Kids sell lemonade to fight malaria

Texarkana kids are helping African kids at Children’s Beginnings day care, attached to Skate America, where they are raising money by selling lemonade to buy mosquito nets to protect against malaria. “Giving to those in Africa and learning to share with other kids in need, it makes me feel wonderful inside,” said Zakayyah Holmes, 11, who goes to the day care and will attend Texas Middle School in the fall. The day care children are raising money through the sale of soft, chewy cookies and ice cold lemonade to contribute to Nothing But Nets. The kids also made colorful posters that have the price list of their goods and Nothing But Nets’ slogan, “Malaria kills. Send a net. Save a life.” Information about the Nothing But Nets campaign can be found on the Internet at NothingButNets.net.

Nets purchased through the campaign are all treated with insecticide, which improves their effectiveness. Without the insecticide, mosquitos can feed through the net and even the smallest hole in a net makes it virtually useless. Nets treated with insecticide reduce the longevity of mosquitos and deters them from entering houses where the nets are used, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Cindy McPherson … keeps up with various missions and presented it to the children. They agreed,” said Mary Cox, director of Children’s Beginnings.

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