GREAT FALLS — The Spring Fever Craft Show was put on by the Great Falls Farmers’ Market on Saturday to get people excited and ready for the upcoming farmers market season.
“I think it's fun because you get to see vendors you haven't seen all winter,” Said Erin Borland, the Chairman for the Great Falls Farmers’ Market Board of Directors, “You get to see the community out and you kind of get, like I said, a preview is kind of what's coming. I always like to see what new things vendors are doing and it's just a fun event for the community.”
The show featured more than 70 venders selling everything from handmade jewelry to soaps as a preview for what can be expected come market season, which starts on June first. All the profits from the event go into the Great Falls Farmers’ Market’s Scholarship Fund.
“We've teamed up with Great Falls Public School Foundation, and we sponsor several scholarships,” Borland said, “What we do is we try to gear those towards applicants that show some sort of entrepreneurial spirit.”
An example of some business-minded kids are Morgan and Maeghan, who are only in eighth grade but already know the basics of running a business through Grizz Biz.
“Grizz Biz is a student ran business located at North Middle School where we create hand-wooden creations such as Montana cutting boards and wooden coasters,” said Morgan, “We also do custom lasering.”
Grizz Biz is open to seventh and eighth graders at North Middle School, and has three departments: Bookkeeping, Lasering, and Production.
“When I was little growing up, my grandpa actually did a lot of woodshop in the garage,” Maeghan said, “And so when I found out about all the things I could be doing at the school, it made me really want to join.”
The Farmers’ Market is a community, and they are always looking to welcome new vendors. This year the weeknight market will also be returning.
“The vendors that are next to each other become friends. They help each other out. There are people that come down and look for the same vendors every Saturday,” said Borland, “But the other cool thing is it's always changing, too. We always take in new vendors, so there's always that little bit of variable that kind of just gets more people out there and brings more things to the community.”
The craft show was a great way to get vendors back together before the first Farmers’ Market in June.
For more information on the Farmers’ Market click here. For more information on Grizz Biz, click here.
