Calling All Kids! The LemonAid Movement Invites Students, Schools and Communities Across the United States to Join in the Spirit of Giving Back

Started on the back of a small fundraising effort in the Rye (New Hampshire) Elementary School, The LemonAid Movement is already having a global impact. Young students were learning about the struggles of girls in ruralChina who are unable to afford to attend high school, where there are no publicly funded schools after 9th grade. As a result of the social structure, boys are the first in the family to be sent to school, leaving many smart, talented girls to work in the fields with no hope of escaping the poverty of their villages. The cost to attend high school is a mere US $300, but in a part of the country where the typical annual family income is only slightly higher, furthering their education is only a dream. The children in Rye asked a simple question, "How can we help these girls go to high school?"

"What if we teach our children the core value of 'giving back?' And then, what if our children teach their children? What if the children who are recipients of such efforts also give back and they teach their children this value as well? Could we make a difference today that spreads and has a lasting impact on the world a hundred years from now?" asks Peter Getman who initiated the non-profit efforts of LemonAid and its Global Team. Getman is the Principal of MicroArts Creative Agency, currently the project's sole funder. "Any change in our culture needs to be supported and sustained by today's children, our future leaders, to have a lasting impact. What better way to teach our kids than by having them help other kids around the world?" It was a question that didn't sit idle with Getman.

LemonAid's Global Team, based in Seacoast New Hampshire, filmed local children raising scholarship funds. The Global Team then traveled toChina harnessing the spirit of this "what if" question, resulting in a Telly Award-winning, premier version of a 48-minute documentary (www.LemonAidMovie.com). The film chronicles the efforts of some 25 New Hampshire children working to raise funds through their personal versions of The LemonAid Movement. Over the course of a few summer weeks, they collectively raise the funds to provide high school scholarships for 25 girls in ruralChina. Woven in a compelling fashion throughout the film are moving stories of seven of these girls and their families. These inspiring stories from bothNew Hampshire and ruralChina are powerful and serve as hopeful reminders that our future lies, even now, in the hands and hearts of the young.

Michelle Hoeppner is the Executive Director of the Concordia Welfare and Education Fund, LemonAid's partner inChina that selects the students and administers the sponsored scholarships. "The student scholarships that LemonAid helps to raise funds for, allow these women to access opportunities that change their futures. They are given a chance to reach their full potentials and in doing so give back to their families and their communities," says Hoeppner. Through LemonAid, a pen pal-type relationship is established between each student receiving a scholarship and the youth who has raised the funds. "It is important for the young fund-raisers to experience the impact of their efforts. They are then able to share in the success of these girls from China," says Getman. "Their ongoing learning reinforces the value of giving back and motivates the children to continue to be caring, global activists, spreading the message of the LemonAid Movement. We are thrilled to have an organization that teaches our children life-long values while helping other children. Imagine the far-reaching impact of a simple a lemonade stand."

The LemonAid Global Team already has plans to follow this spirit of goodness around the world. Next year, the LemonAid Foundation will send its Global Team back to ruralChina to film the graduation of the first 25 students and to learn about their future plans. Updates of both their achievements and on-going fundraising efforts will be integrated into future versions of the LemonAid movie. Available at no cost through its website, the award-winning LemonAid movie is designed to be used by teachers, youth group leaders, parents and kids themselves to inspire fundraising and other activities which help children go to school around the world.

The vision is to grow globally. Plans are already underway to expand The LemonAid Movement to support the education of children inKenya,Cambodia andGuatemala. The LemonAid Global Team will follow this "giving back" movement of today's youth, documenting the impact of their efforts as they help to brighten the futures of children around the world.

Learn about LemonAid's "What If" spirit. Visit www.LemonAidMovie.com and then please consider signing up to help local children to become part of The LemonAid Movement. Just after its release, the LemonAid movie received a 2009 Telly Award. The film was selected from over 13,000 entries.

To schedule an interview with LemonAid Global Team members, obtain photos or information, please contact: Jeanie Ryan at 603-235-5266 or Jeanie@MicroArts.com.

About LemonAid

LemonAid is an independent, not-for-profit project dedicated to promoting the idea of children helping children and teaching them the value of "giving back". Money raised supports organized efforts to educate children in developing countries, helping mitigate the impact of poverty. The ultimate aim of LemonAid is to be part of a global campaign to "heal this broken world" now divided by poverty, privilege and power.

LemonAid is currently supported by corporate contributions and volunteers who donate their time pro bono. It is independent of any other not-for-profit project or organization. While it is currently associated with MicroArts Creative Agency as the sole funder, the plan is to ultimately incorporate LemonAid as a foundation. Peter Getman is the Principle of MicroArts and works with the entire Global Team, including Susan Getman, Sunshine Foss, Callie Pecunies and Dave Pecunies.

The LemonAid Documentary Movie is a MicroArts Creative Agency production www.MicroArts.com, 655 Portsmouth Ave Greenland, NH 03840.

SOURCE LemonAid

Copyright © 2009, PRNewswire
Copyright © 2009, NewsBlaze, Daily News

Tags: ,EDU,NPT,CHI,CSR,NH-LemonAidFundraiser