In a show of support for their community, more than 35 merchants on Montana Avenue, will be participating in Lemon-8 Days, a burgeoning grassroots campaign spearheaded by Project Lemon-Aid and benefiting the Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation (SMMEF). From August 2-6, 2010, these merchants (organized by the Montana Avenue Merchants Association) will be donating 8% of gross sales to SMMEF for the Save Our Schools campaign in an attempt to help supplement education budgets devastated by state cutbacks.

State budget cuts have resulted in $7 million in cutbacks in the Santa Monica schools, leading to dozens of teachers, counselors and librarians being laid off. Project Lemon-Aid began in mid-June 2010 when local school children set up lemonade stands to raise money to save their teachers and programs from the cuts to public education. Their efforts mushroomed across the city, and dozens of lemonade stands continue to appear several times per week, raising more $20,000 to date. In July, local businesses began to join the students’ campaign in an attempt to help raise as much as possible to restore teachers and programs by the District’s deadline of mid-August.

“The merchants on Montana Avenue care very deeply about their community,” said Mark Wain, President of the Montana Avenue Merchants Association and owner of Caffe Luxxe. “All of us appreciate and rely upon our local customers, so when the community needs our help, we do what we can to support them. We’re excited to partner with Lemon-8 Days on this event.”

Following is a list of stores that are participating in Lemon-8 Days. 100% of the proceeds go to the Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation for this purpose. Look for the lemon slice in the windows of:

Art Galleries:
Every Picture Tells a Story, 1311-C Montana Ave.

Children’s:
Scribble Press, 1109 Montana Ave.

Clothing (Children)
Peek, Aren’t You Curious?: 1015 Montana Ave.

Clothing (Maternity)
Mom's the Word, 910 Montana Ave.

Clothing (Men)
Montalvo, 1628 Montana Ave.
Weathervane, 1132 Montana Ave.

Clothing (Women)
3 Bags Full (the sweater store), 716 Montana Ave.
Aphrodite, 1210 Montana Ave.
Aura, 1528 Montana Ave.
Cheryl Fudge, 1010 Montana Ave.
Cozzi Cozzi, 1231 Montana Ave.
Darylle B, 1128 Montana Ave.
French Lessons, 1327 Montana Ave.
Marcia Bloom, 1527 Montana Ave.
Margano, 1311 Montana Ave.
Pink Lili (lingerie), 1129 Montana Ave.
Purple Poppy, 1329 Montana Ave.

Frozen Yogurt
Menchie's, 732 Montana Ave.
TCBY Yogurt, 715 Montana Ave.

Gifts/Home Accessories
Limonaia,1325 Montana Ave.
Ponte Vecchio, 702 Montana Ave.
Quilted Monkey, 1112 Montana Ave.
Rosemary McCaffrey Antiques,1203 Montana Ave.
Stephanie Grace, 912 Montana Ave.

Hair/Nails/Beauty
Aveda, 1301 Montana Ave.
Dermologica, 1022 Montana Ave.
Esquire Barber Shop, 1020 Montana Ave.
Palmetto, 1034 Montana Ave.

Jewelry
Cabachon fine Jewelry, 1426 Montana Ave.
J.J. Design, 1307 Montana Ave.
La Vitrine Designer Jewelry, 1119 Montana Ave.
Moondance Jewelry, 1530 Montana Ave.
Platino, 909 Montana Ave.
Semi-Precious Bead Salon, 1028 Montana Ave.

Optician
Optical Designs, 1235 Montana Ave.

Pets
To Wag For, 1123 Montana Ave.

Photo Services
Classic Kids, 1627 Montana Ave.

Real Estate
Engel & Volkers Realtors, 1123 Montana Ave.

Restaurants
Blue Plate, 1415 Montana Ave.
Café Dana, 1211 Montana Ave.
Caffe Luxxe, 925 Montana Ave.
Louise’s Trattoria, 1008 Montana Ave.
Rosti, 931 Montana Ave.

Shoes/Shoe Service
Angelo’s Shoe Repair, 724 Montana Ave.

About Montana Avenue: Located on the north end of Santa Monica, Montana Ave. is a charming 10-block open-air retail destination that stretches from 7th to 17th Street. The tree-lined street is home to more than 150 distinctive boutiques, restaurants and service establishments that offer exceptional style and hospitality.

For further information about Lemon-8 Days:
Stacey Abarbanel, 310.736.5300, abarbanel@earthlink.net

For further information about SMMEF:
Linda Gross, 310.396.4557 smmef@smmusd.org

For more info on the Montana Avenue Merchants Association:
Kim Sudhalter, Urban Legend PR
818.623.8492, kim@urbanlegendpr.com
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