Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1476393
WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM AUGUST 17 - 23, 2022 UCW 11 e fourth annual Lanning's Lem- onade and Colton's Cookies fund- raiser is gearing up to be the biggest and best yet for the two youngsters whose mission in life is to help other children. e two young entrepreneurs will hold their annual Lanning's Lemon- ade and Colton's Cookies fundraiser on Saturday, Aug. 20 from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the entrance to Van- Story Hills. Brothers Colton Walters, 8, and Lanning Kistler, 9, are raising money for their favorite charity: the Child Advocacy Center of Fayetteville. e Center provides counseling and sup- port services for abused children. Money raised before went to Mis- sions of Hope International, which builds schools in Africa, and to the Boys & Girls Home of North Carolina. Lanning started the fundraiser five years ago with a lemonade stand in his front yard. He decided to raise money for a good cause, and dad was all for it. Colton and his chewy M&M cookies joined the cause when the Kistlers became a blended family. In the last several years, the boys decided to make the Child Advocacy Center the charity of their choice. Al- though COVID-19 halted the event in 2020, the boys in 2021 raised $2,575 for the Child Advocacy Center. is year, the boys — with the help of mom and dad — went full throttle. ey acquired sponsorships to raise even more money. Sponsors include Firehouse Subs, City Center Gallery and Books, e UPS Store, Maiden and Monsters Professional Face- Painting Services, Meraki Creative Services, and Sen. Kirk deViere and his wife, Jenny. More sponsors may be on the horizon. e savvy fundraisers also used social media to earn more. ey opened an online donation portal on Facebook, and as of mid-August earned $285. It doesn't stop there. "I came up with the idea to sell some of our original artwork during the fundraiser," Colton said. "I love to draw. So, hopefully, we can make more money for the Child Advocacy Center." And Lanning also turned up the heat. He added a special ingredient to his lemonade. "We decided to change our recipe a little bit this year, and it's going to taste great," Lanning said. "I can't give out the secrets, though." But the highlight of this year's event — other than Lanning's lemonade and Colton's cookies — will be a cornhole tournament that starts at 1 p.m. Teams consist of two people, and there's a $75 registration fee. First place winners get $200, second place earns $100. John Kistler said they researched fundraising. ey learned most of the money from such activities usually comes from sponsorships. "In the past, we have relied solely on individual community support and sales on the day of the event. We think this will really help to increase the amount of money that can be raised," John Kistler said in an email to Up & Coming Weekly. Kistler said the annual fundraising event is a way to get the boys involved in their community. And, according to mom Jennifer, all the activities and preparations surrounding the event "brought us together as a blended family." "We will stay up really late on Fri- day night to make the lemonade and cookies," said Colton. "I hope a lot of people will come out on Saturday," Lanning added. Local brothers raising money for a sweet cause by JASON BRADY FREE HEALTH CARE • for Eligible uninsured Adults call 910.485.0555 Help your kids to develop reading and critical thinking skills by playing games, solving puzzles, and reading exciting educational stories! JASON BRADY, Staff Writer. COMMENTS? Editor@upandcom- ingweekly.com. 910-484-6200. EVENT Brothers Lanning Kistler and Colton Walters invite the public to swing by their Lemonade & Cookie stand on Aug. 20. All proceeds and donations will go to the Child Advocacy Center, which provides counseling and support services to abused children. (Photos courtesy of John Kistler)