Free the Seed at FVCC

The Flathead Lakers participated in the 8th annual Free The Seeds fair hosted by Land to Hand at the Flathead Valley Community College.  The theme for our booth was Seeding Hope; our attractive display included enticing visions of alternative future possibilities, shiny silver wrapped chocolate kisses right at child eye level, and a large deciduous tree waiting to be populated with bright colorful leaves. 

Susan How and Hannah Hernandez, greeted visitors at the booth with bright smiles, enthusiasm, while sharing the mission of the Flathead Lakers, ways to participate in climate resilience conversations, and invited them to contribute to decorating our tree. 

Each leaf that was added contained what people loved about the Flathead Valley, what they hoped for the future, who they were grateful for, or an age appropriate doodle.  The event was well attended with a steady stream of visitors flowing through the booths from 9am to 3 pm.  Overall, participant engagement was positive with many remarking they were thankful we were there conversing about the climate crises and what kind of future we wanted. 

A number of local people learned the Flathead Lakers are not just a baseball team but have been defenders of the watershed since 1958.  An equal number of new transplants to the Flathead Valley were introduced to the Flathead Lakers and some of our avenues of advocacy.  Additionally, several new connections were made with local producers, advocacy groups, and healthcare providers.  As the event wore down, we were finally able to sit down, catch our breath, and reflect on successfully engaging our community on climate resilience.