now ten, has been posted on Imgur by ThosWhoDoVoodoo where it has been viewed more than two million times.

Sammy Griner was 11-months-old when his mother Laney posted a picture to Flickr of him on the beach, with sand in his fist

He became an international meme and an Imgur post showed what he looks like now, pictured, with his mother Laney and a model of his famous picture

The famous picture of Sammy was posted in 2007 and went viral in 2010 with many memes made using his image.

The ‘fist-pumping’ child became a symbol to illustrate those small successes that make a person’s day.

In the latest image Sammy stands next to his mother Laney, who is holding up a clay model of him striking his infamous pose. The caption reads: ‘This is Success Kid.’ 

Imgur users were surprised by Sammy’s appearance now, with BasedKevin posting: ‘Why isn’t he doing the fist??!?’

While Jashen posted: ‘Aww, he’s growing up into a Success Man.’

And OrangeLoaf wrote: ‘There’s good genes in that family.’

The picture had almost three million views since it was posted three days ago. 

Sam is now grown up, pictured aged 10, and it’s hard to see the resemblance between him and the baby with a determined expression

Laney posted a selfie with son Sammy, now 10, on her Instagram page which has 1,500 followers

The original picture of Sammy which shows him moments before he put sand in his mouth on the beach

Sammy’s face was used in many memes to signal small everyday successes such as getting an extra chicken nugget, left, and realising it’s almost the weekend, right

Laney has posted many pictures of her son to her 1,500 followers on Instagram. 

After Sammy’s meme went viral, the family used the attention for a good cause and were able to raise money for his father Justin’s kidney transplant, ABC reported.

Laney said: ‘There’s so much positivity. There’s not a single thing we regret about Success Kid.’

‘It’s pretty crazy how it all happened. I still can’t wrap my head around it.’

They created a GoFundMe page and were eventually able to raise more than $100,000 to help with medical care costs, well over their original goal of $75,000.

Justin, whose mother died from kidney disease, had been on dialysis for more than six years.

The transplant surgery in August 2015 was a success. 

Sammy, pictured aged eight, seen with a sign bearing the likeness of his face when he was 11 months

The family debated about using Sammy’s fame to help raise money for Justin’s operation before giving it a try

Laney and the family wrote on GoFundMe: ‘Be proud of yourselves, because you did this.

‘It could not have happened now if not for the pure hearted, selfless kindness of family, friends, and mostly strangers.

‘You are the very best of humankind and I’m so thankful to each of you. You allowed us to break the cycle from his mother dying from this disease.

‘You’ve given life back to my husband, and a hope for a future for Sam and I. Thanking you for the rest of my life wouldn’t be enough.

The Griners are hopeful their story will inspire others to consider being an organ donor. The family planned to take a cross-country trip after the surgery.