9-year-old Kentucky girl uses her lemonade stand money to help cops

Sometimes it just takes a gift of kindness to make someone's day brighter.

A 9-year-old from Edgewood found that out after she worked in the summer heat to bring a gift to her local police station. Lily Reinhart has made two trips to the Edgewood Police Station. The first was to drop off a special gift. Thursday, August 18, she met some of the officers who she helped by raising money with her summer lemonade stand.

Lily set up her stand on the street where she lives. The lemonade stand was Lily's idea, but originally she wanted to buy something for herself until her mother reminded her what many of our moms remind us, that it's better to give than to receive.

Amanda Bandura is Lily's mother and she said, "She wanted to save up for a pair of shoes and I said, ‘Well, let's give back to the community. How would you like to do that?’ She remembered the story and she said, ‘I want to do something for the police department,’ and I said, ‘I think that's an excellent idea.’"

The officers have water, Gatorade, and other refreshments. They've been enjoying the drinks and keeping hydrated while they work.

Officer Mike Winkler said, "It's been really hot out and this uniform can get kind of hot sometimes, but I was excited to finally get to meet her and say thank you."

Lily got a few gifts from a detective and a tour of the station. With her lemonade stand, Lily brought smiles, boosted morale, and made some new friends along the way.

"You always want to see your child excel in all areas whether they're an athlete or academics of whatever, but when it starts with giving back and just a simple act of kindness, it really just fills your heart," Amanda said.

Lily earned her money pretty quickly. It only took her two days. Her mother said when word spread that she was raising money to help police, people started driving up and handing her money without even taking any lemonade.

Lily is not the only person who has showed appreciation and support for the police department. The officers said recently they've received a ton of thank yous and other kind gestures from people in Edgewood.