Thank YOU for a great 2009 Project!

Many, many thanks to all of the students and educators who made this year's Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand such a success! The totals raised announced during the videoconference, combined with what was reported through the website by individual schools, exceeds $24,000! AMAZING!

The closing videoconference, in its entirety, is now posted on MAGPI's iTunes University site. You'll need to have iTunes installed on your computer in order to view.

We wanted to share the winning poetry and poster contest entries with you as well. Congratulations to the following winners:

Winning HIGH SCHOOL Poster: National Dali High School, Taiwan

Winning MIDDLE SCHOOL Poster: Fernwood Avenue Middle School

Winning ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Poster: Hopewell Elementary


Winning Poetry Entry:
We are Kids Who Will Make a BIG Difference
Ms. Musone's Class, Roundtown Elementary School

We are kids, third grade students at Roundtown Elementary School.

We are little kids with big behaviors. We are polite, responsible, outstanding, understanding, and dependable. We are kids who donated food to the Catholic Harvest Food Pantry for people who can’t afford food.

We will set up a lemonade stand in our cafeteria.
We will collect school supplies to give the children in Iraq.

Paper.
Pencils.
Markers.
Crayons.
And more.

We will feel proud that we made a difference by helping others feel more comfortable.

We have pride for Alex because she was only four and she made a HUGE difference in our country.
Alex inspired us to make a difference.

We can and WILL make a difference.
You can make a difference too!
“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!”

More great things! And don't forget to VOTE!

We keep hearing about some amazing things happening at the schools participating in the Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand project! We've listed school updates below and pictured students from David City Elementary above!

Don't forget to VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE POEM! (Voting closes tonight!) And that today is the last day to submit poster contest entries.

Here are the latest fundraising reports:

Bonnie Holland Elementary : $764
Career Institute of Technology: $920.93
Cynwyd Elementary School: $325
David City Elementary: $423.36
East Stroudsburg High South: $554.00
Huntington Elementary: $1108.56
K. D. Markley Elementary: $500.00
Kutztown Middle School: $54.42
Leola Elementary: $563.03
National Dali High School: $6100
Penns Valley Intermediate School: $863.33
Trinity Catholic: $162.90
Utica Elementary: $1,162.85
Wallenpaupack South Elementary School: $204
West York Area High School: $175

For a grand total (so far) of: $13,881.38!

And here are the latest school updates:

David City Elementary School: Students at David City Elementary School participated in the Lemonade Stand sponsored by the Third Grade. The Lemonade Stand provided an opportunity for students to learn about expenses and profit, while helping a worthy cause. We sold 291 cups of lemonade, and had a profit of $423.36. We learned much more than just about expenses and profits. This has been a wonderful life lesson for all involved!

Career Institute of Technology: Jay Scott visited yesterday and the school was featured in their local newspaper! http://www.express-times.com/

Cynwyd School Putting A Few Twists on ALS!

Cynwyd 5th graders hosted an Alex’s Lemonade Stand at their BINGO nights. An adorable Alex’s Lemonade Stand bear was also raffled off. In all we raised about $325. All Cynwyd students are raising money by doing random acts of kindness at home. This will conclude with a school assembly and an all-day walkathon.

Wow! Some Amazing Things Happening!

We've gotten some fantastic school reports earlier this week. Take a look at the totals schools are reporting:

Bonnie Holland Elementary : $764
Career Institute of Technology: $920.93
David City Elementary: $423.36
East Stroudsburg High South: $554.00
Huntington Elementary: $1108.56
K. D. Markley Elementary: $500.00
Kutztown Middle School: $54.42
Leola Elementary: $378.64
National Dali High School: $6100
Trinity Catholic: $162.90
Utica Elementary: $1,162.85
Wallenpaupack South Elementary School: $204
West York Area High School: $175

.... for a grand total of $12,508.66!

Here are today's school reports:

Huntington Elementary: Huntington students have been selling lemonade and got help from the high school's family life classes who made delicious baked goods to sell with the lemonade.

Career Institute of Technology: Jay Scott, Alex's Dad, spoke at the Career Institute of Technology today. Take a look at their fantastic blog! They have some great photos up.

