The local community in Scottsboro, Jackson County, Alabama, rallied around seven-year-old Emouree Johnson’s lemonade stand for a special reason.
Emouree’s efforts aren’t just about earning pocket money: she’s trying to raise money to pay for her late mother’s headstone.
Emouree’s mother, Karli Bordner, died suddenly in March of this year at just 29 years old, the family told WAFF48 news.
Emouree started the journey on her own, said her grandmother, Jennifer Bordner. She started by charging $1 a cup.
But after a social media post about Emouree’s cause went viral, people started tipping her additionally over $100 in exchange for the lemonade.
“I’m just amazed,” Jennifer Bordner told WAFF48. “I cried tears of joy.”
The strength of this 7 year old will make you cry. After Emouree Johnson’s mother, Karli, died in March, she decided to open a lemonade stand to pay for her mother’s headstone. Scottsboro rallied around her in the most touching way. pic.twitter.com/gKINezQo5s
– AL.com (@aldotcom) April 6, 2024
According to Emouree’s family, they have since raised just under $10,000 for the burial.
When word of Emouree’s project spread, several monument companies contacted the family and offered to donate Karli Bordner’s headstones. The money collected by Emouree can now be used for other expenses.
“She knows mom is okay now. She knows she’s going to be okay, and everyone cares about her and loves her,” Jennifer Bordner said. “All these people showing all this and trying to help, it actually helps heal the whole family.”
Emouree said she thought her mother would be proud of her business initiative.
“She would say I’m fine,” Emouree said.
The family’s GoFundMe page has already raised an additional $3,500 that the family says will go toward funeral expenses.
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