Rita's Italian Ice has announced its sixth annual partnership with Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (ALSF) to raise funds for pediatric cancer research through in-store paper lemon sales and a new Text-to-Donate option.
From now through June 30, more than 550 Rita's locations will encourage customers to donate $1 for a paper lemon to raise money for the charity. All guests have the option to personalize their paper lemons, which are then displayed in local stores' "Wall of Hope."
New this year is a Text-to-Donate component which allows guests to donate to the initiative by texting "ALEX" to 85944 for a one-time donation of $5.
Last year's paper lemon donations generated $575,000 – the largest amount Rita's has raised since the partnership kicked off. Throughout the past five years, Rita's has raised more than $2.5 million for pediatric cancer research, becoming the leading corporate fundraiser for ALSF.
In 2006, Rita's officially became a corporate partner of ALSF and implemented its paper lemon promotion to help raise funds for pediatric cancer research. In honor of the Foundation's namesake, the late Alexandra "Alex" Scott, Rita's renamed its Lemon Ice flavor to "Alex's Lemonade."
