Nanci Gale-Wilson, Member Service Manager at North Star Community Credit Union’s Grafton, ND branch, conceived the “Seeds-2-$ave” project when she was completing her CUDE training last year. Now, this May, the community project has been launched! Through this program, with the tag line, "Teaching our youth to nurture their funds to a bountiful growth,” children learn entrepreneurship of planting, growing, picking and selling their very own vegetables while saving some of their profits in their savings account at the credit union. Wilson recently provided an update on the project for the Memo.
“Our first Seeds-2-$ave group meeting was with a master gardener, where we learned all about the parts of a plant and how it contributes to growing the produce,” says Wilson. “Our second meeting was at Grafton Floral, where we all made a list of the items that we wanted to grow, and each child chose an item off that list and went on a greenhouse hunt,” she continued. At the next meeting, the group will be learning how to use coffee espresso grounds to enrich their garden soil.
This is a truly a community project, with the garden land, seeds and seedlings donated by the local greenhouse and floral shop, Grafton Floral. The planting and picking class is being taught by a local farmer, and the selling of the vegetables will be held at the local farmers market later this summer.
