Dedham Ice Cream Shop Provides Cones Against COVID

DEDHAM, MA - An initiative sponsored by a customer of Ron's Gourmet Ice Cream, while generally well received, has made some patrons turn cold on the ice cream parlor for giving ice cream to children who have received their COVID-19 vaccination shots.

According to a press release provided by GoFundMe.com, customer Marc Lavine created a GoFundMe page on Nov. 8 on behalf of Ron's so that the shop could provide kids between ages 5 and 11 with ice cream cones with one topping as a treat for receiving their COVID-19 vaccinations.

"In an effort to appreciate and encourage children ages 5-11 to join the ranks of people getting vaccinated against COVID-19, we're raising funds, 100% of which will go to Ron's Ice Cream in Hyde Park and Dedham, so that children under 12 with a vaccination card will receive a free ice cream with one free topping," Lavine wrote on the page. "The number of children who will be able to receive free cones will depend on how much we raise."

A $5 donation was requested for each cone.

"The famous Disney song 'a spoon full of sugar' was written based on how polio vaccine was administered...with a sugar cube," he continued on the GoFundMe page. "Here's our chance to 'sweeten the pot' and support kids ages 5-11 to get the jab and help our community return to greater normalcy."

The GoFundMe link is here. The goal of the campaign was to raise $5,500 to pay for the ice cream. As of Friday afternoon at 4:30 p.m., $4,533 had been donated. Many chose to give anonymously.

Ron's general manager Jay Covitz, the younger son of founder Ron Covitz, said on Friday that some customers have given the business the cold shoulder, telling him that they won't come back if he is promoting child COVID-19 vaccination.

"They said they won't come back here because we are promoting kids getting vaccinated," he said.

He clarified that Ron's is not giving away free ice cream. Rather, it has all been purchased with customer donations.

"All I want people to do is show up and enjoy their ice cream," he continued. "I am remaining neutral on how people choose to vaccinate their children. The ice cream has been paid for."

He added that he was "uncomfortable asking for vaccination cards."

"If someone doesn't want to show me the card, I will just give it to them," he said.

"I think it was a really good thing for him to do," Jay Covitz said of Lavine's GoFundMe effort. "I've spoken with him, and he is a good customer."

Jay Covitz said a customer told him that there was "a gigantic thread" on a private Dedham group Facebook page where people said they would not patronize the shop because it promoted vaccinations of children. He had said it was on a group for Dedham mothers, but the administrator of that Facebook group spoke with Patch Saturday and said that the negative thread did not appear on her site.

Ali Barton, the administrator of the Real Moms of Dedham, said on Saturday that the post received 80 positive responses on her page, with one negative comment. She explained that her page may have been confused with another Dedham page and wanted to express her support of the campaign.

"The members of our group are very supportive of the endeavor," she said. "I know many Dedham moms who go to Ron's. I think this was someone taking a step to act in a supportive way during the pandemic.

"We think of it as a treat to get an ice cream cone after getting the vaccine," she continued. "It has all been paid for through private donations. I praise Ron's for providing the ice cream."

In a statement Saturday, Lavine said "the response has been 100% positive," noting likes, shares and positive comments on Facebook sites.

"I therefore think this has generated substantial goodwill for Ron’s," he said. "While the point of this effort was to appreciate young kids for doing something unpleasant and to create a positive memory for children whose lives have been impacted by the pandemic, a nice secondary benefit is that it generates traffic for Ron’s.

"I’m surprised they’ve had some customers complain when anyone can patronize Ron’s regardless of vaccination status and they didn’t organize this effort," he continued. "The fact that some families that have chosen to vaccinate their kids can sweeten the pot with a Ron’s reward doesn’t deprive or change anything for anyone else. Fortunately, even if some customers complain, that’s dwarfed by a such substantial favorable community response."

Lavine added that he did coordinate the fundraiser with Ron's beforehand and discussed the mechanics and pricing of the cones.

"I just want to present our side," Jay Covitz said, noting he personally had received several negative comments in the shop. "I thought it was a great idea to give kids ice cream. When we were young, your parents would buy you a treat if you went through something hard."

Between Nov. 15 through Nov. 18, Jay Covitz said 23 cones were given out through the "Cones Against COVID" campaign.

Ron's has two branches, the original location in Hyde Park and a second one in Dedham Square. It has won awards over the years for its homemade ice cream, including being ranked the third-best ice cream parlor in the world in 2007 by National Geographic, according to an article in The Boston Globe. Tom Menino, the late mayor of Boston and a Hyde Park native, was known to have a scoop there, as well as former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, the article said.

The Hyde Park location started out as Twentieth Century Bowling Alleys and was founded by Ron's father, Julius, according to the shop's website. It offered snacks, beverages and soft serve cones at that time.

Ron Covitz decided to make the freshest homemade ice cream around rather than stick to soft serve, the website said. He added the ice cream shop to the bowling alley, and it is an area favorite. Ron's has been a family-run Hyde Park business for more than half a century.

Hyde Park resident Lisa Goren, who donated to the fundraiser, said she was infuriated when she learned of the COVID cone controversy.

"I think it's ridiculous to hold Ron's accountable," she said on Friday. "They are just bystanders in a sense. I was just thrilled that somebody was making an effort to be nice to people - kids - after all they have gone through during the pandemic."

Goren added that it was unfair for some customers to put the shop in the middle of something that was beyond their control.

"It's not even up to them," she said. "Somebody decided children needed a treat, and I think that's a good thing. I was just happy to give a small donation."

"I donated because I imagined how exciting it would be for the kids," added Hyde Park resident Cathy Horn. "I know I would have loved it when I was a kid. I also like to support efforts where the community comes together to do something nice."

Goren had a response to the people who are now against the ice cream parlor.

"Just chill," she said.

This story may be updated as new information is received.