Martelli Sisters Presented Key to the City From Acting Mayor Patrick Keefe

Acting Mayor Patrick Keefe presented a Key to the City to the Martelli sisters, Kayla and Jordan, Saturday in recognition of their immense fundraising efforts for Alex’s Lemonade Stand, a national foundation for childhood cancer.

Kayla, a student in the honors’ nursing program at Merrimack College, and Jordan, a junior at Revere High School, have raised $60,000 in 12 years for the charitable foundation that is helping to find a cure for all children with cancer.

Keefe personally visited the Martelli sisters’ annual lemonade stand Saturday at the family home on Dale Street. He brought the gold-plated Key, which represents the highest honor that a City can bestow upon a resident, and presented it to Kayla and Jordan while multiple cameras recorded the event for posterity. Parents Don Martelli and Susan Martelli proudly watched the official presentation ceremony unfold.

“I’m proud to present this high honor to Kayla and Jordan,” said Keefe following the presentation. “We need more youth in our City engaged, willing to put the work into a cause that’s important to them. Childhood cancer is a fight worth taking on. It’s clearly important to Kayla and Jordan. If you’re committed to the work, good things will come. The Martelli girls will continue to find success in life. They earned this Key. It’s symbolic of what our community is made up of.”

Kayla Martelli, a 2022 graduate of Revere High School, said of becoming one of the few residents to receive the symbolic Key to the City, “It feels really good, it is an honor. It’s very rewarding to see everyone come out and support us through all 12 years. This lemonade stand has taught me to give back to the community, and I learned that I wanted to become a nurse from this.”

“I’m very thankful for this award,” said Jordan humbly. “We’ve been doing it for so long, and it’s great to receive so much support from the people of Revere.”