A young girl from Michigan is doing much more than just turning lemons into lemonade.
The money she collects for the drink is given to veterans.
"I really like seeing people happy."
Sammie Striker has been making a lot of happy the past few years. She got in the lemonade business when she was nine. Originally her plan was to raise money for school clothes, but then her mother stepped in.
"My mom showed me a video on Facebook of a hurt veteran and I decided to help him the first year," Striker said.
From that inaugural year in 2014 her focus mushroomed to helping a lot of veterans at the VA hospital. The first couple of years she sold it from her driveway in Saginaw Township, then the last two years in front of American Legion Post 439.
Sammie had a specific amount of money she wanted to raise this year.
"This year my goal was two thousand dollars. A lot of people give me like twenties and tens for just one cup of lemonade."
The 12-year-old also gets a lot of encouragement from her customers.
"They say that we need more people like you in the community, because we need all the help we can get for the hospitals and because there are a lot of people that need help."
The VA folks were floored that such a young entrepreneur could raise so much cold, hard cash for the vets that they serve.
"It's a great message to other students and other young people, to be as generous and as hard working as she is," said Jeffrey Wendt from Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center.
We asked her if she has a secret recipe and Striker responded that they use a lot of sugar.
A sweet way for a sweet girl to help our veterans.