K.D. Markley Elementary: KD Markley Elementary School raised approximately $500 selling raffle tickets to win a chance to throw a whipped cream pie in a teacher’s face! They also made chocolate covered pretzels to sell at tonight's 4th Grade Concert! A picture of K.D. Markley students making chocolate covered pretzels is at the beginning of this post.

National Dali High School (Taiwan): National Dali High School had a three-point connection with Princeton High School/Princeton Elementary School (MN) & K.D. Markley Elementary School, (PA). Real-time bidding took place while NDHS auctioned unique calligraphy bookmarks, Taiwan shirts, Lemonade shirts, Lemonade stickers & badges, LIVE through videoconference and so did Princeton with their Princeton Tiger shirts & hoodies! They have also been working in collaboration with Business, Marketing and Diversity classes of Prof. Bernard Gibson at Folsom Lake College to solicit donations from enterprises in California. Folsom Lake students held creative, interactive lemonade stands while National Dali students performed the art of Chinese calligraphy (translating donors’ names and writing in Chinese calligraphy) and gave traditional musical performances. Both schools videoconferenced and even had a LIVE raffle draw for best-effort awards!

What a GREAT First Week

We've had a fabulous first week of lemonade stands! Thanks so much to all of the students, teachers, parents and volunteers for their hard work! And thanks to the students at Wallenpaupack Elementary School South for sharing the photos of their lemonade stand (above!).

Don't forget to vote for your favorite "MAKE A DIFFERENCE" poem. As of this morning, 48 people have cast their votes!

Here are the fundraising totals (as reported) for this week:

Bonnie Holland Elementary : $764
David City Elementary: $423.36
East Stroudsburg High South: $554.00
Huntington Elementary: $636.09
Kutztown Middle School: $54.42
Leola Elementary: $237.38
Trinity Catholic: $162.90
Wallenpaupack South Elementary School: $204
West York Area High School: $105

So far, we've raised $3141.15!! That's fantastic! (and we only have 9 out of 38 schools reporting!). Don't forget to submit your daily fundraising totals each time you hold a stand at http://www.magpi.net/programs/alexslemonade.html.

Here's what schools told us they were up to this week (don't forget to send Heather an email at hweisse @ magpi.net and tell her what you're up to, too!):

Huntington Elementary: Students at Huntington School are definitely putting the squeeze on cancer! Reached their fundraising goal!

Jacob Elementary: Jacob Elementary has been hard at work fundraising. It has been an exciting week--with Friday's pie throwing finale!

Wallenpaupack South Elementary School: The students are very excited! They'll have another stand on Wednesday April 1st along with a Beach Day where students will pay $1.00 to wear beach clothes. If they reach our goal of $350.00 (and it sure looks like they will!), some teachers will be getting whipped cream pies in the face... (Note to Wallenpaupack Students: We would REALLY like to see pictures of
this!!!)

West York Area High School: Unfortunately, they had to postpone their first lemonade stand because of rain - - but they've been collecting donations all the same!

Voting is now OPEN for the Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand Poetry Contest!

We've had our biggest turn out YET for the annual Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand "MAKE A DIFFERENCE" Poetry Contest! All of the entries are posted and voting is now open. So click here to vote for your favorite!

A glance at our project so far...

We're off and running! Thanks to all of the schools who have reported their activities (and fundraising efforts) so far!

Here's what's been reported:

Kutztown Middle School: $13.75
Leola Elementary School: $160.90
Bonnie Holland Elementary: $764.00
East Stroudsburg High School South: $150.00
Trinity Catholic School: $20.00

Our grand total so far? $2456.75!!!! Don't forget, you can report your daily fundraising totals at http://www.magpi.net/programs/alexslemonade.html.

Here is what schools are up to (and don't forget to send Heather an email with your school updates to be included on the blog!):

Leola Elementary Students are holding lemonade stands done at their homes. They are also collecting online and mail donations.

East Stroudsburg High School South (pictured above) held a "Cooking for a Cause" event and the lemon cake sold for $55!

Roundtown Elementary created a great SMILEBOX Presentation! Take a look!

What a FANTASTIC Kick-Off Videoconference!

Thanks so much for a GREAT kick-off event today! It was great to see all of you and your schools virtually, and we’re so excited to see what you accomplish in the next two weeks.

