During the holidays, many of us talk about staying in the spirit throughout the year. Now it's a gray, cold January, and we may be having trouble keeping our pledge. All Thrive! has to do to feel that holiday spirit is to think back to the contributions of a group from Kansas Farm Bureau Financial Services.

Brooke Ediger, Tiffany Lund, Autumn Burfict, Shauna Heise, and Angela Preston from Kansas Farm Bureau Financial Services supported Thrive! this December by participating in a tree decorating contest, and their tree won!

The Thrive!-themed tree provided items for Thrive! group meals and youth programming such as board games, crayons, kitchen utensils, and bows made of dish cloths. The tree included a display board to educate the KFB Financial staff about the purpose of Thrive!

Thank you, Brooke, Tiffany, Autumn, Shauna, and Angela for supporting Thrive! — and for helping us keep our holiday spirit well into the new year!

Thrive! Coach Tana Warner decided it was time to challenge Thrive! Leaders' abilities.  For several months, Leaders had been fine-tuning budgeting and communication skills, nutrition basics, meal planning, and household logistics. It was time to put those skills to the test.

The Challenge: Plan a healthful, hot meal for 60 people. The meal must be prepared at home and transported to the Hult Activity Center. It will include an entrée, fruit or vegetable, and dessert. Your budget is $75, or $1.25 per person! Every participant must participate and save your receipts.

The Process: After electing a team leader, the group firmed up the menu and made a shopping list. Next, it was time to decide who could do what based on work schedules and kids. They also took an inventory of what kitchen equipment each owned and made a plan to borrow additional equipment from Thrive! staff and friends. (The group's planning meeting is pictured above!)

The Results: The team captain led the shoppers, cooks, setup team, and cleanup team to victory. The weekly Thrive! dinner was served hot, on-time, and on budget. Diners enjoyed the white bean chili and savored the desserts.

“I was impressed with the leaders,” comments Tana. “They put our shopping, budgeting and meal plans to the test.”

Thrive! Leaders meet weekly for 18 months to learn skills centered on helping each leader achieve individual goals. Leaders are guided by Thrive! staff and community mentors, or Allies. If you are interested in becoming a community mentor, please contact Executive Director Jayme Morris-Hardeman at [email protected] or submit the contact form on our website.