This Saturday afternoon, the Elks Lodge will be packed with Bend's youngest entrepreneurs, each running their own booth and selling something they made themselves. The Kid’s Entrepreneur Market will feature nearly 60 makers & artists between the ages 7-17, ready to pitch you on their handmade goods.

     Founder Mary To-Saturnio started the market in 2022 after watching her own kids pour endless creative energy into lemonade stands, painted rocks, and arcade games built from recycled cardboard. She wanted a real venue for them, and for the other kids she figured were just like them. What started as small library pop-ups has grown into a quarterly event that fills its vendor slots within days.

     It's also an eco-friendly market, and the creativity that comes out of that constraint is genuinely impressive. Past vendors have included a girl who melted down mesh produce bags into earrings, a 13-year-old doing remarkably accurate pet portrait commissions, and a kid 3D-printing toys with filament made from corn. This weekend's lineup includes baked goods, hand-sewn accessories, ceramics, slime, comics, candles, finger skateboards, and yes, compost worms (there truly will be something for everyone!).

     The kids handle everything themselves: managing the money, answering customer questions, packaging up products, and figuring it out when something doesn't go their way. It's a real chance for them to build confidence, practice money skills, and have actual conversations with adults outside their usual circle.

     My girls are still too little to set up a booth, but I'm planning to bring them by anyway. I think there's something powerful about kids seeing other kids running the show. It plants the idea early that this is something they could do too. Hope to see you there!