Our next Stand for Kindness: Sunday. July 31!

Our next Stand for Kindness vegan refreshment and outreach unit will be set up near the Logan Square Farmers Market this Sunday 10:00 until 12:00. We'll have lemonade, sun tea, Cowhugger cookies and Blueberry Lemon Muffins (called Schusties, after Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's beloved kitty), all as organic and fair trade as possible, and always vegan. Look for us on the parkway!

Next Stand for Kindness, Sunday, July 22...

Our last Stand for Kindness raised $10.00 for the organizations we benefit and while that wasn't a lot of money, we did get a chance to do some friendly vegan outreach along Chicago's lake front.

Our next Stand for Kindness vegan refreshment and outreach unit will be set up near the Logan Square Farmers Market this Sunday from 10:00 until 12:00. We'll have lemonade, sun tea, Cowhugger cookies and as yet undetermined muffins, all as organic and fair trade as possible, and always vegan. Look for us on the parkway!

See you then!

Next Stand for Kindness: Saturday, July 9!

Our next Stand for Kindness will be this Saturday at Cricket Hill in Montrose Harbor, 660 W. Montrose Drive from 2:00 until 4:00 p.m. We'll be selling lemonade, herbal sun tea, our popular Cow-Hugger cookies (this has become our signature treat) and Blueberry Crumb Bars. Hope to see you there!

Our second stand: Friday, July 1...

The skies were dark and menacing (plus it was chilly, especially considering the 98 degree forecast) but we still managed to put on our lemonade stand again and we raised $29.00 for our animal- and earth-friendly causes. Many thanks to the Vegan Gallery for their wonderful and friendly support! Also, thanks to my darlings, Shannon and Gina, for helping make the Strand for Kindness possible.

Stay tuned for our next date!

Next Stand for Kindness: Friday, July 1!

I am pleased to announce that the next Stand for Kindness will be this Friday from noon until 2:00 outside the Vegan Gallery, 2153 W. Division in Chicago. Details about goodies to follow, but most definitely lemonade, sun tea and two kinds of vegan treats.

First Stand for Kindness: Success!

I just have a few minutes here before my husband whisks his computer away but I just wanted to quickly post that we had our first sale and it went very well. We raised $28.25 selling vegan, organic and Fair Trade goodies to the fine citizens of Oak Park. Not bad for a little lemonade stand!

The kids had a great time pitching the treats and it was nice to get a chance to meet others in the community. We also handed out lots of Vegetarian Starter Kits along with our snacks before we were told that we had to close up shop because it was on Park District property. We made it for 3 1/2 hours, though! One of our ongoing issues is going to be finding spaces where we can operate our stand without stepping on anyone's toes. We're working on it. Any advice is appreciated.

Until next time!

First Stand for Kindness: Friday, June 17!

So everything is percolating and it looks like our first Stand for Kindness will be this Friday in Oak Park. Look for our cute stand! We'll be selling lemonade, herbal sun tea, cow-hugger cookies (chocolate chip with oats and toasted pecans) and blueberry lemon muffins. Everything will be as organic as we can get, Fair Trade and vegan. Look for us at the southeast corner of Elmwood and Lake Street (approximately 500 Lake Street) in Oak Park, just west of the Ridgeland Commons center from 11:00 - 2:00!

Prices are $1.00 for a 12-ounce beverage or .75 for up to 16-ounces if you bring your own mug. Cookies are $1.00 and muffins are $1.50. All profits from our weekly sales will be equally divided at the end of summer to our charities: Mercy For Animals, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Oak Park's Animal Care League and Have a Heart Farm.

Edited to add: please disregard the former location I published here in a sleep-deprived state. The posted location here is the correct location. Thank you!

What's the Big Idea?

The big idea behind this blog is the summer project I am going to be doing this year with my son (soon to be) nine-year-old, Justice. First, a little background...

My son and I are 2/3 of a vegan family living near Chicago. Yes, we are that wacky family. We bring our own cake to birthday parties: we speak up for pigeons when mean people try to throw rocks at them. We sprain our eyeballs studying labels. We like to have fun, too, and we loooove to share quality vegan refreshments for a good cause. Over the past few years, my son and I have been involved in hosting bake sales to raise money for those in need. We have helped organize bake sales that have raised over $5,000 for charities.

This summer, instead of getting heatstroke at camp as his counselors send texts and nap at the picnic table, Justice will be hanging with me. Poor kid! I am an insatiably project-oriented hyper-spazz (yes, that is the medical term) of a mother so we are going to make good productive use of our quality time together. Toward that end, we will be putting on once-a-week lemonade stands with an irresistible treat or two for sale as well. Everything will be vegan, fair-trade, organic and as compostible (or low-waste) as possible. Because we are that wacky family. Along with our refreshments, we'll be dispensing Vegetarian Starter Kits and copious amounts of pixie dust. Honestly, my kid is very cute.

Details are still being hashed out but it looks like at summer's end, the beneficiaries will be Mercy For Animals, The Sea Shepherd, Oak Park's Animal Care League and the Have a Heart Farm. We can't wait! More details to follow and we look forward to an exciting, rewarding summer.