Young Bay Area Philanthropist Uses Lemonade Sales To Fund Causes

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - She's only 11, but she is committed to making a difference in the world. The Bay Area girl started raising money with a lemonade stand when things took off.

CBS13 talked to the girl whose philanthropic work turned into a major business.

Vivienne Harr was only 8-years-old when a picture changed her life.

"I saw this photo of two boys in slavery and I thought I should help," said Vivienne.

That help started with a lemonade stand.

"Service has always been a big part of our family and compassion into action. The lemonade stand was a family thing, but she really took off with it and did it every single day," said Eric Harr, Vivienne's dad.

The money she earned donated to help put an end child slavery was just the beginning.

"Kids are really capable of doing things that grown-ups are," said Vivienne.

With that frame of mind, the sky's the limit.

"It's astonishing what one person can do in the world," she said.

Vivienne became the first kid in American history to bottle her lemonade stand lemonade.

"I've got a business and a children's book. It's changed in a lot of ways but in good ways too," she said.

Five percent of her revenue goes back to her cause.

"I think I was putting crayons up my nose when I was eight, and she was taking on complex international issues. So when you say you want your kids to do better than you, I think we overshot that a little," said Eric.

It became a movement. In just shy of six months, she raised $100,000. Google and Twitter invited her to speak and she appeared on stage with the Dalai Lama, and now she's taking on another project with Farm Sanctuary.
"They rescue animals from factory farming, and their main mission is to get people to eat less meat," she said.

Vivienne wants to be an ambassador to share their mission, she's already taking small steps to do her part.

"Now she's doing meatless Mondays and meatless Sundays and the families following her at farm sanctuary which is great," said Eric.

Her efforts are making a big impact. Her whole family is in awe of her dedication to making a difference.

"She's really taken it a lot further than we ever imagined, and it's really been an amazing adventure for our family," he said.

Vivienne wants to keep her work with farm sanctuary going. She also tells us she wants to be vegan when she grows up.

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