Staff writer

BOARDMAN — A Boardman girl takes seriously the old saying, “When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.”

Lily Blackburn, who is almost 12, has had a lemonade stand on Boardman Boulevard since Sunday.

Proceeds will benefit the Animal Charity Humane Society of Ohio, in Youngstown. By the end of Friday, she’d raised about $103.

The idea of a lemonade stand came after her mother, Michele Hahn, was online and saw a story about Country Time Lemonade sponsoring “The Littlest Bailout” for kids having lemonade stands during the pandemic.

“She was like, ‘Oh my God, you should do a lemonade stand!'” Lily said.

Hayley Ravish saw the lemonade stand while she was working.

Ravish was delivering meals for the Jewish Community Center when she decided to come back to the neighborhood and get a quick drink.

“I did this as a kid,” she said, referring to having a lemonade stand. “You don’t see it so much any more,” which played a factor in the pit stop.

Hours of operation for Lily’s lemonade stand are during the day, usually from about 10:30 a.m. until about 2 p.m., then again after dinner, from about 5:30 p.m. until around 7 p.m.

As the pandemic has impacted just about every aspect of life, that goes for Lily’s stand, too.

She wears gloves, switching them out after each interaction. If someone drives up to the stand and doesn’t have a mask, she has complimentary ones ready, as well as disposable wipes.

Should she be awarded the $100 Country Time is offering, the money would go to the Animal Charity, Lily said.

She’s offering a varying menu this week with different snacks each day.

She also said that first responders and front line essential workers will get a 100 percent discount as a thank-you for their service.

Lily hopes to keep the stand up through the rest of the summer, but it will be announced on social media when she is ready, Hahn said.

“Not a lot of kids are doing them anymore,” she said, and the pandemic doesn’t help since people try to socially distance.

Lily’s mother said that her daughter is always looking for ways to help, whether it is for animals or other people.

“She helps out at her grandma’s by babysitting her younger cousins” and helps take care of her elderly family members, Hahn said.

Naturally, Lily’s decision to help animals makes her mom happy.

“Her idea to donate her earnings to Animal Charity makes me proud,” she said.

Lily said that usually, she attends the Adventure Camp at Boardman Park, but due to the pandemic it is canceled.

Hahn said the lemonade stand gives Lily a project to work on.

Bridging the fundraiser to the community, Lily is challenging local businesses to match her donation to Animal Charity, Michele said.

When Lily is older, she knows she wants to work with animals.

“I should go to college to do something with marine biology,” she said.