It’s one of the most popular kids’ dreams: start a lemonade stand in your neighborhood. However, not every child thinks of this with a charitable goal when considering their first entrepreneurial effort.
The 9-year-old Ben Miller had one goal in mind with his lemonade stand: to donate the revenue to the Idaho Humane Society.
A third grader, Ben has been operating a lemonade stand and all of the money has gone to the charity.
Though he started small, his effort grew and the lovely boy has donated a total of $2000 to help shelter cats!
9-Year-Old Donates $2000 to Humane Society from His Lemonade Stand Earnings
The boy’s wish to donate to an animal shelter was inspired by his love of cats. After one visit to the Idaho Humane Society with his grandma, the young boy saw that most of the cats didn’t have any toys.
But, it’s good that the boy had already made a plan to open a lemonade stand. From that moment on, he pledged to donate all of his earnings to the shelter so that the cats get all the necessary supplies and toys.
This is the third year of the lemonade stand running. This time, the goal is $1000. One thing’s for sure: the boy’s fundraiser was more than successful.
He explains that he began two years ago and the first time, he had only $200 to donate and the second time, he donated around $600.
This time though, he donated around $1,150.
He adds that he usually sells lemonade, lemonade with lavender, as well as dog treats and cookies. These tasty offerings have brought success to the boy’s business.
The Whole World Has Learned of Ben’s Love for Animals
What’s more, the whole world now knows about his cause and people from all over the world have come to support his goal.
His mom Amy says that a lot of people who bought from her son’s stand traveled an hour and noted they’ve learned about the boy’s efforts on the radio.
Hearing this was wonderful, she added, and she’s very proud of her son and in awe of the engagement of the community.
What touched her the most was her son’s need to give and help. She’s proud of his heart and who he is. This is something that makes her genuinely happy.
At the shelter, the animals that benefit from the boy’s donation are certainly happy as well. And, the staff is beyond thankful for this amazing donation.
According to Kristine Schellhaas, the society’s communication manager, they’re always short on cat donations but since Ben adores cats, they’ll use the donations toward cats.
Miller doesn’t plan to stop his fundraising efforts-he believes he’ll be doing it every year or at least as long as he’s able to.
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