Photo of kids selling lemonade for Yolanda victims goes viral

A photo of two girls selling lemonade drinks in the US to help victims of Super Typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) in the Philippines went viral on social media recently.

YouScooper Shekinah Eden Pugh was driving down the street in Studio City, Los Angeles, California when she saw a couple of kids selling lemonade on the street last November 11.

"I was driving down my street on my way to a meeting... when i happened to look to my right and see these two precious little girls selling lemonade," Pugh said.

The stand would have been like any other lemonade stand and the two girls would have thought of selling lemonade and iced tea as any other activity.

However, this business they set up was different.

A sign attached on the table said "Lemonade Ice Tea To Help Typhoon Families."

The kids were selling lemonade and ice tea to neighbors and passersby. The profit they earn will be given to the victims of Typhoon Yolanda.

"And then i saw their sign, and it hit me like a ton of bricks and made me start crying. These two precious little girls were standing out there selling lemonade and ice tea to help the typhoon families, a cause very dear to my heart," Pugh said.

When she saw the two girls selling drinks for a good cause, she became emotional.

"It just restored my faith in humanity, that there are still people out there, young children, who love the way we are supposed to love, who are kind and thoughtful, and selfless," Pugh added.

Pugh stopped by twice; each time, she donated money. At her second visit, she took the photo of them alongside the stand, posing with pride.

Thereafter, Pugh shared the photo with YouScoop, the citizen journalism arm of GMA News. The photo went viral.

As of this posting, the photo gained 10,244 likes and 5,847 shares on Facebook. The photo also has 452 retweets and 329 favorites on Twitter.

Users were quick to praise the kids for their kindness.


When asked why she uploaded it online, Pugh answered "I needed the world to know what Ihad just experienced, that the future of our world is in good hands with these young children like this, that the most unsuspecting hearts can change the world I felt like it was a beautiful message to send to the people of the Philippines. That you all know that we love you, and we support you. It's incredible how the beautiful, pure hearts of children can truly humble grown adults, bring them to tears, and remind them of what's important."

The kids will be donating all the money they earn to Philippine Red Cross.

You can help too. GMA News is curating a list of relief donations and rescue operations nationwide.

Last November 8, Typhoon Yolanda hit 2/3 of the Philippines, especially Central Visayas. As of November 12, the death toll has reached 1,774. When it exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility, the typhoon hit parts of Southeast Asia, including Vietnam. — VC, GMA News