Fall River Teen’s Mission to Give Back and Support His Family

FALL RIVER (WBSM) — A new business in Fall River has been keeping city resident cool this summer, while the story behind it will melt your heart.

Mr. Icy is the creation of 14-year-old Jeremiah Lockery. The ice cart is making its way throughout the city to give back to the community and to help Lockery's family achieve a financial dream.

Lockery is a young entrepreneur running his own business that has already garnered great success. It's uncommon these days for young kids to get hit with the "business bug" at such a young age, but Lockery certainly has.

Lockery told WBSM, however, that this kind of mindset runs in the family, which helped kick off his own endeavor.

"My little sister inspired me to start a business; she has a vending machine and custom tumbler business of her own," he said. "She would always come home from a fair or from restocking her vending machine with cash and flash it in my face while I was playing video games, saying 'Look how much I made today,' so I figured I could be my own boss like her and make my own money."

The Best Support From the Fall River Community

Since the summer began, Lockery has been stationed at Kennedy Park daily with his wagon serving fruit-flavored Spanish icies. He said in addition to serving the community, spending time with his parents has been one of his favorite moments throughout the experience.

"I get to spend time with both of my parents one on one and learn more about being a boss and learning inventory," Lockery said.

The continued support has been overwhelming in the best way possible for the 14-year-old.

"The community has posted my cart over and over on all social media platforms, even coming to see me at the park almost everyday because they like it and want to support me and my business," he said.

"That makes me very happy to know there's actually people that care about me in this world," Lockery said.

READ MORE: Fairhaven Kid Business Owner Learns Most Valuable Lesson of All

After making a little money, most teenagers want to spend it on shoes, games or other accessories.

Lockery, however, has an entirely different goal in mind: he plans to give his parents the money he makes, which will help them buy a new home for the family.

"My little brother has autism, which makes it hard for me, especially during school time," he said. "I figured I could be my own boss and make my own money to help my mom buy a house so that way we can move out of this small apartment and finally have my own room."

Plans for the Future of Mr. Icy

Jeremiah will be starting school next month at Atlantis Charter School. Although school and other activities will keep him busy, he has no plans to put Mr. Icy on pause.

With the tips he made, Lockery was able to buy a vendor's canopy to keep the business going throughout the winter. Next on the list is a heater and silent generator to book future parties and events.

"I did so much research to sell my icies in the winter," he said. "I'm still looking for where to store 400 gallons of ice for the winter; it's a lot of hard work. I'm almost booked for September. It's been amazing."

Mr. Icy is just the beginning for Lockery as he plans to one day buy an ice cream truck to continue serving the community, especially those who are not mobile.

If you have yet to spot the 14-year-old at Kennedy Park in Fall River, you can still catch him between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. throughout the week.

You can follow the Mr. Icy Facebook page to stay updated on daily flavors and the different locations where he'll be.