Just three months after graduating from Montgomery County High School, Meredith Rodgers is now an entrepreneur.

The Montgomery City resident started a business of selling lucky pennies. She got to display her business at the Fifth Annual Immaculate Conception Harvest Picnic at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds on Sept. 26.

“I love craft fairs so much,” Rodgers said. “They just have a bunch of creative people who are in the same boat as we are. It’s a comforting experience because they’re such nice people.”

Rodgers’ business was successful at the picnic as she sold 10 of her pennies for $5 each.

“These are really the first pieces I sold, which is really cool,” Rodgers said. “It was a big weight off of my shoulders.”

Rodgers was also thrilled that she ran her business next to her mother’s business, Varsity Ink, at the picnic.

“I really appreciate her so much and I’m so thankful for everything she does,” Rodgers said. “I know I put her through a lot of stress that morning because she was trying to help me with my setup and my display on top of her own.”

Rodgers said she was inspired by artist Robin Sealark for creating the lucky pennies. A Utah resident, Sealark provides tutorials and career advice in the art industry on YouTube.

“She’s been trying to grow her style and I kind of grew with her a lot of times,” Rodgers said. “She taught me so much through the years. She is honestly one of my main inspirations when it comes to art.”

Art has been a passion for Rodgers for several years. In April, she won first place and best of show for a painting of a duck swimming in a pond at the Missouri Junior Duck Stamp Conservation and Design Program art competition.

The following month, Rodgers won a pair of scholarships, a $500 Grant Gardner Memorial Scholarship and a $500 scholarship from the Montgomery County Arts Council, giving her a grand total of $1,000 of scholarship money that will help pay for her education.

Rodgers won the scholarships for a painting that included a woman with a gold head wrap, being surrounded by bees and beehives.

Rodgers is currently attending Lindenwood University in St. Charles.

“I honestly love it,” Rodgers said. “I’m so at home here.”

Rodgers also has a business called Hayloft Artist, in which she sells her lucky pennies, along with necklaces, earrings and paintings.

“It’s nice, but it’s stressful,” Rodgers said. “It’s a lot of what-ifs. It’s a lot of what if I spend all of this time and no one really cares or what if my prices were too small or too large. There was a lot of self-doubt. You want to convince yourself that you are worth the price and the time you put into it. You have to push yourself to actually get anywhere.”