Peace out, Palm Beach!

Today is final day of FELC in West Palm Beach, Florida!

The students have been hard at work making money and I am very proud to say that each and every company is IN THE BLACK! I know the students are anxious to here the winners and see who made the most money. Before we get down to doling out dollars, we have a few options to introduce to the companies.

And before we get to that, time to present our virtual trade missions! The students were to send a product to a foreign country in order to make a profit. Some students chose to send Twix candy to Canada, clean water to Bangladesh, Ford vehicles to Columbia and even General Motors cars to Canada! There were too many other ideas to list. After brainstorming ideas, the students calculated and analyzed their purchase costs, transportation expenses, storage costs, sales prices, etc. Of course, it was all "virtual" so no real transactions were made. However, great business ideas were born! It all starts with an idea.

Next, it was time to present the Founding Fathers Principles project! Each team was assigned a founding principle (including free trade, constitutionalism, equality of opportunity, the right to bear arms, etc.) and it was the team's job to educate their peers on what it means and why it's important to free enterprise! Teams could perform a skit, sing a song, write a poem, or create a video! The options are limitless! The most important requirement was the presentation MUST be between 5 and 8 minutes in length. It turns out sometimes that's harder to manage than imagined!

The final activity today was the "Company Close Out." The president, vice president, and chief financial officer of each company will meet with the company store manager (AKA Ladonna, our amazing FELC right-hand lady) for "Company Close Out." During close out, each team will count out their profits and analyze their earnings. The company's will have THREE options for what to do with their profits:

1. Keep it. It's a free enterprise system, after all! These students worked HARD for this money! The students have the absolute freedom to distribute their profits equally between their teammates or in any way they choose. However, if the company does decide to keep it, their will be a tax imposed by the government on the businesses income. The FELC government will impose a 20% income tax on the gross earnings - not the profit!
   
2. Donate it to Kiva.org. Kiva is a non-profit organization with a mission to connect people through
   
   lending to alleviate poverty. Kiva works with microfinance institutions on five continents to provide loans to people without access to traditional banking systems. Since 2008, FELC students have been contributing their profits to the online micro-finance lender Kiva.org. Through FELC staff, money is loaned to entrepreneurs in developing countries, and when loans are repaid the funds are reinvested in different entrepreneurs. This allows the network of giving to continue years after students complete FELC and helps reinforce the positive message of personal responsibility and hard work.Watch the short video below to see exactly how Kiva works!
   
   
   
3. Last but certainly not least, there has been a new addition to our FELC close-out options this year. Companies have the option to donate their money to the Reagan Hartley Memorial Scholarship fund. Let me begin with talking a little bit about Miss Reagan.
   
   Many of our graduates of the FELC program knew Reagan. She was a senior college student,

   

   Reagan loved President
   Ronald Reagan!

   age 22, studying elementary education at Western Carolina University, excited to graduate in May 2014. She had been a counselor with FELC since 2011 and was very well-known for her beautiful and hilarious quirks. She had an unwavering love for Taylor Swift and she could talk all day about her cats like they were a person. She believed every lady should own a good set of pearls and wear them for every occasion possible.
   
   On April 3, 2014, Reagan Hartley was killed by a drunk driver who was in a high-speed police chase over 90 mph. She was such a special girl who loved the students of FELC and she was supposed to be here with us this week. At the family's request, memorials may be made to our program's scholarship fund in her name. We are touched to be able to honor her legacy with pride. The funds donated in her name will be directly deposited in our FELC scholarship fund that helps students, just like the students we have this week, be able to afford and attend the FELC program. Though it may be hard to believe, there are several eager and talented students who want to come and learn from our program, but do not have the funds. The Reagan Hartley Memorial fund makes it possible for those students. You can click here to view Reagan Hartley's obituary and view her tribute video.

FINALLY! It's time for the closing ceremony! (Drumroll, please...)

Congratulations to TEAM VIRTUE! Team Virtue was an entertainment company this week and definitely hit it off with making a lot of money and acing nearly every competition! Clint Davis was Team Virtue's company counselor and his students had nothing but great things to say about him. Unfortunately, Clint had to leave early on Thursday to catch his flight and to be with his wife who was almost ready to deliver their second son! Don't worry, we took plenty of pictures to capture the moment for him! Virtue's teammate, Lawrence, won first place in the speech contest and also second in the essay contest! What a talented group of students!

Thanks to a great week of FELC, West Palm Beach.

Unfortunately, our group of students from San Salvador had to leave early - but not without a sweet note left behind for our FELC staff members!

Now we say farewell to Palm Beach (sadly!) and FELC is off to Hillsdale, Michigan! I bet the weather will be completely different than the humid air we have here in Florida. Until next week!