Cooper Craft Fair GOES GREEN!

On September 19th, Bonnie approached me at the coloring night at Frankie’s, asking if there is something that could be done about all the waste created at the Cooper Craft Fair each year. I was so grateful to her, for bringing this to my attention. 

It was a big opportunity to make a big difference. Luckily, Theresa and Rita were also at coloring night, that night and we were able to put our heads together right away. 

The first concern mentioned was about all the single-use plastic bags that were given out by crafters, so Bonnie and I set a date to make signs for the parking lots. We figured most people probably have reusable bags in their cars, and they probably just need prompting to bring them in. All together, 234 people brought reusable bags this year to the Cooper craft fair. THAT’S something to be proud of! 

The second concern was about waste being created by the coffee bar. Theresa put in a request at her work for funding, for compostable serving ware, and we waited and waited anxiously day after day, for their answer. As soon as they approved the request, Theresa ordered them from Amazon, but then they weren’t going to get here until the day of the fair! Theresa ended up actually purchasing new compostable options the day of. What a trooper! 

Bonnie and I weighed the compost after the fair, and it came to 17 lbs. 

Rita was the one who sent out the email offering crafters the opportunity to contribute to our GO GREEN efforts. In all, 17 vendors chose to contribute a total of $262.95 for the prize basket. The winner-takes-all winner was Linda Lubansky. Congratulations to her! 

Rita was also the one who contacted WCC to promote the Cooper Craft Fair and our GO GREEN initiative. Theresa and I teamed up to do the interview. We were both SO nervous! Theresa spoke about the Cooper Craft Fair and New Hope Women of Today in general, and I spoke about our GO GREEN initiative for people to bring reusable bags.

- Rachel Braaten