By Laura Tamayo
Sweet wintertime, the perfect period for blankets, Christmas cookies and, most of all, hot chocolate. Nicholas Fletcher, an 11-year-old boy, saw this as a chance to earn some money to prepare for Christmas shopping by jumping into hot cocoa entrepreneurship. During the last week of November, he opened a stand where he sold his homemade hot chocolate to the residents of Ternwood in FishHawk Ranch.
Fletcher is a homeschooled student on the autism spectrum with a bright mind and inquisitive nature for sales. He lives with his mother, Laura; father, Brian; and older sister, Mia.
On a cloudless, cool day, Fletcher decided that he wanted to sell hot chocolate to his neighbors and fellow FishHawk residents. After assembling wooden shelves and adding some Christmas decorations for a holiday allure, the hot chocolate stand was ready.
“He came up with the hot cocoa idea as a way to earn money to buy a Christmas gift for his sister,” explained his private teacher, Elizabeth Thomas.
The cocoa sold for $.75 for a small cup, $1.25 for a large and $.25 extra for additional marshmallows. With cheap prices, the stand attracted dozens of passersby, from cars driving past to college students on their daily run.
After only a few hours of operation, Fletcher ended his business endeavor with a whopping $97 in profits.
“He had such a great turnout that he added a second day as requested by the neighborhood,” said Thomas.
The praise given to Fletcher was something him nor his family predicted, but he’s loving the positive attention. Having the community come together and enjoy as simple of a thing as hot chocolate fostered the Christmas spirit that 2020 had been missing. Fletcher hopes that he can do it again, and is planning another day for selling hot cocoa soon.
It’s these small-town moments that keep the citizens of FishHawk grounded in chaotic times of pandemics and quarantines. With a second day of operation in the works, be sure to keep an eye out for Fletcher’s stand in Ternwood for a bundle of joy in a cup.
