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There’s no shortcut to awesome! (Jonathan Silva, Maui Made Lemonade)

Aloha Maui Family!

Maui Made Lemonade has been serving up handcrafted fresh fruit drinks at the new-ish Food Truck Court located near Costco in Kahului, Hawaii, for a while now. But the concept behind Maui Made Lemonade is more than just providing high-quality fresh fruit drinks: owners Jonathan and Laura Silva have a passion to encourage the next generation on Maui to continue respecting and learning about the “aina.” Thus, they’ve created a scholarship fund, where 10% of all Maui Made Lemonade profits goes directly toward the education of local kids from Maui who are passionate about farming, organic farming, agriculture, sustainability, and marine biology.

MauiMadeLemonade5Laura & Jonathan Silva, Maui Made Lemonade

“This is what makes us want to go to work everyday. We can’t wait for the day of putting a local kid through college and then he or she comes back home and starts up a farm here on Maui,” said Jonathan Silva.

After spending some time with Jonathan and Laura, it’s evident that their overall passion is helping the youth of Maui reach their dreams. In fact, Jonathan’s “day job” involves being a Kindergarten-2nd Grade school counselor at King Kamehameha 3rd Elementary in Lahaina! So while he’s building his business, he’s continuing to build into students’ lives on a professional level through our local school system.

On top of that, Maui Made Lemonade currently sources at least 90% of their fruits and ingredients from right here on Maui, happily supporting our local farmers and community growers!

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While the company has many great drink combinations, I was curious as to their recommendations for a road (or air) weary traveler.

“I would recommend anything with ginger since it not only wakes you up, but is also great for inflammation. Most guests walk more when traveling than in their day-to-day lives, so they might be feeling some discomfort in their joints. Some ginger combined with one of our other fresh fruits will liven you up, as well as aid some minor aches and pains. For the traveler who is craving caffeine, our Maui Grown Iced coffees are very popular,” said Silva.

MauiMadeLemonade2Jonathan Silva

 Since Jonathan co-owns the business with his wife, I asked him about that co-laboring endeavor:

“Teaming up with my wife is awesome. First of all, opening up a drink truck was one of her childhood dreams. Not many of us can say that they’re working in a specific field they’ve imagined as a teenager. Seeing my wife happy and living her dream makes me happy. The pros of working together on a business venture is just it. It’s like we’re on a roller coaster adventure together. There’s ups, and there’s downs. But we go through things together.”

MauiMadeLemonade1Laura Silva

Silva continued, “For example, most couples who work in different fields come home from work and they attempt to share their work experiences with their significant other. More times than not, the couple find it challenging to relate to the experience(s) of the other spouse. In this venture, we work together and in the same setting, so we know what each other goes through on a daily basis. In other words, it’s easier to connect.

The cons of starting a business with your wife is that it’s hard to draw the line of business and your relationship. For example, when we first opened, we’d be talking about the business every opportunity we had. In that season, we had to be intentional about nurturing our relationship rather than getting lost in the day to day details of the business.”

Maui Made Lemonade isn’t here for just today…it’s for the next generation:

I don’t know where this adventure will take us, but our focus is sharply honed in on the why: to make Maui a better place for the next generation. In other words, we’re not focused on building a brand, but rather building a lasting legacy for a generation we will never meet. (Jonathan Silva)

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Well, I’m getting thirsty just writing this blog post, so if you are as well, check them out! Maui Made Lemonade’s drink truck is located in the Food Truck Oasis at 591 Haleakala Highway across the Costco gas station. They’re open Monday-Saturday from 10am-4pm.

For more on my interview with Maui Made Lemonade check out the first half of this interview at www.IslandGypsyHawaii.com.

Have you tried their drinks? If so, what’s your favorite flavor combo?

Livin’ La Vida Aloha,
Jennifer Poppy