Candy Bars or Greenhouse Organics for School Fundraising?

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I needed a break from ranting on the economy–actually my rants have been on how our so-called leaders have been addressing the economic crisis–and came across a great story today that I thought would be interesting to talk about.

Surf City Growers has released a neat product that schools and youth groups can use instead of the traditional candy, cookies, hoagies and other junk foods normally sold in fundraising efforts called “My First Organics“.

My First Organics is a seed starting kit that includes everything from the seeds to organic soil and even a recyclable and reusable mini Greenhouse, and it costs under $15 allowing schools and groups to earn $5 per kit sold for their fundraising needs.

Not only is this healthy and eco-friendly, but I can recall from my younger days of selling the usual crap to raise money for school projects, field trips, as well as for cub and boy scouts. We never cared about what we were doing. We didn’t get very involved. Heck, most of the time we sent our box of candy with Dad to work and let him do the selling for us.

But I can see these kits being more engaging for the kids. Kids love to learn and explore (even though they may not always act like it), they love to be involved in something that feels real–like growing a plant or hatching chicks in science class–and some love to just play with dirt (this was me as a boy).

So, not only are these kits better from both health and environmental perspectives, but I really believe they could have a real connection with the kids involved in fundraising with them and that’s just cool.

And now I feel better for having written about something good for a change here.

Technorati Tags: fundraising, kids, organics, schools