Friday, June 18, 1999

Robbed lemonade seller drenched with gifts

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BY JANICE MORSE
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Aaron Faughn chums it up Thursday with the Kool-Aid Man. (Tony Jones photo) | ZOOM |

        LIBERTY TOWNSHIP — Ever since his lemonade and Kool-Aid stand was robbed last Friday, 9-year-old Aaron Faughn has been profiting big-time from his $6 loss, earning hundreds of dollars selling the drinks at area businesses and in his own neighborhood.

        On Thursday came the biggest payoff so far: A visit from the Kool-Aid Man, who brought balloons and gifts that included lots of Kool-Aid packages — and a Nintendo video-game set.

        “Hey, it's the Kool-Aid man!” children exclaimed as they saw him heading toward them on Lakota Point Lane, while a police officer blocked traffic.

        “You would've thought Santa Claus showed up, the way these kids are reacting,” said Butler County Sheriff's deputy James Mueller. “I'm glad to see the community and the corporate sponsors and everyone else take such an interest in a little kid.”

        When Aaron spotted the Kool-Aid man, he ducked down behind his lemonade stand at first. “He's a little shy,” said his mother, Debbie. Aaron then greeted the Kool-Aid man with a big smile and later exclaimed, “This is so cool!”

        Mom added, “I'm in shock. This is crazy. I love that Kool-Aid man!”

        Tim Goeglein, a sales planner for the Blue Ash office of Kraft Foods, which owns the Kool-Aid brand drink mixes, told Aaron: “We're here to thank you for having a Kool-Aid stand and keeping that Kool-Aid smile going all the time....We're putting a happy ending to the Kool-Aid caper.”

        Meanwhile, the Kool-Aid man said nothing, despite kids' urging him to say, “Oh yeah!” as depicted in TV commercials. Mr. Goeglein explained remaining silent is part of the character's persona.

        Aaron and two 13-year-old friends, Jamie Curtin and Billy Holger, had been slaving over their soft-drink stand in heat exceeding 90 degrees, hoping to earn enough money to buy bunches of Pokemon trading cards, when two older boys stopped by and took $6 from them. The Pokemon cards, modeled after a popular Japanese video game, are used in a game played among children who collect the cards.

        After reading about the crime in area newspapers, Kool-Aid officials wanted to do something special for Aaron. So among the gifts the Kool-Aid man delivered was a Nintendo GameBoy equipped with a Pokemon game cartridge.

        Kool-Aid also gave certificates of appreciation to Deputy Mueller and Deputy Ray Moore. Using Aaron's description of one suspect's red-striped hair, they tracked down and arrested two boys ages 16 and 17.

        The teens are scheduled to appear in Butler County Juvenile Court next week.

       

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