Bored and looking for something to do this summer, Danny Doherty hatched a plan to raise money for his brother’s hockey team by selling homemade ice cream.
But a few days after setting up a stand and serving up vanilla, shaved chocolate and fluffernutter to about 20 people, Danny’s family received a letter from the Norwood Board of Health ordering it shut down. Town officials had received a complaint and said that the 12-year-old’s scheme violated the Massachusetts Food Code, a state regulation.
“I was surprised and upset,” he said of the letter that came Aug. 5. “I don’t understand because there are so many lemonade stands and they don’t get shut down.”
Danny’s mom, Nancy Doherty, who had encouraged her son to start the stand as long as he donated half of the proceeds to charity, also was taken aback.
“Somebody complained. That was the most disappointing part for us was that somebody thought it necessary to complain about a child’s stand,” she said. “It seemed a little, you know, crazy if you ask me.”
Man, even I’m not curmudgeonly enough to want a kid’s ice cream stand shut down (I am definitely curmudgingly enough to complain about kids, but I still let them live their lives–it’s my problem that I don’t like how loud they are.)
Is it possible that someone might get sick from it? Yes. But when it comes to a kid’s ice cream or lemonade stand, it should be up to the people whether or not they want to take that infinitismal risk.
There always has to be someone out there trying to ruin everyone else’s good time. People need to mind their own business.