Running along the corner of Palasota Drive and Pecan Street with their handcrafted signs in hand, the students of Anson Jones Elementary, along with other elementary school students stationed all over Bryan-College Station, were eager to sell lemonade to passersby on Sunday.
Lemonade Day is a national organization that teaches elementary-age kids about owning and operating their own business and the importance of budgeting and finances. According to LemonadeDay.org, the project serves approximately 1 million children and takes place in over 100 cities, including Bryan-College Station.
Linda Montoya, principal at Anson Jones Elementary, said Lemonade Day was a wonderful experience for the 20 third- and fourth-grade students who have been working with Mays Business School students after school.
“The kids really look forward to their mentors coming to the sessions every week and it gives them an opportunity to work with someone who’s in college and it gives us great hopes that all of our children will go to college,” Montoya said. “The students at Mays Business School have really been great with our kids and we really appreciate everything they’ve done for our students here.”
Ben Feldman, business graduate student, said the students had been working on the project long before the day of the lemonade sale.
“Today is the culmination of a four-week process where we worked with the kids to help teach them about sales with their lemonade stands,” Feldman said. “This is the fun part where they actually get to sell the lemonade.”
A portion of the profits the children made from lemonade sales will go to a local charity of their choice.
Katie Estep, junior business honors major, said she was touched by the kindness of one young vendor.
“One of my favorite days was when we went over what charities they could give to, and Louis was really excited about being able to give to the animal shelter,” Estep said.
Brittany Cordell, freshman biomedical sciences major, was a customer of the young entrepreneurs.
“I was just driving by and they were holding up their signs and too adorable to not buy some of their lemonade,” Cordell said. “It’s also nice to see the kids learning the value of a dollar and practical skills.”