Volunteers 'Shake, Shake, Shake' All Day Long at the Wyandotte Street Art Fair

Cynthia Wright was all smiles Wednesday morning during her first shift at one of five lemonade stands at the .

Having never staffed a lemonade stand before, Wright said, she arrived a half-hour early to learn the ins and outs of the trade.

And then she was off, or as she put it, was ready to "shake, shake, shake."

How do you make lemonade?

"You have to cut your lemons," she said. "From there, you take the lemons and you squeeze the lemon. After you do that, you put in two cups of sugar or one, depending on what size. Then you take it and add water. And then the secret is to shake, shake, shake."

Volunteers from several area nonprofits staff the lemonade stands and in turn, get to keep a percentage of the sales for their causes.

Wright was working a booth for , which sends weekend meals home to needy students at Wyandotte's , where Wright works as principal.

Having that connection, she said, made volunteering all the better.

"I see those happy faces go home every Friday with those backpacks," she said. "And I see them say: 'Today is Friday. Today's my backpack day.' And they really do get excited. ... And, I've got to say, they do remember those backpacks. They might not remember their homework, but they do remember those backpacks."

At the end of the school year, Wright said, about 125 children were receiving weekend backpacks. When school starts in September, she expects that number to rise with an influx of new kindergarteners.

"Fundraisers like this lemonade stand make a big difference," she said. "We're just grateful for anything we get. We do a lot of fundraisers for Blessings in a Backpack. ... It's fun to do something for a good cause. For me, especially, because I actually get to see the kids. It makes a big difference."

Here's a list of the five lemonade stands, along with which nonprofit is running them on Saturday:

• Booth 1, between Oak and Elm streets, Wyandotte Kiwanis Sunrise
• Booth 2, between Oak and Elm streets, Wyandotte Synchro Team
• Booth 3, on Biddle near Maple, Wyandotte Braves Baseball
• Booth 4, between Maple and Sycamore streets, Wyandotte Music Boosters
• Booth 5, between Sycamore and Eureka, Komaki Exchange Program

Want more info on the art fair? , scroll through or For a complete list of all stories written about the 2012 fair, check out its topic page.