Children Raised $2,300 for Local Fund at ACL Festival
Young entrepreneurs supported a memorial fund by selling lemonade at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.
Updated on Oct. 12, 2026 in Philanthropy
Two sisters operated a lemonade stand at the Austin City Limits Music Festival, raising $2,300 in a single day for the Cile Steward Foundation Fund. The effort expanded from their neighborhood on Kinney Avenue to a professional concession space provided by C3 Presents.
Why it matters
The fundraiser highlights how local operators can leverage high-traffic event partnerships to scale charitable initiatives. By securing a space within the festival, the organizers were able to significantly increase daily donation volume compared to their residential operations.
The lemonade stand generated $2,300 in one day at the festival grounds, significantly outpacing the $874 raised during the first weekend of operations. The stand sold cups for $5 each, supported by a team of friends and classmates.
The players
C3 Presents
An Austin-based concert promotion and festival production company that manages the Austin City Limits Music Festival.
Cile Steward Foundation Fund
A charitable fund established in memory of a 7-year-old student who died in the 2025 Texas Hill Country flooding.
The details
Camille and Charlotte Ross, aged 7 and 5, initially launched their lemonade stand outside their Kinney Avenue home. After successful initial fundraising, event organizer C3 Presents invited the sisters to operate a stand within the Austin Kiddie Limits area during the festival's second weekend. Friends and classmates assisted by working shifts to manage the higher volume of traffic at the festival venue.
Timeline
July 2025: Flooding occurred at Camp Mystic in the Texas Hill Country.
October 2026: The Ross sisters operated their lemonade stand at the festival.
Market Landscape
This effort follows the pattern of community-driven philanthropy established in the wake of the 2025 Texas Hill Country flooding. It demonstrates how event-based concessions can amplify charitable contributions beyond the reach of neighborhood-level efforts.
Operators looking to facilitate charitable outreach should identify high-traffic event partners that can provide infrastructure for direct engagement. Scaling a small initiative requires moving from residential or limited footprints to event-authorized spaces that allow for consistent, high-volume transactions.
The takeaway
Large events often have capacity to host local community efforts if the pitch aligns with their operational goals. Monitor upcoming municipal and regional festivals for opportunities to request space for civic or charitable outreach programs.
Further reading
Learn more about local Philanthropy efforts in the Austin area.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Austin American-Statesman.
