Due to the predicted weather conditions for Saturday, December, 14, 2024, we have made the difficult decision to cancel Market at the Mount. We are in the process of contacting all vendors and volunteers involved with the event.
January 30, 2019
She called a friend—who was also a vendor at the market—to help take down her product table, fearing people might make assumptions about her absence.
That call set off a chain of events that would earn White more than $500 in sales and give students an authentic lesson in business.
“Our team told vendors they could start arriving at 7:30 a.m. to setup, but we knew that many would show up even earlier,” said Enactus Co-President Annie Ertz. “Usually among those to arrive early was Jeanne White. However, I noticed she wasn’t there yet.”
They soon learned White was in the hospital. Concerned, the team—along with Enactus volunteer Patti Seda and fine woodworker Alice McCabe (also a vendor at the Market)—sprang into action and asked themselves what they could do to help.
I was devastated when I heard Jeanne was unable to come because of health issues. She had been a staple at our market pretty much since we started.
Seda left for the hospital and had an idea while visiting: Why not sell White’s product for her? White agreed and handed over her keys. Seda and Staab made the 14-mile trek to White’s rural home.
“All of her stuff to sell was neatly packed and ready to go in her car, so we moved everything into our car and headed off to the market,” Staab said.
When they arrived on campus, car brimming with lovely-smelling soaps and other handmade products, the team set up the table. White’s friend Sharon Poplawski managed the table and gave Staab and Ertz an impromptu crash course in sales.
The trio had a successful day, earning more than $500 in under three hours.
“When 1 p.m. rolled around, vendors were instructed to estimate their total dollars sold and Jeanne’s friend counted over $500,” said Ertz. “I felt pretty good about it, but Jeanne’s friend was very excited. As a vendor herself, she informed me that most vendors aim to sell about $100 per each hour.”
This is what Enactus and Mount Mercy University are all about—having mercy and compassion and helping our neighbors when they need us.
White is thankful for the help she received from the MMU students. “That’s friendship,” she said. “That’s community.”
Staab echoes that gratitude. “Looking back, I think it probably helped me more than it helped her because it allowed me to see the impact a helping hand can have on someone in need,” she said. “This is what Enactus and Mount Mercy University are all about—having mercy and compassion and helping our neighbors when they need us.”