The moment we have been waiting for has finally come – the entire Greenhouse Education Center Team is finally together! We are a group of six twenty-something-year-old #fresh fanatics, and we are already feeling like a family. It is amazing to have such a diverse group of team members working alongside one another with the same goals in mind. While some of us are studying Agribusiness, others Biology, and still others Marketing and Global Studies, we are all equally passionate about showing people how greenhouse growing works at NatureFresh Farms. By creating a team with members that have such a range of experience and interests, there are a huge variety of perspectives on greenhouse growing that are being shared with our audience at the Greenhouse Education Center, making for countless fascinating conversations and endless learning opportunities.
Here is my breakdown of the team:
Cole Burkholder
1) Loves classic rock
2) Country boy to the core
3) Rocks the Dad look
Noah Mefrakis
1) Always a gentleman
2) Continuously smiling
3) Huge country music lover
Herman Fehr
1) Forgetful and yet always on top of things
2) Rap star
3) Meme king
Hailey Quigley
1) Small but fierce
2) Full of energy
3) Always smiling and goofing around
Mitch Monaco
1) Lover of EDM and Taylor Swift
2) Endless positivity
3) Fitness guru
I cannot believe how lucky I am to have the privilege of working so closely with such energetic, supportive young people for the summer!
Our first trip with the entire squad brought us to the beautiful, diverse state of Ohio. We made stops in Warren, Mentor, Cleveland, and Sheffield, and each of the stops we made was at a Sam’s Club store. In every city we visited, people loved hearing about the growth of our NatureFresh Farms location in Delta, Ohio – just as Ontarians are excited about locally-grown produce, the people of Ohio love seeing the Ohio Proud label on produce grown in their home state, as well. Before visiting Ohio (as this was my first time travelling to the Buckeye State), I had no idea that the people there were as interested in buying locally as they are at home in Ontario.
This trip was also the first time that the Greenhouse Education Center has visited a Sam’s Club store. It was great to be a part of the first visit to Sam’s Club because we were the first witnesses of how customers were responding to our TOMZ snacking tomatoes and Ohio Red tomato products in this specific retailer location. There were dozens of moments on this trip when members of our team would be standing at the sampling table, and a visitor to the trailer would recognize the TOMZ label and share with us that they buy our tomatoes all the time, and that they are always great! It was amazing to be able to see the power of the brand unfold right before our eyes, and realize how a pairing of awesome flavor with eye-catching branding can have so much impact. The trailer itself seems to work the same way – people at Sam’s Club would spot the GEC from all the way across the parking lot because of the beautifully vibrant colors of the bell peppers, tomatoes, and signage. They would be intrigued, come over to check out the setup, and leave with a little more knowledge about, and a lot more confidence in, the NatureFresh Farms company and product. What more could we want?
As the team gears up for what is undoubtedly going to be an exciting summer, I cannot stop thinking about how unbelievably lucky we all are, as young, ambitious students, to be given an opportunity to meet new people and see new places while pursuing our passions, constantly learning as we go. When I told my friends back home in Waterloo and Owen Sound that I was offered a position with the GEC Team, they could not believe that touring around Canada and the USA with a mobile greenhouse all summer was an actual job – to them, it sounded like it was too good to be true. At this point, with a few trips under my belt, I am starting to think the exact same way. What other company would think to hire a team of twenty-something-year–olds to travel all summer to beautiful cities to show new people why greenhouse growing, bumble bees, and #fresh produce are awesome? I dare you to try and find a company like this one – you are going to have a tough time. Thank you, NatureFresh Farms, for the opportunity of a lifetime.
-Britt
