Coming back to Steinbach for an eighth year is Brooke and Koda's Iced Tea Stand.
Every year, the stand raises money for a family that has a child going through cancer treatment.
Brooke Peters has been running the stand since the beginning, saying it started when she and her cousin were looking for something fun to do. "We had a lot of family members who were going through cancer and we thought it'd be cool if we could help out in a way. So we decided we would raise funds for cancer care."
While they weren't expecting much the first year, their parents made a generous promise. "Our parents said, 'We're going to match whatever you guys make.' We ended up raising $600.00. So they had to match that."
Going into their eighth year, Brooke and Koda's Iced Tea Stand has raised over $75,000.
For the last several years, the stand has chosen individual families to donate the money to. This year they're supporting a girl named Callie Augustine.
"She was diagnosed with high-risk B-ALL Leukemia on October 1, 2024," Peters said. "When she was diagnosed, her body was 90% Leukemia cells."
Four years ago, Marek Hiebert was on the receiving end of the iced tea stand. "They came to my backyard and asked if it they could do the iced tea stand for me, and we said yes," Hiebert said.
Now, Hiebert is excited to continue giving back to the community. "I have a bit of experience with what they have been through."
While ending the stand and seeing the final check is a highlight for both Hiebert and Peters, hearing from the community is special too. "Having all these people come and then you hear the stories of, 'I had a family member go through cancer and it's like really cool what you guys do,'" Peters said.
In 2024, the stand was raising funds for four-year-old Elliot.
After receiving the donations, Elliot's family was able to spend the last few months with him before he ended up passing away. "That's truly an amazing, special feeling. They were able to spend as much time as they possibly could with him and that has to be be the best part of the whole stand."
Besides iced tea, there will be other treats available for purchase, as well as Brooke and Koda merch. "There's iced tea, lemonade, water, pop, cookies, brownies, pumpkin bars, a new addition of ice cream, hoodies, shirts, and lanyards," Hiebert said.
The Brooke and Koda Iced Tea Stand takes place Wednesday, July 23 and Thursday, July 24 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 418 Walnut Street in Steinbach.