Until Next Time, Union County!

It's the last day of FELC! Well wishes to you, Wingate! See you next time. Today is sad day for most of our students because for some companies, they finally started getting their companies in the groove. I think they have all agreed that is a lot of fun making money!

This morning we presented our Virtual Trade Missions. Each company came up with a product to send to a foreign country in order to make a profit. Talk about creative! Some students chose to send textbooks to Australia, one team sent pencils to Africa, and another sent fertilizer to Brazil! 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 president, vice president, and chief financial officer of each company will meet with the company store manager (AKA Brian, our program director) 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, the time we've been waiting for - let's send out a big CONGRATULATIONS to TEAM VIRTUE for winning this week's competition! Team Virtue was a publications company and that sold picture/video slideshow DVD at the end of the program. They also sold advertising for other companies and hosted a photo booth! They excelled in the essay contest and the commercial contest and had a really talented group of students who worked hard it all paid off! We are so proud of every one of our FELC students and applaud their determination to succeed and push through their personal and business struggles.

Next stop...West Palm Beach Atlantic University in Florida! See ya in a few weeks wearing shorts and sunshades! Until next time, peace and blessings!