The first Entrepreneur Jubilee in Eden Prairie brought together business leaders and community members Sept. 20 to celebrate innovation.
Brad Canham, an entrepreneurship professor at the University of St. Thomas Opus College of Business, co-founded the event alongside holistic health and wellness coach Vanessa Nordstrom and creative director and designer Jeff Griffith four months ago. The event promoted prosperity and entrepreneur connections in Eden Prairie.
Canham said about 200 people attended Saturday’s event.
In an email sent to the team that worked on the jubilee, Canham said the event is just one part of a greater plan he has to strengthen entrepreneurship in Eden Prairie.
“For me, the jubilee has always been one part of a wider local project to strengthen the conditions for prosperity in Eden Prairie at a time when economic conditions for many are uncertain,” Canham said. “As it happens, Eden Prairie is a weirdly successful launching pad … for local efforts that are exportable models for strengthening civil society.”
Taylor Schultz, left, director of organizational development at Canopy Mental Health Consulting, speaks as executive director Candace Hanson stands beside her. 
Steph Davies, left, and Brianna Hughes, co-founders of Little Rebels Kids, showcase their kid-sized vegetable cubes at the Entrepreneur Jubilee. 
Manfred Maiers creates “working art” from salvaged technology, including a glass insulator lamp, left, and a vintage film camera converted into a Bluetooth speaker, right. 
Inventor Bob Albertson displays tools now sold in more than 20,000 stores. He is also developing industrial hemp applications for energy storage, insecticides and other products. 
Left: String Theory, an acoustic trio associated with Musicians of Tomorrow in Edina, performs a set that included Beatles hits and Henry Mancini’s “Moon River.” Right: Eden Prairie Mayor Ron Case visits exhibits at the Entrepreneur Jubilee, including Life Wave, a wellness and business initiative. 
Vanessa Nordstrom, owner of F.Y.T. HealthWellness in Eden Prairie, speaks at the Sept. 20 Entrepreneur Jubilee.
