Local Children Attempt to Break Guinness World Record for Longest Lemonade Stand

BEVERLY HILLS, Mich., July 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Running through the sprinkler, going to the zoo, or even having a lazy day are some great summertime activities. This summer, hundreds of local children are thinking bigger and plan to do something remarkable by building the Guinness World Records—Longest Lemonade Stand on August 20, 2011 at Beverly Park in Beverly Hills, Michigan.

The idea came from Patrick Liebler, a parent in the Birmingham School District, who was soon joined by other volunteers excited by the goal. "Kids love lemonade stands and kids love the Guinness Book of Records," said Liebler. "We thought we'd combine the two as a way to inspire the children and teach them that, with effort, anything is possible – even a World Record!"

The Longest Lemonade Stand was developed, in part, to respond to dramatic cutbacks in school funding. Every school involved in purchasing stands is eligible to receive funds. The Birmingham Education Foundation has also been selected to receive a portion of the money raised.

Kari Silcox, a parent volunteer, said the Longest Lemonade Stand is perfectly aligned to their youth educational mission to inspire and empower kids to dream big. "However, it has a secondary goal to raise critically needed funding. Schools and school districts need to be creative and proactive in supporting their own cause and we think our lemonade stand is a worthwhile effort."

Although the Longest Lemonade Stand event is a point in time, event organizers have also created a base curriculum that uses lemonade stand messages as an opportunity to teach a broad range of age-appropriate business and entrepreneurial lessons. 

"For most kids, a lemonade stand is a first business venture. We think our ongoing curriculum program is an engaging way to teach kids about entrepreneurialism using a concept that excites them," said Liebler.

Over 250 individual stand kits have already been sold to families and individuals representing 16 area schools. Interested families or groups can purchase a four-foot section of the stand for just $50. Participants then decorate their stand section and bring it to Beverly Park on the morning of Saturday August 20th to be a part of the event and help earn a World Record. Donations, Sponsorships and Volunteers are also welcomed via our website at www.longestlemonadestand.com. 

The World Record relates strictly to the length of the stand, not the duration of time, nor the amount of lemonade sold. The actual lemonade stands will be open for business for a short time. But, the event day will be filled with fun activities for the whole family!

 The Longest Lemonade Stand would like to thank our sponsors for their generous support. Sponsors include: Bolyard Lumber, Ace Hardware, Premier Pets, Wolf Hulbert, Beverly Community Education, Staff Works, Marketing Associates, Huron Capital Partners, and Ashley Caza Creative.

For more information visit www.longestlemonadestand.com or www.facebook/LLS2011.

SOURCE Liebler Group