8-year-old sells lemonade to fund Detroit church's scholarsh
Vị trí Position
8-year-old sells lemonade to fund Detroi
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Overseas
Mô tả công việc Brief description
Armed with a wooden stand and 120 cans of Crayons Pink Lemonade, 8-year-old Blair Peppers was prepared to raise money for his church's scholarship fund.
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"I kept saying 'Lemonade, lemonade -- only $2 for the scholarship fund,' " said Blair, who lives in Canton. "I was excited to do it."
Blair was one of 1,000 children nationwide who participated in the Pink Lemonade Brigade, a one-day event sponsored by Crayons All Natural Beverage Co., based in Bellevue, Wash.
On June 21, other children participating in the program sold cans of Crayons Pink Lemonade to raise money for local charities of their choosing.
Chí tiết Vị trí Full details of position
Blair decided to sell his lemonade on June 22 at his church, Vernon Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Detroit, as the membership arrived for Sunday-morning services.
"The sale was a success, and Blair raised $182 for the Thomas and Amy Jackson Scholarship fund at our church," said Tracy Sanders, 43, Blair's mom. "Mostly people from the church supported us."
Sanders was surfing the Internet when she came across information about the Pink Lemonade Brigade program. Crayons All Natural Beverage Co. offered participants supplies to create their own lemonade stand, as well as 120 cans of Crayons Pink Lemonade -- free of charge -- for the program.
"I saw it at the end of May, and it said it was a free fund-raiser for kids, and I decided to go with it," said Sanders, who lives in Canton. "I thought this would teach him the importance of working in the community. If he can do this, he can do other things to help others."
The Pink Lemonade Brigade was created by 7-year-old Connor Lloyd, the son of Crayons Chief Executive Officer Ronald Lloyd. The program was formed as a way to get children thinking about giving back to their communities.
"We are excited to debut the Pink Lemonade Brigade as a creative medium to empower children and support art, charities and healthy living," said Lloyd in a written statement. "We are bringing back an American classic. This is a lemonade stand for the age of health, wellness and social responsibility."
Decorating the stand
Once Blair received his lemonade stand supplies, he said, he immediately began decorating it to prepare for the sale.
"I like drawing, so it was fun to do. I'm an artist," said Blair, a fourth-grader at Bradford Academy in Southfield. "I worked on it on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays after school."
Blair, who spends most of his free time drawing, likes to create images of basketball players, wrestlers and Martin Luther King Jr.
The lemonade stand was decorated with images of a basketball court, stars, a graduation cap, and letters to the founders of the scholarship fund at his church.
For the scholarship fund
Amy Jackson and her husband, Thomas Jackson Jr., founded the scholarship fund at Vernon Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1988 with $1,000.
The scholarship is for college students who are members of the church and enrolled in school full-time. After graduation from high school, church members receive a one-time gift of $50 from the scholarship fund. Once they enroll in college or a post-high school program, they are eligible to receive $75 a month for up to five years. Currently, 14 students receive scholarships.
"I noticed that young men -- not just at our church, but young men everywhere -- were not graduating from high school like the young ladies. I heard a voice from God and talked to my husband about it, and we decided to create the scholarship," said Amy Jackson, 71, who lives in Detroit. "The AME church has a scholarship program, but there are a lot of things young people have to do to qualify. We wanted to do something for the young people at the church to say we're glad you made the effort."
After the scholarship fund was started, church members began donating money to the cause. The church created banks for quarters in an effort to get members to think about donating spare change.
"I'm so proud of Blair for thinking of the scholarship fund and donating $182," said Amy Jackson. "He was the only child who gave me a bank full of quarters. The banks hold $25 worth of quarters."
Students who receive the monthly stipend say they depend on the money for books, transportation, school-related fees, rent and food.
"We can use the money for everything, and it means a lot because I know a lot of my friends don't have this type of support," said scholarship recipient Ashley Banks, 20, of Detroit, who is studying early-childhood education at Wayne County Community College. "A lot of churches don't do things like this. It's a big help."
For Gregory Frye and Jennifer Frazier, both students at Central Michigan University, the money has helped with school items as well as expenses associated with living off campus.
"It was very special to me because I wasn't sure I was going to school," said Frye, 22, an interior design student from Detroit. "It has helped me pay for books, my cell phone bill and, as an interior design student, I have a lot of extra fees, so it has helped pay for fabric, sewing equipment and art supplies."
Frazier said it was nice to have a consistent source of extra money.
"It's reassuring for me to know that my church family has my back, and it's a reassurance of love from the community," said Frazier, a public relations student from Detroit. "It's a blessing to have had this opportunity. Every time I receive a check from the scholarship fund, I'm overwhelmed by the love from my church."
Since creating the scholarship, the Jacksons, who are in their 70s, have given $1,000 to the fund each year.
"They are a dynamic couple," said Sanders. "They are so generous."
Contact MELANIE D. SCOTT at 248-351-3681 or mdscott@freepress.com.
Tên tổ chức Organisation name
8-year-old sells lemonade to fund Detroit church's scholarships
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Giới thiệu về tổ chức Organisation profile
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Email
mdscott@freepress.com
Telephone
248-351-3681
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(US)
Tên liên hệ Contact name
Contact MELANIE D. SCOTT
Phương thức liên hệ Preferred contact method
Email, Điện thoại
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