RM | NEIGHBORS HANDMADE WITH A HIGHER CAUSE New Florence shop offers decor and more Grow2Gather Manager Amy Johnson hugs employee Josh Fankhauser while the two were chatting at the New Florence store. by Paul Newton | pnewton@ruralmissouri.coop here's just a little bit of everything going on inside the country craft store. A couple passing by stopped to check out some of the fall decorations and homemade candles that are making way for the upcoming Christmas displays. Other employees in the back are painting their next project to be sold - wooden angels. Others are in the wood shop sanding items. And customers take a break from shopping at the in-house coffee and breakfast shop. But crafts, coffee and candles aren't just what makes this place special. It's the mission that brings all these folks together. For more than five years, Grow2Gather in New Florence has employed those with all abilities and offered handmade crafts, home decor items, furniture and more from their shop just off Interstate 70. Their items are made and T 28 RURAL MISSOURI | DECEMBER 2023 sold on-site and also found in stores in Warrenton and Hermann. Grow2Gather is a self-funded program through the Developmental Disabilities Assistance Board of Montgomery County. The board bought the storefront in 2017 and manager Amy Johnson joined the following year. " It's a huge winding road how we got here today from just starting with candles, " she says. " But we've just kind of added things as we've grown to serve our employees and the public. " Grow2Gather has about two dozen employees between all their operations. " We wanted the store to be integrated with employees of all kinds of abilities, " Amy says. " It was important to us that we did that and paid at least minimum wage. " The employees work for four hours each weekday morning and six hours on Saturday and range in age from 18 to their mid 80s. They make items for the store or help in