How I Saved Up and Went to Iceland at 14

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I sold a box of candy bars everyday, for my whole 8th grade year of school.

I’m not completely sure when it happened, but at some point during elementary school, I became fascinated by the world. Since then, it has just gotten stronger and stronger each day, my passion for traveling, despite the fact I had never left the United States in my 14 years of living. Everyday I thought about the world- wandering new cities, riding my bike through foreign countrysides, shopping at local markets, being surrounded by and speaking all sorts of languages, surfing in new oceans, eating new food, meeting Earth’s people, and just getting out there. The only problem, though, was (and still is) that my family couldn’t really afford to travel...
So, finally, I got to researching and realized I could do some kind of Summer-teen-travel thing that I could pay for myself. So, I did. And I fell in love with this Iceland trip that was a road trip around the mystical country, Iceland’s Ring Road. (IF YOU WANT TO HELP ME LEARN ITALIAN THIS SUMMER, GO TO: gofundme.com/getjessetoitaly
I got to work. First thing, I ordered four boxes of Snickers bars with around 30 bars in each. I sold out the first day, selling almost 90 bars for a dollar each. I was ecstatic! At this rate, I could definitely save up for my Nordic adventure. I quickly expanded to Kit Kats, Twix bars, M&Ms, Reese’s, Sugar Daddies, Crunch bars, Tootsie Pops, Hersheys and Mr. Goodbars, with the occasional Milky Way. The kitchen table was in no time covered in dozens of boxes of chocolate. Everyday I packed my box, went to school, and sold all day. During class, in between classes, on the bus to and from school, and on my walk home from my stop I advertised my selection and sold out nearly everyday of the week. It was amazing. I kept it up for months, from January to the last day of school- I juiced every last dime I could out of that school. At some point, I even had a second seller selling for me! They saw how well business was and asked to support my cause by selling another box for me.
On my later boxes, I made sure to show I was raising money for a trip abroad by writing “HELP FUND MY TRIP” and pasting a printed version of the Icelandic program above the candy. Once my teachers knew the money was going toward a good cause, they let me sell during their class and even bought some themselves. Selling the last bar of the box felt great everytime and I cannot ever explain how happy I am I sold candy for this trip.

There is no way I would have been able to travel this Summer if it weren’t for this brilliant and actually really fun business. I will never forget my Icelandic adventure and cannot wait to get back to the wonderful country and into the world. And I also know I will ever look at a Snickers bar again the same.

My second seller's box….a little more simple, very straight to the point-$$

Me, on the way to the airport…..I was scared and nervous but so so so so so excited for everything to come.