Health

11-year-old's lemonade stand shut down by Illinois health officials


Illinois officials shut down what they considered a pressing health and sanitation threat in the small town of Kankakee: an 11-year-old girl’s lemonade stand. 

Hayli Martenez set up shop in front of her home, proudly displaying the lemonade sign she’d painstakingly painted and bejeweled with ‘HayliBug Lemonadez’ to sell refreshing drinks and raise money to pay for college in a few years. 

But health officials claimed the stand was a health code violation because Hayli’s mother, Iva, fell behind on some of her bills – including those for water and sewage. 

The local health official charged that Hayli had ‘crossed a line’ by selling fruit and vegetable smoothies for which she needed a permit and running water. 

Hayli was left frustrated, and her mother saddened that her daughter couldn’t even sell lemonade and neighbors even donated water so the little girl could keep her stand open. 

Hayli Martenez (left), 11, was selling lemonade outside her Kankakee, Illinois home - until health officials said she'd 'crossed a line' selling smoothies because her mother is behind on bills so the home doesn't have running water

Hayli Martenez (left), 11, was selling lemonade outside her Kankakee, Illinois home – until health officials said she’d ‘crossed a line’ selling smoothies because her mother is behind on bills so the home doesn’t have running water 

Little Hayli hoped she could help keep her neighbors cool and hydrated in the mid-July heat while earning some cash for college with a good old fashioned lemonade stand. 

But she didn’t know that health inspectors would take issue with that. 

US states require permits for any vendors of food and drinks – even ones too young drive or vote (Unless they’re selling fruit pies, and certain jellies, jams, preserves butters, herbs and teas. Those are okay in Illinois). 

So on July 20, the authorities came for Hayli’s illicit business.  

Hayli didn’t have running water for her temporary stand because her mother, Iva, was about $200 short on her payments for water and sewage, CBS 2 reported. 

It’s likely not an uncommon problem in Kankanee, a town of just 26,216, of which 74 percent live below the poverty line. 

Iva told CBS 2 that she and her daughter had been drinking and using bottled water for sanitary purposes since their water had been shut off.  

Health officials said lemonade might have been okay, but the fruit and vegetables Hayli was using posed a foodborne illness outbreak risk because she didn't have running water to wash them or a permit

Health officials said lemonade might have been okay, but the fruit and vegetables Hayli was using posed a foodborne illness outbreak risk because she didn’t have running water to wash them or a permit 

Hayli and her mother, Iva, said they'd been using bottled water since the water got shut off. Neighbors have donated water, too, since hearing about Hayli's plight

Hayli and her mother, Iva, said they’d been using bottled water since the water got shut off. Neighbors have donated water, too, since hearing about Hayli’s plight  

Kankakee Health Administrator John Bevis told the local outlet that if it had just been lemonade, they might have let Hayli fly under the radar. 

But she’d gone a step too far. 

Hayli was also selling smoothies made from fruits and vegetables. 

To sell fruit and veggie products by the letter of the law, Hayli needed a permit from the city. 

‘When you cross that line, we can no longer overlook that,’ said Bevis. 

‘Those are health issues. We have to prevent food-borne outbreaks.’ 

It’s true that fruits and vegetables can be contaminated with bacteria like E. coli, listeria and Salmonella. 

These germs can find their way onto food via cross-contamination in home kitchens, but there are at least three opportunities – production, processing and distribution – for food to pick up bacteria before a consumer like Hayli ever touches it. 

Hayli and her mother claimed they – and the community – were doing their best to keep the produce the little girl used clean.  

In Kankakee, 74% of the population lives below the poverty line. Iva (left) was about $200 short on her water and sewage bills, and broke down in tears after Hayli's (right) stand was closed

In Kankakee, 74% of the population lives below the poverty line. Iva (left) was about $200 short on her water and sewage bills, and broke down in tears after Hayli’s (right) stand was closed

‘People actually donated water to Hayli,’ Iva said. 

When the health inspector came to shut down her daughter, Iva was shocked, thinking, ‘Are you serious? Are you really serious that we have to stop making lemonade?’ she told CBS 2. 

‘And that’s when he hit my nerve when he said: “Yeah, you people have to stop selling lemonade.”’ 

Hayli wants her stand back – but it would cost her mother the $200 Iva owes for water and sewage, plus the cost of a permit. 

‘I really want to go back to selling lemonade,’ Hayli told CBS 2. 

‘That was my dream and I’ve had a lot of fun selling it.’ 

Her other dream for the stand is to fund her schooling. 

‘I can [get] a bank account…and go to college,’ she said. 

The health department says that it’s open to working with the Martenez family, while the community is reportedly planning fundraisers for them.    



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