Kids to Know: Sailor Garfield, Anderson O’Kelley, Reagan Leung, Ruby Nolan, Haydon Swanson

In preparation for summer break, most students across Tampa Bay anticipate what the season means for them: vacation travel, athletic camps, beach days, pool time, late nights and no homework. But for five rising sixth and seventh grade girls, this was the time to host their fourth annual lemonade stand to raise money for local children.

While many kids imagined the abundance of joy the summer months bring, these close friends considered the scarcity of food resources this would mean for thousands of children in Tampa Bay who depend on the school day for their meals.

Looking for Things to Do in Tampa Bay?

>>This Week’s Favorite Events
>>Halloween Events, Pumpkin Patches, and MORE
>> 40+ Free Things to Do with Kids

With over 200 lemons squeezed, hundreds of cereal boxes collected, four hours at the event, $8,000 raised and 42,000 people served through Feeding Tampa Bay, these girls began their break with a major bang.

Please share why and how you started a lemonade stand with your friends?

It started with Anderson wondering how she could help our community, and she knew she needed people to help so we all got involved. There are so many children who are less fortunate, and we all really wanted to help them. The first idea that came to mind was a lemonade stand, and that was the start of it all.

What do you know about Feeding Tampa Bay and their food campaigns?

Honestly, at the time, we did not know a lot about Feeding Tampa Bay because our lemonade stand started off so small. But over the years, it has grown tremendously, and we all have started to learn more and more about Feeding Tampa Bay.

Tell us about the first lemonade stand and how your efforts and success have grown over the four years you have hosted it together.

It really is crazy to think about how small it was in the first couple of years, and how much it has grown. It really does show all the effort and time we put in to make this happen. In the first couple of years, we were roughly at $800, and this year, we reached over $8,000. It really is incredible to see the growth over the past couple of years … we even added sponsorships this year.

What is involved with the preparation leading up to your Lemonade Stand event?

It usually involves us creating posters and, of course, the treats and lemonade. In fact, this year we all got assigned different items to bring because we knew we would have a ton of customers since the whole community and our schools really support us.

How does your school partner with your group to help you reach your goals each year? What do the other schools do?

Our schools are so supportive of what we have been able to accomplish the last few years. We all have collection boxes for the cereal in the front offices so that our school friends can help us make a bigger impact.

What happens on event day? How does the public support you?

On the day of the event, we set up our tables by Anderson’s house and set out all of our baked goods and fresh-squeezed lemonade. Some of our dads helped squeeze over 100 lemons! We put up our posters and sponsorship signs. We scaled up this year with the sponsorships, and our family and friends always come to show support.

How does it make you feel when you bring the money and food donations to Feeding Tampa Bay? Why?

It truly is surreal to think that 11- and 12-year-olds can raise over $8,000 and provide over 42,000 meals for kids who don’t have meals in the summer. There are so many less fortunate families, and it is so important to all do what we can to help others.

What is something you have learned in your experiences with the lemonade stand?

We all have learned how important it is to put your time and effort into helping your community and making a positive impact. We have also learned that no matter what you do to help your community, just do something because you are making a better tomorrow for someone else.

What are your favorite things to do together when you aren’t working on this annual initiative?

We love baking, swimming, shopping, crafts and playing sports.

Feature Image: Ruby Nolan, Sailor Garfield, Reagan Leung, Anderson O’Kelly and Haydon Swanson | Originally published in the August 2024 issue of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine.