At the end of each year, bright red poinsettias can be seen in homes and businesses all over. In most cases, around South County, there is a silver sticker on the side of the shiny red foil that reads, Headstart Nursery.
For more than 25 years, this local, 40-year-old wholesale nursery, owned and operated by brothers Steve and Randy Costa, has grown thousands of “Points,” as they are called in the industry. This year more than 70,000 of them have once again been offered at a discount to non-profit organizations, many of them local, to be resold to help raise funds for their causes.
Generally, non-profits sell each plant for about $5 more than they purchase it for. By doing some quick math, one can see that Headstart Nursery is directly responsible for helping charities raise around $350,000 this year alone.
All of Gilroy’s agriculture and farming families and businesses are not only an important part of our local economy, they are extremely charitable in their own ways. When we consider the amount of money that has been raised since the beginning of this generous program, from just Headstart Nursery, most could agree that all agriculture in South Santa Clara Valley should not only be appreciated, but that it’s essential.
Greg Bozzo
Gilroy
