How an Atlanta business is helping ‘water boys’ build a better future

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — On most weekends in Piedmont Park, you’ll find Reggie Elliot Jr. scooping and selling ice cream.

For the 19-year-old from southwest Atlanta, what started as a way to make money on busy street corners has evolved into something much more meaningful.

As a troubled teen in his community, Elliot Jr. — like many other young men in Atlanta — would sell water at busy intersections, hoping to make a quick dollar.

“It can be dangerous because you got other people that are money hungry and want more money than you,” he said. “They want to try and take what you got.”

Unfortunately, that hustle is often associated with risks.

A man is in critical condition after he was shot along an exit ramp on Interstate 20 at Joseph E. Lowery Boulevard and Lee Street Friday

According to Atlanta police, he got into an argument with a group selling water.

For Elliot Jr., incidents like these got him to start searching for something stable.

“As I got older, I started to realize selling water is not always good,” he said. “I needed something more consistent with more money coming in.”

That’s when the teenager started working for Glaciers Italian Ice, a youth entrepreneurship program that offers young men like him a chance to sell ice cream, earn an hourly wage and learn skills within a structured environment.

Glaciers Italian Ice was created by Ian Elmore-Moore, who recognized the dangers these boys faced selling water bottles on busy highways.

“I saw the young man’s passion to earn a living, but I saw them going about it in a negative way,” he said. “It wasn’t structured, wasn’t organized and was kind of dangerous.”

Elmore-Moore realized that there had to be a better way to help these young men earn money while avoiding the dangers of street hustling.

“We have to curtail the violence around it and put some parameters around it,” he explained. “We look at ourselves as the alternative to the Atlanta water boys.”

The experience has been life-changing for Elliot Jr. who has found more than just a job but also a purpose.

“This has been the best year of my life,” he concluded. “I’m now focused on building a better community and giving back, just like the guys who helped me.”

To learn more about Glaciers Italian Ice, you can visit its website.

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