Café LEMON

The summer of 2021 was an eventful and very gratifying time for a group of kids.

Team Café Lemon; Shakti Meiyur; Ishaan Dadhirao; Shiv Meiyur; Pranav Yadla and Aditi Vayyavur; raised $2,063 for animal shelters in MA. The amount was equally distributed between Nevins farm and Lowell human society; to add 2 companies’ prices matched the donation.

Team Café Lemon also, raised money for the American cancer society at the Relay for Life event held at Wilmington High School, Wilmington, MA on September 18^th, 2021.

A brief look at the members.

Shakti Meiyur (founder of Café Lemon) is a 10-year-old 5^th grader from Billerica, MA who is currently homeschooled. She loves animals and wants to become a businesswoman.

Ishaan Dadhirao (Co-founder) is a 13-year-old 7^th grader from the Locke Middle School in Billerica MA. He loves animals and wants to become a veterinarian.

Shiv Meiyur (Co-founder) is a 14-year-old 9^th grader from Billerica, MA who is currently homeschooled. He loves animals and wants to go into research genetics.

Pranav Yadla (executive team) is a 14-year-old 8^th grader from Andover Middle school. He loves animals and wants to pursue Law.

Aditi Vayyavur (executive team) is a 13-year-old 7^th grader from North Andover middle school. She loves animals and would love to pursue law.

What started as a fun summer afternoon idea quickly turned into a mission for a group of kids. It started with the small idea of either adopting a pet or donating money to adopt-a-pet.org. Shakti, a girl scout, decided to start a lemonade stand to raise money to help the local animal shelters. Visits to the various animal shelters helped her gain insight into how the shelters operated and their specific needs. One summer afternoon, while she and her brother Shiv were planning the Lemon stand, their friend Ishaan took to the idea and soon became a part of Café Lemon. Shakti, Shiv, and Ishan started their journey on this mission.

They reached out to town halls and health boards of various towns, BJ’s, Market Basket, Shaw’s, Stop and Shop, Lowes, and Home Depot.  They reached out to every place in their capacity to have their Lemonade stand but did not get approvals. The wait went from days to weeks, but they continued their search. On a Monday afternoon, during the visit to the local library, Shakti talked to the Billerica farmers market. They were very kind to let Café Lemon have their first stand. Billerica Farmers’ market stand was a huge success and many animal lovers donated with an open heart. Soon, Pranav and Aditi joined this mission; they worked together, and good friends soon became a successful team. The farmers’ markets from Lowell, Tewksbury, and Wilmington allowed the lemon stand and so did Andover on their town day.

From following the town guidelines to coming up with out-of-the-box ideas; the team did it all. With places where they couldn’t have Lemonade; they came up with ideas like Iced tea, Balloons, fun tattoos, and delicious cookies. The team spent their summer planning; shopping; waking up early and spending a full day standing at the stand, whether rain or sulky hot nothing stopped them from standing strong on their mission. Their enthusiasm was contagious, and the parents helped them in every way possible: driving them around, setting up the stall, and providing supplies without expecting anything in return.

Team Café Lemon raised $2062 which they distributed equally to Nevins farm and Lowell humane society. Their hard work was appreciated by a donation match by 2 companies. Nevins Farm and Lowell humane society accepted the donation with gratitude and invited the kids for a visit to appreciate their hard work. A small idea blossomed into a fun and giving summer. Kids held hands and supported each other. Kids learned the art of raising funds; marketing and above all the art of GIVING.

They thank Billerica; Wilmington; Lowell, Tewksbury farmer market, and the town of Andover for allowing them to have their stand and support their mission. They thank friends and family for their support. Café Lemon thanks all the people that donated with an open heart and everyone who believed in them and supported the mission.

Café Lemon will be on the mission to support animal shelters next summer. Please feel free to reach out to the team if you or your child would like to join the mission. This mission is only possible if we all work together.

|