Good news: 11-year-old lemonade seller gets $1,100 tip

Nashville Tennessean
·4 min read
5

Hello, friends! Tennessean storytelling columnist Brad Schmitt here again, psyched to bring you more good news. 😀

As for me? I'm happy to announce my foster son has his driver's permit now — and we've driven together half a dozen times without any crashes or anyone screaming at each other. HUGE wins!

My fave moment came when he was driving and I slowly and quietly reached for the car's grab handle (the "oh s*&$" handle). He looked at me and says, "Stop freakin' out!"

Haha! Teens are fun. 👍

What's your good news of the week? Please let me know at brad@tennessean.com. Check out some of your neighbors' responses at the bottom in the Tell Me Something Good section.

Meanwhile, here's this week's Good News:

11-year-old lemonade seller gets $1,100 tip — and lots more

A week or so ago, an 11-year-old named Niko set up a lemonade stand on 12 South. Niko charged $3 a glass, easily making it the cheapest thing for sale on 12 South. (I mean, probably, right?)

Turns out, the kid, from Washington, D.C., was visiting his sick grandfather in Nashville for about a week. Niko also decided to try to raise some money while he was here so he could go to Portugal for a soccer camp. He needed $3,300. July 27 was his lucky day.

A screen grab of a TikTok video where Nashville "serial tipper" Lexy Burke bought a $3 glass of lemonade from 11-year-old Niko for $1,100 on July 27, 2022, along 12 South. Niko hugs Lexy while clutching 11 $100 bills.
A screen grab of a TikTok video where Nashville "serial tipper" Lexy Burke bought a $3 glass of lemonade from 11-year-old Niko for $1,100 on July 27, 2022, along 12 South. Niko hugs Lexy while clutching 11 $100 bills.

Nashville TikTok "serial tipper" Lexy Burke and her hubby, Austin, happen to be having lunch at Bartaco nearby.

"We looked at him and looked at each other, and we immediately knew it was meant to be," Austin told me.

The Burkes and some of their nearly two million followers (!) quickly raised $1,100, which the couple gave to Niko in $100 bills.

But that's not all!

TikTok big tipper Lexy Burke, right, with her husband, Austin, who gave 11-year-old Niko $1,100 July 27, 2022, for one of the $3 glasses of lemonade Niko was selling along 12 South in Nashville, Tenn. The two videos of Niko got more than 30 million views in a week.
TikTok big tipper Lexy Burke, right, with her husband, Austin, who gave 11-year-old Niko $1,100 July 27, 2022, for one of the $3 glasses of lemonade Niko was selling along 12 South in Nashville, Tenn. The two videos of Niko got more than 30 million views in a week.

The Burkes made sure one of Niko's adult relatives came to meet him (so a kid wasn't walking around with 11 large). And they all created a GoFundMe page together, one that has raised more than $17,000 so far.

"We knew people were going to want to help him more," Lexy told me.

"So it was really special and really cool. A kid, meeting his family, it was all really special."

The extra money will go toward helping some of Niko's Washington neighbors go to the same soccer camp, the Burkes said.

Happy 150th birthday, Kayne Avenue Baptist Church

Well, it seems more than half of the historically Black congregations have left the 12 South area in the last decade, according to my favorite Tennessean religion writer, Liam Adams.

But the Kayne Avenue Missionary Baptist Church ain't one of 'em.

Jeffrey Crawford, left, the youngest member of Kayne Avenue Baptist, energetically tosses the first shovelful of dirt during the groundbreaking services for a new sanctuary at 12th Avenue South Nov. 14, 1971. Looking on is Rev. Albert G. Jones, pastor, and Mrs. Hattie Lawrence, one of the oldest members of the church.
Jeffrey Crawford, left, the youngest member of Kayne Avenue Baptist, energetically tosses the first shovelful of dirt during the groundbreaking services for a new sanctuary at 12th Avenue South Nov. 14, 1971. Looking on is Rev. Albert G. Jones, pastor, and Mrs. Hattie Lawrence, one of the oldest members of the church.

In fact, the church just celebrated 150 years as a congregation. The actual church building, 1025 12th Ave. South, has only been there since 1971, but that didn't stop the church from having an 150th birthday party on July 24. 🎈

Several longtime members spoke of their love for the church during the celebration.

“We thank all the people that have passed on, the ones have left us that love this church that was here for the struggle of everything we have gone through," said a woman who has been part of the congregation since 1958.

"God will continue to bless us, and he will continue to smile on us each and every day."

Murfreesboro officer helps 84-year-old get her hair done

Boy, it's hard to beat a good deal. In fact, 84-year-old Elizabeth Good of Nashville decided to go to a Murfreesboro hair styling school to get her hair done. Big discounts when students work on your hair, ya know.

MPD Officer Lancer Hofmeister saw an elderly woman walking with a walker along Old Fort Parkway and took her to an appointment.
MPD Officer Lancer Hofmeister saw an elderly woman walking with a walker along Old Fort Parkway and took her to an appointment.

Small snag — Good took a public bus that dropped her off in the 'Boro a mile down the road from the hair school. Lucky for her, a nice Murfreesboro police officer, Lance Hofmeister, saw her using her walker to get down a busy road, Daily News Journal reporter Nancy DeGennaro wrote.

The officer gave her a ride — and they even shared a bit of witty convo on the way. Check out Nancy's story here.

An Instagram user posted video of the officer walking her into the hair salon, a video that has gone viral.

Turns out the two have reconnected and now talk and text with each other from time to time. Love that.

Tell me something good

► The power of a lunch beer 🍺

"Three things: I finished my first year of nursing school and spent quality time with my mom and sister. And I had a lunch beer. (Never underestimate the power of a lunch beer.)"

— Olivia Haessley, 24, Edgehill area, Vanderbilt nursing student

► Two decades of goin' Fish-in' 🎙️

“Exactly 20 years ago today [Aug. 5], I had the privilege of signing on a new [contemporary Christian music] radio station, 94FM The Fish. I’m still here and so thankful for my Fish family that has been so incredibly supportive — through the good times and bad — we’ve walked through a lot of life together.”

— Doug Griffin, 55, radio personality, Franklin

► A new coat feels so right 🏠

"I painted the inside of my house, and it feels so much better and more like a home."

— Tatum LaMotte, 27, Crieve Hall, nurse

Tennessean columnist Brad Schmitt
Tennessean columnist Brad Schmitt

Please gimme some of that good news! Email me at brad@tennessean.com or call me at 615-259-8384. Follow me on Twitter @bradschmitt.

And have your Tennessean subscriber friends sign up to get this newsletter every Friday morning. You can do that here. 

Until next week, friends, I hope you have nothing but good news in your world. ⭐ (And watch out for my foster dude behind the wheel!) 

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: An 11-year-old gets an $1,100 tip after selling a $3 glass of lemonade