The lemonade stand at Victoria Avenue and Jane Street got the ribbon-cutting treatment Wednesday afternoon. The Chamber of Commerce gathered at 4 p.m. to honor Meliia, whose summer at the corner selling lemonade became something larger than a nine-year-old’s Disneyland fund: a reflection of what Riverside believes about itself at its best.
County Supervisor José Medina, Councilmember Steven Robillard, Chamber President Nick Adcock, and Jennifer Binkley, CEO of Altura Credit Union and chair of the Chamber’s board, joined Meliia, her parents, and her grandmother at the corner where she’s spent the summer working. Representatives for state Sen. Sabrina Cervantes and Assemblywoman Leticia Castillo presented certificates alongside neighbors who’ve become regular customers.
The directness of Meliia’s ambition declutters the deeper meaning of her story. She had a goal and set out to achieve it. In the process she reminded us of our best notions of community: What it means to welcome the refugee, what it means to reward ambition, and what it means to coalesce around someone’s dream and push it to fruition…