WEST MILFORD Forty vendors gathered for a flea market at Paradise Knolls recently to offer a range goods and services to buyer. The vendors ranged in age from 9 to 12 years old. The kids, and the program in which they participated, are known as “TREP$” short for “entrepreneurs.” Program facilitators Hayley Romano and Pamela deWaal helped the children develop their business plans over the past six weeks and get ready for the marketplace. The flea market attracted lots of consumers, helping the children find success. Success meant different things to different kids. For some, it was the independence of earning their own money, and for others it was the skills they learned along the way. For example, Jack Romano learned how to use new computer software so that he could create photographic DVD slideshows set to music. John Buechel and Dan Lougheed learned to sew in order to sell cushions and pillows, respectively. Some children already had marketable skills and just needed a sales venue. Ben and Kayla Osborne, accomplished artists, were proud to sell print copies of their oil paintings and commission house renderings to adults amazed at the ability and entrepreneurial spirit of these 11-year-old twins. Twelve-year-old writer Kelly Burke sold all 26 copies she had made of her typed 85 page book, and took orders for 14 additional copies. For all the children, success came in the realization that they were now “entrepreneurs.” The TREP$ workshops were well received by the students. Stephanie Buechel, a fifth grader, commented, “It was really fun, and you got to do a lot of activities. You don’t just sit there and they tell you about something and all you do is listen. You get to do it, too.” Paradise Knoll PTA and Lakeland Bank sponsored the program and local business owners helped work with the children. For information about TREP$, the entrepreneurship educational program, contact TREPS@optonline.net.