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Nora Black, 8, and Brynlee Smith, 6, pose behind their lemonade stand located in front of Jen's Furniture and Collectibles on Main Street in Celina on July 17. The duo sold deliciously fresh lemonade for $1 and a variety of tasty cake pops for $2.
CELINA - For some kids, summer means no school for three blissful months, endless pool days and, if the weather is hot enough, slinging some good-old-fashioned lemonade.
This summer, many local young entrepreneurs have partaken in the sticky-sweet tradition, complete with making the beverage at home, setting up a stand and learning how to make a sale.
Keagan Carder, 12, is a pro at managing a stand - he's been in the business for five years, setting up in front of The Willow and La Carreta. He donates half of his proceeds to Shop with a Cop, a program that pairs children from families in need with local law enforcement officers or personnel, who help them select toys and practical gifts at Christmastime.
Carder was inspired when he saw another child selling lemonade and donating diapers to pregnant women.
"The kid was out of Chicago. I was flipping through Facebook and the kid was doing a lemonade stand and donating diapers to underprivileged teen moms," Sheena Brown, Carder's mom, said. "At the time, Keagan was 7 and was like, 'Well, I want to do that.'"
Another young business owner, Brynlee Smith, 6, hosted a lemonade stand July 17 in front of Jen's Furniture and Collectibles Lakeside in Celina. She made around $325 and donated half to Veterans Forever, a nonprofit organization.
Smith and her cousin, Nora Black, 8, sold lemonade for $1 and cake pops for $2.
Brynlee Smith pours a cup of lemonade for a thirsty customer.
Because Carder and his family live near The Willow, then-owner Scott Anderson told him to set up in front of the business, allowing for more traffic in a safe, controlled area. When Logan Smith took over in 2022, he honored the arrangement.
Brown said Smith told her, "'I'll always honor it. If he wants to be out here 16 years selling lemonade to raise money for the community, I'll do it.' They're amazing people. We frequent La Carreta with our boys and when (co-owner Gerardo Delgado) found out that Keagan was the kid doing it, this year…. he said to set up during lunch."
The stand's placement is almost as important as the product, Carder said.
"After you order your food, I'm about 10 feet down," Carder said, explaining where he sets up - in a spot that is coveted. "When they stop, I'll say, 'Hey, I'm raising money for the Shop with a Cop Program. I donate 50% of it. Would you like a cup? It's 50 cents."
And just like that, he makes another sale.
Carder said he found the perfect spot at The Willow through experience. He used to set up before cars placed their order in the drive-thru line and found that potential customers didn't stop as much and would instead just try to order their food.
The product is also a key part of the business.
Carder both makes homemade lemonade and uses a mix. With his homemade concoction, he uses lemons, water, sugar and lemon juice.
Smith also made lemonade at home, even hand-squeezing the four bags of lemons mom Mackenzie Smith bought.
The first grader said testing the cake pops for quality control was her favorite part.
Because homemade lemonade uses real sugar, Carder found that some older customers may not get to enjoy the sweet treat.
"I realized when we were doing it at The Willow, some (older people) during the day (donated) 50 cents, but can't drink it because they're diabetic and they can't have the sugar," Brown said.
She then found a zero-sugar lemonade mix that is safe for diabetics.
Carder, from the very beginning, has donated half of his proceeds to a charity.
Celina Mayor Jeff Hazel presents the Outstanding Citizen Award to Keagan Carder in 2023.
The first year, he used his money to buy toys and then donated them to children diagnosed with cancer at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus. That same year, Carder and his mom were grocery shopping at Walmart when they saw Shop with a Cop happening. Carder was inspired to help after his dad told him a rumor that Santa wasn't real.
"When we were at Walmart, I saw them doing it, and I said, 'Listen, these kids right now, this might be all they get for Christmas, and they are picking it out themselves,'" Brown recalled. "We all kind of go through it at times. Life is not always perfect. My husband and I turned it into, now you can be Santa for somebody."
Typically, Carder donates around $400, supplying enough funds for one and a half kids.
"It's a program in town that I feel like a lot of people don't realize is 100% donation-based," Brown said. "If they don't get those donations, they're not able to do it."
"We accidentally went to Walmart last winter on the same day they were doing the Shop with a Cop program," Brown continued. " (An official) saw Keagan … and brought this little boy up to him; he was probably 4. He's like, 'Because of what you've done, this boy gets stuff for Christmas because of you."
In 2023, Celina mayor Jeff Hazel presented Carder with the Outstanding Citizen Award because of his charity work.
"It's nice to see," Brown said. "I'm his mom, so it's a little different, but the giving spirit of kids isn't always there, (so) it's just nice to see it. I'll be driving by and I'll see somebody with a lemonade stand. I'm like, 'Oh, I'm stopping.' Who cares what it's for? I just feel like these kids are learning so much just from doing it."
Carder agreed with his mom, and said he's learned about responsibility, cleanliness, social interactions and finances.
According to Lemonade Day, a national youth entrepreneurship program that teaches kids how to start, own and operate their own lemonade stand, kids learn how to safely talk to strangers, budget expenses and earn a profit, handle rejection, give customers respect by looking them in the eye, clearly give their pitch, and push through lulls.
For many lemonade entrepreneurs, though, the best lesson is simpler. It's to always be caring.
Brynlee Smith, 6, Celina, serves a customer lemonade.
