Guest speakers from the greater Minisink Valley community always bring real life stories into the classroom setting with the intent they serve as teachable moments for students.
That was again exemplified when Renée Meola, owner of Foundry 42+ in Port Jervis, visited Victoria Ingrassia’s eighth-grade Period 2 FACS students to learn about their "Fill Your Mug Fridays" coffee/tea cart they launched at the onset of the school year and offer suggestions and guidance about their entrepreneurial endeavor.
When community business owners speak to students, they provide a real-world context for their education, support the development of students' skills and build positive perceptions of businesses. These interactions can make learning more relevant, show students the connection between school and a career, help bridge the gap between the classroom and the professional world and even introduce them to career opportunities.
Foundry42+ was established in 2016 and bought by Ms. Meola (who had been its general manager) in 2023. Over the years (and through a pandemic) Foundry 42+ has become a community center, popular café, event venue and retail boutique for locals and visitors.
Students asked questions about her business (and coffee) while Ms. Meola offered a huge amount of advice, including the importance of being innovative, self-motivated and being open to customer feedback. She also reminded students about the need to pay attention to details and problem solve.
“What you’re selling is not just what they’re walking out with in their hand, but what’s in their heart,” she stressed, noting the critical value of customer and community relations.
When students and Ms. Ingrassia talked about their exciting (and no longer a secret) news of launching an afternoon iced coffee cart program, Ms. Meola gave them some tips about preparing an iced coffee product they hoped would be appealing to faculty and staff. She also reminded them about the need to “change up” things so their coffee cart service would not become mundane.
Ms. Meola also stressed to students the importance of finding a learning opportunity in everything they’re doing with their coffee cart program, because there’s skills they can take from this experience and apply them to so many different real life situations.
“I learn every day,” she said. “Don’t start a business if you want it to be something easy. Start a business if you want it to have meaning.”