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Click here to read full story: Enjoying some last-minute fun before school starts.
Excerpt: “At the South of the James Market at Forest Hill Park, Mark Abernathy from Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice of Carytown served the masses. It was the busiest day all season, and by noon, Abernathy had already sold more than 125 ices.
Sydnee Voigt, who is visiting her grandchildren from Brazil, was among his customers. Pina colada and watermelon ices went to the kids. “We’re just going to spend Labor Day together as a family,” Voigt said.
As for Abernathy, his plan after work: Head down to his boat on the Chesapeake Bay.”
EMILY C. DOOLEY TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
Published: September 6, 2009
ironsides the movie
Cameras are rolling on the Lower Cape
Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice will be featured in the upcoming film Ironsides, which just wrapped up filming at Cape Cod last week.
Read the Full Story Here: Cameras are rolling on the Lower Cape
Posted using ShareThis
All manner of vendor varieties set up shop at Ypsilanti Township’s Lakeshore Family Festival over the Fourth of July weekend, but perhaps none were younger than those from the Ypsilanti Boys Preparatory Academy.
During Friday afternoon, 10-year-old Keyshaun Wyatt-Morris and 11-year-old Amir Osborn sold Italian Ice from a “Little Jimmy’s Italian Ices” cart the school had bought, which the students were running with guidance from their headmaster, Lawrence Hood.
The business is a small part of an unconventional school curriculum which Hood, and those parents who send their children to the school, believe is giving their kids an edge on education as they grow up.
“This helps show them what it means to be in business for themselves,” Hood said of the Italian Ice cart.
Osborn said it his first taste of a real world operation, and he is learning a lot from it.
“You have got to be professional with people,” Osborn said.
The school first opened its doors two years ago inside the Ypsilanti Free Methodist Church, but has since moved to a new building on Walnut Street where 50 kids in the preschool through seventh-grade ages are now enrolled.
“Our parents really love the program,” Hood, who has only used word of mouth as marketing and advertising, said. “To go from five students to 50 students in a couple years with no advertising kind of speaks for itself. We don’t cater to one type of student – some of our students are at-risk and some are gifted and talented. We have the whole gamut, and our at risk students have had great success.”
Wyatt-Morris said he saw his grades go from B’s and C’s in public schools to A’s and B’s at the Ypsilanti Boys Preparatory Academy because the classes are more engaging.
“We really go above and beyond what they teach in other schools,” he said. “We have karate class instead of gym…classes that show what makes a man.”
Students dress in a shirt and tie, take karate instead of physical education to learn more about self-discipline, take piano lessons, and Osborn and Wyatt-Morris wrote their own business plans before applying what they learned to the real world with their Italian Ice operation.
Students also prepare themselves for the future in an intensive digital arts program that includes graphic design, video editing and music production.
The six-week “Passports To Manhood” through the Boys and Girls’ Club immersed the students in the digital arts, and Hood believes his students have received valuable preparation for growing fields.
“It’s a pretty unique program,” he said and added that it was such a success that it will be part of the curriculum for the next school year.
Students at the Academy also participate in community service programs once week. In a program through the University of Michigan, students visit with elderly people who have dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and do arts and crafts and music classes.
“It goes really, really well,” Hood said.
The students get their fair share of math, science and reading, but Hood believes it’s the delivery that affords them an opportunity to blossom where a traditional environment may not.
“Some students who come here have behavior problems, but once they get here their setting is really different and expectations are different and they respond really well,” Hood said. “The lessons are designed as a more hands-on approach, and with them being engaged in activity and learning throughout the day we see less opportunity for outbursts.
“Basically, they’re learning everything they need to know to become successful young men.”
For more information, contact Lawrence Hood at 1-734-330-4466.
Tom Perkins is a freelance writer for the View/Courier. He can be reached at trperkins@gmail.com.
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Interesting report from Minnesota Public Radio…reminds me that Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice has never used corn syrup in our Italian Ices and never will… we have been using pure cane sugar in our Italian ices now for close to 75 years!
Click here to read the story and listen to their recent radio report -
MPR: Sugar and corn syrup battle for tastebuds.
AOL’s Digital City just came out with a list of their top 12 ice cream spots throughout the United States. Great list with most notably Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice at #8.
Click here Here for the AOL List.
Out of the 12 listed we are the only Italian Ice mentioned in the AOL list, so I guess that makes us #1 in terms of Italian Ice- what do you think?
Sweet success nets teen a cool $40,000 college scholarship
Columbus Ohio –When Michael Showalter’s parents asked him to earn money toward college, they had in mind an after-school job. But Michael started a small business, Guiseppe’s Italian Ice, which quickly turned a profit. He then used his business’s success story to win the McKelvey Foundation’s $40,000 college scholarship, awarded to student entrepreneurs.
Guiseppe’s Italian Ice operates out of pop-up tents, dishing up traditional Italian Ice to tired, thirsty fairgoers at festivals and outdoor events. Showalter buys the product from Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice in New Jersey, where it’s manufactured according to a century-old family recipe. “It’s healthier than most desserts, especially stuff that you find at a festival. One of the reasons I sell this brand is it does not have high-fructose corn syrup,” said Showalter. Popular flavors are lemon, blue raspberry, watermelon and cherry. From time to time, the menu also features pina colada, chocolate, grape and green apple Italian ice.
