And the winners is.....

First of all, thank you to everyone who entered! Jen and I had so much fun reading through the entries—there were over a thousand pages,not including the business plans so many of you uploaded and put so much heart and soul into! (They were my favorite to look through!) THANK YOU! We were truly inspired by each and every proposal.

We narrowed it our top ten and then sent those applications to the Mother/Founder judges (aka all the mothers from our book), and when I say it was a close call, it was a very close call. One M/F judge even refused to vote because it was just too hard…she felt badly picking only three. Same girl, same.

Our grand prize winner was Dr. Maureen Nicol of Our House Baltimore! She was nominated by a friend who took so much care and time to explain the basis of Our House Baltimore and it really resonated with us. To quote Seun, “More recently, Maureen launched Our House Baltimore, a play space and cafe for children from birth to age five and their caregivers. It is financially accessible, deeply thoughtful, and rooted in community care. Maureen has a gift for creating spaces that are not only beautiful but also truly needed. She understands what it means to support the entire family and to build places where people feel seen and valued. Despite many challenges, Maureen has continued to push forward and is close to opening the doors of Our House. Her perseverance and vision are inspiring. This business is not just for her, it is for the families and community it will uplift. I cannot think of a more deserving mother and founder to this scholarship.”

Sounds like an amazing and special place. Maureen, we can’t wait to see Our House Baltimore take shape! Congratulations!

Second place is Soli Cooksey of Joonbird! Soli had a booming business just until a January when her studio and home burned to the ground in the LA fires in Altadena. To quote Soli, “First and foremost, my goal is to restart my business within 3 to 6 months and come back better than before. I am currently in the process of re-creating all my patterns and sourcing fabrics. But beyond this, my goal is to always use sustainable fabrics and materials and not to contribute to textile waste. Having an ethically run business is extremely important to me and I'm very proud of the way I've been running my business. I design every item in the shop myself, use vintage fabric or design my own fabric and print it on deadstock, and every item is made locally in Los Angeles. I am so proud to have a business that is 100% sustainable and helps support our local businesses.”

First and foremost we are so incredibly sorry for your tragic loss. We are inspired by your resilience and hope this helps with your rebuilding goals. We look forward to following along on your journey. Thank you Soli!

And third place goes to Lacy Myers of Wild Hallow Farm in Kansas! She is a first generation farmer which has been her only income since before her third child (of five) was born. She says, “Currently my income drops significantly in the winter months because outdoor crops can't be grown in Kansas in the winter. I'd love to refinish my shop building and put in plumbing in order to run a microgreens operation during the winter months that would double as a seed-starting setup in the spring and a wash-pack station during the main season. It would allow me to expand my business significantly.”

We hope this helps you build your greenhouse and we can’t wait to follow along on your entrepreneurial journey. Thank you Lacy!

These were our runner ups! I wish we had prizes for all. Their proposals and business plans were so thoughtful and smart and I hope each of you find ways to expand your businesses as you dream. Thank you for applying!

And congratulations Maureen, Soli and Lacy!

xx—Amanda Jane Jones