Aubrie Greene, the 17-year-old CEO of the Virginia-based Breezzy's Lemonade, has died under unexplained circumstances, according to a Facebook post from a partner restaurant.
Pig & Brew, a BBQ restaurant that collaborated with Breezzy's Lemonade, announced Greene's death on Wednesday, stating that he "shone brightly" and built a business that "inspired so many." The post added that Greene's "vision, work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit made a lasting impact on our community, and his legacy will continue to live on through the lives he touched."
Greene's mother, Ceydria McCray, confirmed her son's death to 8News but declined to provide details regarding the cause, stating she was still processing the tragedy. She described Greene as "the life of the party and the ray of sunshine in our family" and "the kid who dared to be different, dreamed bigger than his age and kept all lanes clear to it."
Greene founded Breezzy's Lemonade at age 11, starting the business from his mother's kitchen. Initially, he sold homemade lemonade around the Richmond area, eventually progressing from cups to pouches and then to sealed bottles as demand grew. His products later appeared on supermarket shelves.
Derek Houston, a business analyst at The Market at 25th, the first supermarket to stock Greene's drinks, recalled the lemonade being a fast-moving product. "It’s a really fast-moving product and people want it," Houston told WRIC at the time. "It was really impressive when it first came in and people were coming in asking where it was, but it was already gone."