We do want to take a minute and apologize for some of the technical issues with the webstream. Unfortunately, Penn Video Network was experiencing server issues during today’s program - - but don’t worry, we captured the program! It will be up, in its entirety, on MAGPI’s new podcast site tomorrow. Once it’s posted, we’ll send instructions for accessing it.


You can report your daily fundraising totals at http://www.magpi.net/programs/alexslemonade.html. (You’ll see a button in the upper right hand corner that says “submit your daily fundraise report here.”

We will also feature schools on this blog each day. But we can only feature your school if we know what you’re up to!!! So send Heather an email at hweisse @ magpi.net and photos as often as you can.

Tom McGee at Lower Merion School District will be putting together our highlights video this year. We’ll be providing instructions to you for how to get material to him later this week. In order for your school to be included in the highlights piece, we need you to send video/photos - - so be sure to capture everything!

For the closing videoconference, every school will have 45 seconds to show us what you did. It’s your school’s time to shine!!! How did you help put the squeeze on pediatric cancer? We encourage you to be creative in your presentations - - because 40 presentations is a lot! We appreciate the variety of presentations we saw today. If you’re interested in showing multimedia during your 45 seconds, we’ll need you to send it to us ahead of time. If you’re planning to show multimedia, send Heather an email at hweisse @ magpi.net as soon as you know.

AND NOW FOR THE LEMON SPIRIT WINNERS…. Although we were so impressed with everyone’s ‘lemonness’ today, we have to give a special shout out to these schools:

• Got their lemon ‘groove’ on: East Stroudsburg Area High School South and Jacob Elementary (Fabulous step team presentations!)
• Can’t ‘shake’ their lemonade spirit: Robeson Elementary School (Great dramatic presentation!)
• Has spirit all ‘rapped’ up: Kutztown Area School District and David City Elementary (Impressive Raps!)
• Fabulous lemon lyrics: North Hills Elementary and Hopewell Elementary (Great original songs!)

Watch the LIVE WEBSTREAM of the Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand Videoconferences!

Don't miss out! Both of our videoconference events will be shown LIVE, in their entirety via a Real Player Webstream! For each program, the live link stream will be available at 12:45 p.m. EDT, with content beginning at 1:00 p.m. EDT.

Kick-Off Program Link (March 23, 2009):
http://beansidhe.isc-net.upenn.edu:8080/ramgen/encoder/alex323.rm

Wrap-Up Program Link (April 3, 2009):
http://beansidhe.isc-net.upenn.edu:8080/ramgen/encoder/alex403.rm

Technical Requirements for getting the RealPlayer stream:

To view the Internet webcast, your computer must have RealPlayer (version 8 or higher). RealPlayer is available for free from http://www.real.com/. Visit this site and follow the instructions to download and install the "RealPlayer - Free" option.

To test RealPlayer on your computer prior to one of the events, click on the link below (or copy and paste it into your web browser) to watch an archived video of commencement exercises from the University of Pennsylvania:

http://beansidhe.isc-net.upenn.edu:8080/ramgen/president/commencement08.rm

If you have technical issues with the live webstream, please send an email to: video @ isc.upenn.edu.

Project T-Shirt Design from National Dali High School

We thought the t-shirt design that National Dali High School came up with for their Virtual Lemonade Stands was really great! And we thought you might like to see, too!

Look at what's happening at Leola Elementary School!

The fourth grade “Lemonheads” at Leola Elementary School in Leola, Pennsylvania are excited to be participating in this year’s event. Our focus this year has been service to others and we have been working as a team to achieve this goal. So far this year we have made cards for veterans, helped at home, helped our neighbors, made dog biscuits for the Humane League and most recently collected over 2,000 magazine’s for the Ronald McDonald House. We are working on taking the lemons in the world and making lemonade!

See All Participating Schools

Attention all participating schools...Have you added your school to the list map? Click on the "add" button and enter your school's information. Feel free to upload an image as well. We look forward to seeing you on here!

Get Your Map!
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National Dali High School is looking for collaborative partner for their virtual lemonade stand!

We are very pleased to announce that we are being joined this year from a National Dali High School in Taiwan and they are looking for a few US school partners to hold a virtual lemonade stand via videoconference. If you’re looking for a fun project to do as part of your Alex’s Virtual Lemonade Stand experience, please get in touch with Mary (contact information below)!