His enterprise, named after his father, began a year ago with an initial investment of $14,000. He recouped those startup costs handily, and in fact, broke even. Soon, Giuseppe’s began adding employees. With eight workers and two tents, Showalter has invested another $20,000 to expand his market–next year, Giuseppe’s Italian Ice will be sold in both Ohio and Michigan.
Showalter demonstrated true entrepreneurial grit, planning and executing a business that could have taken a lifetime to build, in just a matter of months. “It’s been real fun so I keep doing it,” said Showalter. “But it’s been a lot more work than I thought it would be originally, that’s for sure.”
Like most entrepreneurs, he is constantly expanding his funding horizon, and never shies from opportunity. The McKelvey Entrepreneurial e-scholarship could have been designed for Michael Showalter—it was created in 2006 to relieve the burden of debt many students face after graduation.
The Entrepreneurial Scholarship is offered by the McKelvey Foundation to high school students who start their own businesses or nonprofit agencies. The foundation’s founder is Andy McKelvey, who started his own first business selling eggs at age 14, and went on to found several successful businesses, the largest of which evolved into the online employment ad giant, Monster.com. The McKelvey Foundation currently supports over 600 students achieving a better future.
Showalter graduated from high school this year, and isn’t yet sure what his major will be at the University of Michigan. But he is sure about how he’ll earn his income–he’ll continue selling Guiseppe’s Italian Ice at festivals, fairs, and public events.
There are many more resources about entrepreneurial scholarships when you do a search in Google.
Here are some that I found rather quickly:
DM
Little Jimmy’s Customer John Young:
Teacher supplements his income with a $1,000 a weekend ice cart business.
Little Jimmy’s Italian Ices
As a high school teacher with three small children, John Young found he was having difficulty making ends meet. Last year, his father Frank Young decided to help, and went online looking for business opportunities for his son. When he found Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice carts, something clicked. “I liked the website,” the elder Young explains. “We’re very kid-oriented, and the Little Jimmy character looked like a kid-friendly brand. And what’s more appealing to children than an ice cream cart?”
He learned the difference between ice cream and Italian ice when he showed the site to his son, who’s quite a gourmet. “John said real Italian water ice is hard to find,” Frank comments. “We were so intrigued, we decided to visit the plant in New Jersey,” Young concludes.
Little Jimmy’s in the Magazine
A trip to Little Jimmy’s headquarters in Elizabeth, New Jersey, confirmed the excellence of the product, and the Young’s purchased an introductory entrepreneur’s package. The cart they bought fits into the back of John Young’s van, so they can easily load up and travel to fairs and festivals. One of the first places they rented space was a children’s soccer camp, and they’ve had great success at local street festivals in nearby Philadelphia, and historical fairs. “At the 300th Anniversary celebration in White Marsh Township this September, we had our best day ever,” says John Young. “We made $1,000 in a single day, and I couldn’t believe the line waiting to buy!”
The business suits John Young on several levels-the initial investment is small, he can work as much or as little as he likes, and the whole family can participate. “Everyone feels good about ice cream; and the Italian water ice is healthy-moms feel good about that,” he explains. Little Jimmy’s traditional recipe has no milk, is extremely low in fat and carbohydrates, and resembles sorbet more than standard ice cream.
After having a Little Jimmy’s cart for over a year, the Young’s are enthusiastic about adding to their Little Jimmy’s business-they’ve decided to add two carts for the next season, and hope someday to have a storefront. John Young’s reached a decision: “I’ve researched franchises and business opportunities for years. I’m glad I waited until I found Little Jimmy’s-it’s about fun, it’s about family, and it’s about making a go on your own. That’s a product I can be proud to sell.”
If you’re interested in learning more about how you can start your own Italian ice cart business, contact the Jersey Ice Corporation. Jersey Ice Corporation produces Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice in Elizabeth, New Jersey.
According to Dennis Moore, “Our grandfather started this business with only one Italian ice truck and one Italian ice-making machine nearly 75 years ago! Over the years the company has grown to include more than 100 privately owned trucks and approximately 150 pushcarts located throughout New Jersey. Our Italian ice is sold at the Jersey shore, pizzerias, company picnics, baseball stadiums, Liberty State Park (which services tourists visiting the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island), and in our own store located in the Jersey Gardens Mall in Elizabeth, New Jersey.
“Recently, due to the increase in demand, Jersey Ice is shipping Little Jimmy’s Italian Ice to entrepreneurs throughout the U.S. We believe this provides a great opportunity for us to expand our business and at the same time introduce our wonderful product to people who would not otherwise have a chance to enjoy our Italian ice,” said Moore.
“We feel that our product is great for a brand-new start-up business in your area as well as an ideal addition to an existing store or business, and here is why: first, there is a high profit margin selling Italian ice; second, Italian ice provides a delicious dessert that is low in calories and contains no fat or dairy.
Little Jimmy’s – Push Cart success
“And while Italian ice is popular in the New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania area, it is not well known in the rest of the country,” added the cart owner.
“By retailing our product, you will be providing your patrons with the opportunity to experience something new, Little Jimmy’s Italian Ices, and soon they will love it as much as we do,” said Dennis Moore, ace entrepreneur.
For more information, contact Jersey Ice Corporation, 655 Pennsylvania Avenue, Elizabeth, NJ 07201. The phone is 908/352-0666 and the fax number is 908-352-2476.
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