Most children fingerpaint for fun, but seven of Ginger Owen’s grandchildren were elbow deep in finger paints on Thursday afternoon to help “put the squeeze on cancer.”

The children were decorating their lemonade stand sign for the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters’ second annual Anthem LemonAid Stand fundraiser to help children fight cancer.

“There aren’t many fundraisers children can do to help out,” CHKD development officer Ashley Dorey said. “They can’t sign checks for $1,000, but they can set up a lemonade stand. They can a make difference. That’s why we say it’s ‘kids helping kids with cancer.’”

On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, more than 400 stands will be set up for the event around Hampton Roads, with at least seven in Suffolk.

Ginger and Bill Owen, who are running “Mamaw and Poppie Camp” for their seven grandchildren this summer, have been long-time community activists, a trait they passed down to their children and are eager to help them teach their grandchildren.

“We want to stress while they’re young the importance of giving back and give them the first-hand experience of what it feels like to help someone else,” Bill Owen said.

“We’ve wanted to show them how to run a lemonade stand for awhile,” Ginger Owen said. “There was a young girl in the community who had cancer and started her own lemonade stand, and we’ve always wanted to teach our grandchildren that value.”

While teaching children entrepreneurship and the value of using it for a cause, all the money raised through the stands benefits CHKD’s childhood cancer program.

“At first, they were asking me if they’d make money, and I had to explain to them where it would go,” Ginger Owen said. “After that, they were all on board and got really into it.”

Owen’s grandchildren aren’t the only ones to get into it.

Last year was the first year CHKD held the LemonAid event, sponsoring it at stands from Hampton Roads to Richmond. Participants raised $50,000 with more than 200 stands last year. This year, more than 400 stands are signed up and CHKD’s goal is to raise $75,000.

Six of Suffolk’s seven stands are new this year.

“We were blown away by the numbers this year,” Dorey said. “It’s all been word of mouth. It’s so great to know we have such a wonderful community here supporting the hospitals.”

A cup of lemonade sells at each of the stands for a $1 recommended minimum donation.

LemonAid stands in Suffolk will be located this weekend as follows:

Friday

Farm Fresh

3575 Bridge Road

Hours: 1 p.m. – 4 p.m.

Farm Fresh

1401 North Main Street

Hours: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Saturday

Panera in Market Center at Harbour View

6255 College Drive

Hours: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Rockport Landing in Riverfront

Hours: 9 a.m. – Noon

Farm Fresh

3575 Bridge Road

Hours: 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

127 Riverwood Terrace

Hours: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Suffolk Elks Lodge

329 West Constance Road

Hours: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Sunday

Farm Fresh – Downtown

1401 North Main Street

Hours: 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.