One cup at a time, Gideon and his family do their part to help businesses and organizations in Livingston recover from the flood.
A lemonade stand has been a staple for children to put some extra dollars in their pocket, to save up for a new toy—but toys are not the reason five-year-old Gideon spends his time at the stand.
“It’s fun,” Gideon said, “to get them a new home.”
The first lemonade stand he ran, all the proceeds went to the Stafford Animal Shelter, with the hope of helping them find a new home or to clean up their existing location. About 35 to 45 people showed up each day they were open.
“I think it’s so sweet, and so kind and caring,” one Livingston resident said. “I always stop when I see the kids out here.”
Selling lemonade at $1, and accepting donations too, he was able to raise $70 for the Stafford Animal Shelter. That surpassed Gideon’s original goal of $9. For his next stand, the proceeds went to All Wags N Whiskers, a dog groomer and pet-boarding facility.
“I figured maybe we could get up to about $70 for Wags and Whiskers, but we’ve actually exceeded that goal by quite a bit,” Angelica, Gideon’s mom, said.
Gideon raised $180 for Wags N Whiskers; he and his mom plan to spend the weekends during the summer running the stand. Angelica hopes that her kids remember the flood itself, but also the strength of the community.
“Not the negative, and how the community came together, and how we were able to contribute to that,” she said.
