Ade for Animals
Local Kids Make a Stand
by Brian J. Lowney
You can call them the Lemonade Kids, but their story is just not
about selling the tangy thirst quencher like many kids do on
hot days when they want to earn a little spending money. Kelly
Graziano, 11, and her cousin, Brayden Cockcroft, 7, are two budding entrepreneurs and philanthropists who have learned at an
early age that giving to those less fortunate is far more important
than collecting personal possessions.
For the past year, the enthusiastic cousins have held a series of
fundraisers to benefit the Providence Animal Rescue League,
one of the nation’s leading animal shelters, providing care for
thousands of homeless and abandoned cats, dogs and other
creatures every year.
“I feel bad that they were abandoned or abused,” Kelly said of
the many animals she sees during regular visits to the shelter.
She wishes that all the homeless creatures could be treated like
her own two pugs and pair of cats.
The impetus for the cousins’ fundraising efforts was the book
“A Kid’s Guide to Giving,” which teaches young folks how to
develop a cause and become philanthropists. Kelly, who loves
animals, read the book and decided to support a national animal advocacy group, but her mother Jody Graziano suggested
that she instead help a local program. Following in the footsteps
of her older sister, Rachel, who once sold lemonade to benefit
the ALS Association of Rhode Island, Kelly decided to open a
lemonade stand and quickly won the support of her younger
cousin.
The determined youngsters operated several stands last summer, selling the ice-cold beverage to friends, neighbors and
thirsty landscapers traveling through Kelly’s Johnston neighborhood.
“They started calling themselves the ‘Lemonade Kids,’” Jody
quipped, adding that the beverage sales earned $105 for the
shelter.
While the cousins were happy with their successful enterprise,
they still wanted more, so they raised an additional $761 in
pledges from family and just about everyone they knew to support PARL’s annual Pet Walk last fall.
“They didn’t beat Bank of America,” Jody explained, adding
that while the children did well in raising funds for the shelter’s
main fundraiser, they set out to become the top team this year,
and immediately started selling lemonade once they returned
home from the walk.
Kelly said her team’s goal this year is to raise $5,000 and she and
her energetic cousin are determined to succeed. In addition to
collecting monetary contributions, the team also collected pet
supplies last December – enough to fill a Subaru – during a promotion held at a local automobile dealership. She also requested that friends and family members donate to PARL instead of
giving her birthday gifts.
When it became too cold last winter to sell lemonade, Kelly and
Brayden shifted gears and warmed hearts and bodies with a
hot chocolate stand that they operated at Flaunt Boutique in
Smithfield. While Jody supplied the cocoa, Brayden’s mom, Kerri
Cockcroft, supplied tasty baked goods. The stand was a big hit
with holiday shoppers and raised $450 for the shelter.
Without skipping a beat, the young philanthropists also held
fundraisers at three restaurants, raising another $300. One eatery, Tavern at 743 in Smithfield, will supply the lemonade mix and
other essentials to keep the stand running this summer.
Two schools, the Greystone Elementary School in North Providence, where Jody teaches, and the Sarah Dyer Barnes School
in Johnston, where Kelly attends classes, also held fundraisers
during Be Kind to Animals Week in May to support the worthy
cause.
“I am extremely proud of my daughter and my nephew,” Jody
said, adding that the cousins also enjoy helping at PARL events.
Once Kelly turns 16, the minimum age for volunteers, she plans
to help at the facility.
“They are extremely committed,” the proud mother and aunt
emphasized as she prepared for yet another busy lemonade
summer.
“It will mean that we worked hard,” Kelly added, explaining
that she and her cousin are dedicated to reaching their goal of
becoming the top fundraising team.
According to Connie Bolduc, fundraising manager at PARL, the
young philanthropists have set an example for others to emulate.
“The Lemonade Kids’ dedication to the animals is amazing,” she
said. “I hope that their efforts will inspire others – and especially
kids of their age – to raise funds for the animals and participate
in a fun-filled family activity such as the Pet Walk.”
For more information, visit the Lemonade Kids on Facebook. To
sponsor the Lemonade Kids in the 2013 PARL Pet Walk, scheduled for Sept. 21, visit PARL.org or call 401-421-1399 ext. 210.