photo courtesy of Chantelle Adams

We have chosen this summer to be a “Summer of Service.” I know summer is coming to an end for many of you, but there is still time to make some lemonade for a good cause! Here is what our kids have done with a little lemonade and some magic:

Teagan, age 9, and Tate, age 7 kicked off the summer using creative ideas to build a school in Africa. I gave them each $2.00 and told them to turn it into more with their own unique ideas.

Tate came up with the idea of doing a Magic Show. He made up invitations with the details and asked for a $2.00 donation that included a bag of popcorn and a glass of pop.

Tate practiced his tricks until he had them mastered. He had a 30 minute show prepared for his audience. About 20 friends and their parents showed up for the show and all were so impressed with Tate’s ability to stand up and perform.  Tate is normally very quiet and shy, but he was ready to step out of his comfort zone for the kids in Africa. The applause filled the air as Tate amazed his friends. At the close of the evening, Tate had raised $85.00 for Africa!

After some thought, Teagan decided to hold a lemonade stand, but with a twist. He went through all of our toy boxes and found cool, gently used toys that would make a great prize for any kid. He charged a bit higher fee, $1.00 instead of the usual $0.25, for his premium lemonade, but with each purchase he included a free toy–a great marketing strategy.

Teagan got permission from the principal at his elementary school to set up his lemonade stand at recess on the last day of school. In less than an hour, Teagan had raised $86.00!!! We were amazed. The kids loved the free toy idea and were thrilled to support a great cause, too. Many students asked to help with the stand and offered their assistance when the lines grew! It was great to see how eager kids were to get involved.

The boys have set up the lemonade stand at community events, too, and in just one month have now raised over $1000.00! They even had their story reported in the local newspaper. Here is a link if you want to check it out.

Their goal is $9000.00 because that is what it takes to build a school with Free the Children. I know that through their passion, enthusiasm, creative ideas, and of course the amazing support of friends, family and a generous community, they will be able to reach this goal!

Let your children take the lead and decide who they want to help and where they want the money raised to go. A great idea would be to donate to the Red Cross for famine relief. You could choose to donate to your local food bank or animal shelter, or use the money to buy some toys or games for a women’s shelter. You could use the money to help a neighbor who has lost his job. The possibilities are almost endless!

Then get busy making signs and ice-cold lemonade.  The best part of a lemonade stand is spending quality time together in the sunshine and doing it all for a good cause. It’s the perfect way to end the summer.
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