8-YEAR-OLD HELP STRUGGLING FAMILY BY STARTING OWN PLANT BUSINESS
As a child, you are largely dependent on your parents or guardians to support you. However, 8-year-old Aaron Moreno made the decision to lend a hand when his mother lost both of her jobs and his family was forced to live in a shed. He began selling plants in his East Los Angeles area. Selling succulents to family members was the beginning of his tiny business, which soon grew into a thriving plant store. Aaron has improved his family's quality of life by starting his own business, Aaron's Garden.
Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, Aaron's mother, Berenice Pacheco, who is a single parent, lost both of her jobs. She ended up living with Aaron and her 2-year-old daughter, Alani, in a small shed, sharing just $12 between them, after bouncing between homeless shelters. Pacheco also had to make the difficult choice to send her other daughter, 10-year-old Ayleen, back to Mexico because of her financial difficulties. She admits, "As an undocumented individual, I didn't have many laws to protect me. I didn't get unemployment insurance or stimulus when I lost my work." I was by myself, and I would try not to cry at night so my children wouldn't hear. I desired to spend my entire life sleeping.
But owing to Aaron, the family's luck quickly improved. His basic craving for his favourite snack—hot Cheetos—was the beginning of it all. "Quarantine occurred in March, and we would be stuck at home, but the ice cream truck would still pass every day, and he would want hot Cheetos with cheese," Pacheco tells My Modern Met. Aaron concluded that he had to do it himself because Pacheco could not afford the luxury of purchasing the food for him. He bought baby succulents with the remainder of his family's money and made a little profit selling them to neighbours. He did more than just get his Cheetos.
Pacheco explains, "We wanted to obtain a wagon and ride around the neighbourhood." "But he was already well-known on social media when we acquired the wagon." Aaron started selling more plants from his shed as a pop-up shop after setting up Aaron's Garden on Instagram. Aaron and his mother got up at 6 a.m. every day to select plants from the flower area. As the demand for Aaron's plants increased, their efforts paid off, and his company quickly became well-known.
Esli, Pacheco's high school classmate, offered more assistance by creating a GoFundMe page to try to raise money for the needy family. The total amount donated as of this writing is over $68,000. Aaron continues to operate his business out of their garage after the family moved into their own apartment on November 1.
In addition to continuing to make money from the sale of plants, Aaron's business venture allowed him to get back in touch with his sister. They now all live together after a generous individual gave $1,000 at one of the pop-up events to help them bring 10-year-old Ayleen back to the United States. "Bringing his sister back is the nicest thing Aaron has done for us," Pacheco says. "We are now again a family, and it was so difficult without her. And even though they were apart for a long period, I was thrilled to find that they still shared an incredible bond. It is indeed a boon.