Lemonade stand helps raise funds for my cousin's cancer charity

Credit: Kidsday illustration / Ella Vereb
Have you ever had a lemonade stand to raise money for charity? If you haven’t, here's how to do it.
Last September my cousin, sister and I were trying to think of a way we could help raise money for my cousin's charity, Lauren’s First and Goal Foundation, in honor of Pediatric Cancer Awareness month. Lauren’s First and Goal is a charity started by my aunt and uncle, Marianne and John Loose, that helps support families who are battling childhood cancer and for brain tumor research. Lauren’s First and Goal Foundation holds a one-day camp at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania where over a thousand athletes from grades 9 to 12 participate in an intense day of skills and drills, all to benefit the foundation.
We thought and thought. Then we came up with the idea for a lemonade stand. After all, who wouldn’t want to have a nice, cold drink on a warm day? We worked together to gather the materials we would need: a table, cups, pitcher of lemonade, napkins and a box to hold all the money. We made a sign and set up our stand at the end of the driveway.
All afternoon we sold lemonade to people passing by. Many people asked about Lauren’s First and Goal Foundation, and we explained to them what it was. They were so happy to make donations and loved the lemonade. By the end of the day we raised more than $100. We were so happy that we were able to help raise awareness for a great cause and to support our brave cousin.
Gina Cerulli’s fifth-grade class, Idle Hour Elementary School, Oakdale