11-Year-Old Entrepreneur Takes On City of Portland….BY TIM SCHMIDT - USCCA FOUNDER |
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 I’ve
been talking to you a lot lately about the importance of hard
work. But don’t worry, you’re not the only one I’ve been preaching to about this. My kids will tell you that the idea of working hard for what you want comes up a lot in the Schmidt household. At the end of the day, though, I know that it’s less about what I tell them, and more about what I show them. They’ve each proven to me that they’ve been paying attention: Tim Jr. joined his school’s cross country team and outperformed me in a 5k this summer. Dagny has been part of a dance team for several years now, and she recently performed in Europe. And Sten has dedicated so much time to his magic tricks that I can no longer figure out how they work (ok, I’ll admit I never really could!). To say that I’m a proud father is an understatement. Even if you don’t have children of your own, you can image how blown away I was when I recently heard the story of 11-year-old Madison Root. It all started when Madison decided that she wanted to help pay for her own braces. She gathered mistletoe from her uncle’s farm, portioned the mistletoe into bags, and set out with her father to sell those bags at the Saturday Market in Portland, Oregon. Long story short, a security guard approached Madison and told her that a local ordinance prohibited her from selling the mistletoe without a permit. Here’s where it gets really good: The security guard reportedly told Madison that she could BEG for donations instead. In an interview with Glenn Beck, Madison says, “It does NOT make sense because I’m working hard to try to get something that I want, I’m doing something, I’m applying myself, and now they’re saying, ‘You don’t need to apply yourself...you can just sit down and ask for money.’” Pretty remarkable for an 11-year-old, wouldn’t you say? She continues, “What it really boils down to is this generation’s work ethic...and how it’s going right now, it’s disappointing. It disappoints me that this country has come down to begging instead of working hard for something you want and need.” It turns out that Madison comes from a family of entrepreneurs. It sounds like they are doing something right. The lesson here is simple: never, ever be afraid to go after what you want. If an 11-year-old can fight back against a government that values begging over working, surely I can continue to fight for what I believe. I don’t know about you, but Madison makes me proud to be a hard-working, responsibly armed American. Take Care and Stay Safe,
Tim Schmidt |
