The Heather Riniker daycare group will be hosting a lemonade and bake sale in uptown Mount Vernon Monday, Aug. 9, through Wednesday, Aug. 11, at the First Street Community Center lawn. The stand will be open 8:45 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. those mornings.
According to Heather Riniker, this isn’t the first cause the daycare has hosted a lemonade and bake sale in the community, as the organization has also held funds for the Marsha Light family in 2019.
This year, the funds the group will be raising will help the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Theatre in its push to raise money for a new outdoor stage to abut the Memorial Park Gazebo. The MVLCT is planning outdoor performances of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in the park in September and hopes to offer more outdoor performances in years to come.
“This is a brand new project so the up-front costs are more than we have ever had to spend on any production in our 40+ years” MVLCT board member Braden Rood said. “We are so excited for this new venture and are so grateful for all of the support we have received.”
“They’ve raised more than $2,000 to their goal, but the cost of the stage still needs additional funds,” said Dallas Olberding, one of the teenagers who assists at the daycare.
“We like assisting with projects that could use donations, as it helps everyone out,” said ().
Lana Riniker, one of the lemonade stand operators noted that volunteering increases the self confidence and self esteem of youth by doing good for the community and others, which helps those who volunteered feel more accomplished.
Jacob Stewart, one of the youth, is excited to be having an opportunity to sell at the lemonade stand this summer, as it will be his first experience selling anything.
And there will most likely be quality control checks to make sure the lemonade is just right for the general public.
Alongside the lemonade, youth will also be looking to sell baked goods as well, which they’ll be making in the next few weeks.
Some of the kids know what to expect from the past lemonade stands they’ve run in the past.
“One of the years we tried to do this, it was cold outside, which impacted our sales,” Trulie Breidinger said. “Weather really can impact sales.
One of the other challenges is that there will be a few youth at the daycare who will be absent when the lemonade stand is being run.
The youth are getting the word out early this year to try and help their sales for their cause, and are working on posters to hang in the uptown in the future.
“Through the arts of dance, acting and music, people learn to communicate in a variety of unique ways,” said Lana Riniker. “I have done Odyssey in the past, and found it to be so fun. I’m excited to help raise money for this awesome play in the community this summer.”
Lemonade stand raising funds for Mount Vernon Lisbon Community Theatre
July 29, 2021
About the Contributor
Nathan Countryman, Editor
Nathan Countryman is the Editor of the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Sun.