Lynlee Richards spent her 11th birthday hunkered down in her North Naples home as Hurricane Ian blasted through the area. When the storm and her birthday were over, her life was changed. The concessions at Lovers Key State Park and Delnor-Wiggins State Park owned by her family were demolished. There was nothing left of Hurricane Charley’s, a snack shop at Lovers Key, or the shop or kayak and paddleboard rentals. It all disappeared under more than 15 feet of water that covered the two parks.
As her parents worked to rebuild the business, Lynlee was starting a business of her own.
“I just love crafting, and I was watching YouTube, and a lot of people were starting bracelet businesses,” she began.
So Lynlee bought batches of colorful clay and smiley face beads and began stringing them together. Early on, it was just a hobby. She gave the colorful bracelets to family members and friends. But when her father was able to open a makeshift shop at Lovers Key this summer,
Lynlee had another idea for her bracelets.
“Originally I didn’t know what to do with the money I made,” Lynlee said. “I just wanted to make the bracelets for fun. Then I thought I could give them to a charity, but then I thought I could give them to Lovers Key.”
A few months ago Lynlee started selling her bracelets at her father’s concession at Lovers Key. The one at Delnor-Wiggins is not yet open.
“It has been a hard year for my family,” Lynlee said. “While we try to rebuild what we lost, I started making these bracelets because I love crafting and wanted to help my dad in some way because he has worked very hard for our family.”
Lynlee knows the little bit of money earned from the bracelets won’t pay for the new food trailer or concession shop that her family needs to continue their business, but every little bit helps.
“I was very proud of her for her ingenuity and her entrepreneurship,” said Todd Richards, Lynlee’s father.
“I was just proud of her for wanting to give back, even if it is small,” added
Maribeth Richards, her mother. “Her heart is in the right place.”
At first Lynlee was hand-stringing the beads, which took a lot of time.
“Then I found bead spinners, and they spin the beads onto a needle so it does not take as long,” Lynlee explained. “With the bead spinner I can make one in four minutes and 20 seconds. I timed myself.”
Things don’t always move so fast for the North Naples Middle School sixth grader. She enjoys spending her leisure time doing all sorts of crafts. Her once-white desk is now a swirl of colors from the paints she uses to decorate wooden cutouts and frames or to simply paint. Beading is a lot neater. Next to her desk is an organized stand full of beads all sorted by color. Lynlee says choosing the color patterns consumes the most time in making the bracelets, which come in three sizes and are displayed in the shop beside a sign that says “Smile” which is what she named her business. All her bracelets have one smiley face bead in the middle. Lynlee’s bracelets are for sale at the temporary concession stand at Lovers Key State park. They also can be ordered by emailing smile.braclets28@gmail.com.