Wexford kids set up 7 lemonade stands to help raise money for charity

If you had to pick a nice day for kids to set up a lemonade stand, it would have been hard to top the first Friday in July.

Under a blue sky with white puffy clouds and temperatures in the mid-80s, children in Pine and Marshall helped a new charitable group called 412 Gives Back raise money on July 7 by setting up lemonade stands in seven neighborhoods, with a portion of the proceeds going to benefit Make-A-Wish of Greater Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

The charitable volunteer organization was founded this year by two mothers from Pine, Amy Fleming and Billie Higgins, who share an interest in finding concrete ways to give back to the community.

The group is in the midst of planning its signature fundraising event for early next year, a black-tie gala with a Roaring ’20s theme dubbed “A Steel City Soirée” scheduled for Jan. 6 at the Fox Chapel Golf Club.

The organization plans to donate about half of the $3,730 raised by the lemonade stands to Make-A-Wish.

The remainder will be used for the legal and administrative fees needed to register 412 Gives Back with the state as a nonprofit organization, Fleming said.

“We wanted to start things off with something fun for the kids to do during summer break that teaches them something about business and helping others,” she said. “What better way than helping other children who are going through serious medical treatment by supporting Make-A-Wish. It was a weeklong event for the kids, who were asked to use their creativity to come up with ideas for decorating the stands.”

Ryan Kocan, 10, who set up a stand with his 7-year-old sister Catherine outside their home in Venango Trails, liked the idea of doing something to help other children.

But the best part of participating in the fund-raising event is that “it’s fun,” he said.

Ryan’s mother Lindsay Kocan said it is important to find ways to help children get involved in their community.

“This is a great way to get them involved and make them more aware of things that maybe they’ve been sheltered from,” she said.

The idea for creating 412 Gives Back grew out of a winter holiday party Fleming and Higgins started planning in the spring.

As their list of guests from the Wexford began to outgrow the ability to host a party at someone’s home, they saw an opportunity to take the event beyond simply creating a memorable event for the people attending, Fleming said.

“We had the opportunity to host it at the (Fox Chapel) golf club and were discussing the details when we got the idea of increasing the price of the tickets by $10 or so and then making a donation to a local charity,” she said.

“But within a day or two, we did a 360-degree and decided that the whole event should be focused on supporting a charity and picked Make-A-Wish,” Fleming said.

The plan is for 412 Gives Back to select different charities each year to benefit from the fundraising events it organizes.

Fleming took a break from her career as a pediatric oncology nurse practitioner to raise her family and was missing the opportunity to help others in need.

She and Higgins became friends through a local chapter of the MOM’S Club.

“Starting a charitable organization was never something that was in the back of our minds or on or radar,” Higgins said. “After Amy and I met, we began planning activities and events for the club and became known as the organizers among our circle of friends.”

She said it has never been difficult for them to get 50 or 60 people together to go to many fundraising events they had been attending over the past several years.

“When we decided to turn the holiday party into a fundraiser we realized that our passion for this was something we could continue doing,” she said. “I don’t think it could have happened more authentically.”

About 200 people are expected to attend the gala at the country club, which will feature a three-course meal, a DJ, a jazz band, a photo booth and an open bar.

Tickets to attend the event are scheduled to go on sale starting Sept. 1 and will be available online at 412 Gives Back or via 412 Gives Back’s social media.

“Our goal is to raise $40,000 for Make-Wish in celebration of their 40th anniversary,” Fleming said. “Some of the money will come from ticket sales, but we are hoping that local businesses will consider helping us meet that goal by serving as sponsors.”

Anybody interested in sponsoring the gala can contact the organization by email at sponsorships@412givesback.org.

Fleming said the organization plans to select different charities with which to partner each year and hold fund-raising activities and events to provide them with support.

Kira Mesoraco helped her son Luke, 5, set up a stand outside their home in the Lake MacLeod section of Pine after getting a call from the organizers.

“I’m friends with Amy and Billie so when they asked me if I wanted to help out by setting up one of the stands for my son I immediately said yes,” she said. “Make-A-Wish is a great organization and I wanted to help (Fleming and Higgins) have a successful fundraiser because it means so much to them.”