By the age of 9, Rebecca Lyons had established her own Jersey herd and found a passion in the dairy industry. “I guess you could say this is where my passion for entrepreneurship began.” Rebecca always had an interest in starting her own ice cream business with her dairy herd while also bringing an added educational component to help others understand how a dairy farm works and operates. Rebecca wrote a children’s book based on her experiences with her dairy herd entitled, The Best Ice Cream That Ever Was Licked. “This book is about my life growing up and what it was like owning my own dairy herd," she explains. 

Now at the age of 21, Rebecca is a senior majoring in Agricultural Studies with a minor in Entrepreneurial Studies. She still has hopes of starting her own dairy business but for now that idea is on hold. Instead, Rebecca has occupied her time starting a new business called Lunchsox. “Last summer, I spent some time in Zimbabwe doing mission work at their Critical Care Center. I saw there was a big need to feed the children a nutritious meal, so when I got back to the US I started brainstorming ideas of how I could help and how I could get involved right away.” Rebecca was inspired by the company, Love Your Mellon, and wanted to do something along these lines. Thus creating her startup business Lunchsox. This nonprofit venture sells pairs of socks and donates 100% of the proceeds to provide a hot meal for children abroad and right here in the United States. “I do not think anyone should go to bed hungry, and there is a need to feed people abroad and right here in Iowa," states Rebecca.  She is looking to leave her legacy of helping others and generously donating her profits with each pair of socks sold. Rebecca started selling socks in November of 2017 and by the end of 2017, she had already donated over $1,000.

Looking towards the future, Rebecca would like to expand Lunchsox into stores and also help build an educational component to the children receiving a meal. “Providing a hot meal fulfills a need, but incorporating in education creates an opportunity to allow these children to fulfill their dreams.”

If you would like to donate to Rebecca’s cause please check out the Lunch_sox facebook page for more details. https://www.facebook.com/lunchsox/