On Sept. 11, at MudLOVE Pottery, Tippecanoe Valley High School students from the Kosciusko County Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) visited MudLOVE Pottery in downtown Warsaw for a behind the scenes look at what it takes to run a successful and fun business that gives back!

Kyle Garberson, Operations Manager of MudLOVE, shared with this year’s YEA! class MudLOVE’s own entrepreneurial success story, where the business idea came from, what the challenges have been and what skills it takes to keep the business running. YEA! students were able to tour the facility and go behind the scenes to see every step that it takes to create a MudLOVE bracelet and also heard from David, MudLOVE’s potter, and saw first-hand how not just the owners, but everyone working at MudLOVE pottery share the same passion and desire to bring safe water to people in Africa.

During our tour David stated, “For every mug I make and sell, provides water for somebody for a whole year…and that’s pretty amazing”.

MudLOVE Pottery is a business in downtown Warsaw that, “was built on the idea of giving back. Starting with nothing more than an old stamp set, a box of clay, and an unadvised business plan of giving 20 percent of all sales to clean drinking water projects in Africa”.

YEA! is a groundbreaking program that teaches students how to make a job- not take a job! In addition to lessons inside the classroom, YEA! introduces students to all types of areas of business through field trips, guest lectures, introducing them to business mentors and community leaders.

By engaging in this hands on approach to learning, students are able to identify with what it takes to start a business that is focused on giving back and how this applies to starting your own business. It is trips like this that make YEA! the unique experience that it is and takes experiential learning to a whole new level!

The Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) program is provided, in part, by the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce. For more information or to become involved please contact Renea or Andrea at the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce at 1-574-267-6311 or by visiting www.kchamber.com.