_ _ _ _ _
National Dali High School－Taiwan is holding virtual lemonade stands via videoconferencing! We are inviting you to connect with us, interact with us, and/ or even hold your lemonade stand in collaboration with us! We are holding two virtual stands, which will be at:

1. 9:00 a.m.- 10:30 a.m. (EDT) , Mar. 27 &

2. 7:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. (EDT), Mar. 27

Get the word out! Lemonade stands held simultaneously with cultural interchange and interactions via international videoconferencing will definitely attract many, many customers!

How is our lemonade sold virtually?

National Dali High School students, parents, and teachers are going to interact with U.S. sites by performing traditional arts to raise money for pediatric cancer research. We will be demonstrating the art of Chinese calligraphy (writing Chinese characters upon request; for example, translating donors’ names into Chinese and then writing the calligraphy) as well as giving musical performances with traditional instruments. Students will explain and demonstrate how to make Taiwanese chewy lemonade and also sell unique exclusive items, such as specially designed Taiwan shirts, badges, bookmarks (and other accessories). In addition, we also invited a professional Feng-shui consultant to explain the theory of desirable interior designs/ arrangements and offer individuals suggestions upon request.

By collaborating on these virtual lemonade stands, not only are we attaining the purpose of raising funds for pediatric cancer research; we are also learning ethnic diversity and enhancing cultural interchange through international collaboration!

Contact us now and join this special project of Alex’s Virtual Lemonade Stand ! (limited number of seats for interactive/ collaborating sites )

Contact Meimei Mary Shih shmeimei@mail.dali.tcc.edu.tw or Brian Lin b763033@ms4.hinet.net

Alex's Lemonade 2009 - Registration Closes on March 2nd!

We're so excited to announce Alex's Virtual Lemonade Stand 2009! Registration closes on MARCH 2, 2009!!

Project Timeline

* Registration: January 23, 2009 - March 2, 2009
* Videoconference Testing: March 12-17, 2009
* Virtual Lemonade Stand Project: March 23 - April 3, 2009
1. Kick-Off Virtual Spirt Festival Videoconference
March 23, 2009; 1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. ET
2. Individual School Lemonade Stands
March 23, 2009 - April 3, 2009
3. Wrap-Up Project Collage Videoconference Event:
April 3, 2009; 1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m. ET

Target Age Group: Grades K-12 (special projects for elementary school students, middle school students and high school students).

Requirements for Participation:
There are two ways to participate:

* Interactive Videoconference Sites: All participating interactive sites must have H.323 videoconferencing capabilities and be on the Internet2 network.
* Webstream Participants: Sites without videoconferencing capabilities or Internet2 connectivity can participate by watching the live webstreams and participating in special projects. Just make sure to check the correct level of participation when you register.

Description:

Kids helping Kids Make a Difference! Join other schools across the country as they host lemonade stands to raise money for pediatric cancer research and participate in other related projects. Schools will collaborate with each other through a blog, a special "kick off" videoconference spirit rally and closing project collage videoconference event.

During this two week project, each school will hold their own lemonade stands to help raise funds for pediatric cancer. Schools can hold one big lemonade stand day or a series of lemonade stand events throughout the two weeks. After each day of sales, schools will report their totals through the website. Last year we raised more than $24,000. Think we can double it?

Schools will also have an opportunity to participate in a variety of special projects inspired by the idea of kids helping kids. All projects are tied to Pennsylvania and national standards. Most importantly - - they're fun!

Alex's Lemonade Stand is a national organization with Greater Philadelphia roots. The organization grew out of the front yard lemonade stand started by Alexandra “Alex” Scott, a pediatric cancer patient. In 2000, at the age of four, Alex opened her first annual lemonade stand with high hopes of raising money for pediatric cancer causes, specifically research into a cure. At the time, Alex was receiving treatment at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia for Neuroblastoma.

Every year thereafter, Alex held an annual lemonade stand in her Pennsylvania front yard and inspired others to donate money to her cause. After fighting her own battle with cancer for over seven years, she died peacefully at home in August of 2004. At the time of her death, she had raised over $900,000 for pediatric cancer research and, amazingly, was only eight years old. As of January 2006, Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation has raised more than $10 million for childhood cancer research.