Sprouting hope, one bouquet at a time

Ten years ago, Advertising and Public Relations alum Kelly Krenzel found herself assembling bouquets in the basement of her home. She shared her idea—to re-purpose flowers and deliver them to those going through hard times—with a friend who owned a floral shop. The friend’s clients started donating their flowers to Kelly when they didn’t have use for them anymore.

“I would pick them up on my lunch break or after work—whenever I could, really,” she says.

BS in Integrated Advertising and Public Relations

Kelly re-arranged the flowers into small bouquets and packed them in her car, hoping to deliver them to individuals in places like recovery or hospice centers.

“I’m sure they thought I was a telemarketer or something,” Kelly jokes. “I’d call and ask if I could bring their residents flowers, and I would have to convince them that it didn’t cost anything.”

In the last decade, Kelly’s non-profit Hope Blooms created over one hundred thousand moments of joy and connection in the midst of challenging times. “That’s the number of hugs, times we’ve held hands with someone, created a smile, or been able to sit with a person and create the space they deserve—to know that they are loved and cared for,” she says.

Kelly Krenzel is the recipient of Minnesota State Moorhead’s Dragon Impact Award for her efforts to spread joy and hope in the community around her. She is paving the way for belonging and positive change in the Fargo-Moorhead area and beyond.

Budding desires

As Kelly was growing up, she would spend a part of her summers with her Grandma Frieda. Frieda loved her gardens, but found it hard to take care of them as time went on. Kelly got down in the dirt to get rid of the weeds.

“I saw how my efforts made her so happy. She loved and cared about her gardens, and I was able to be a conduit to help her keep them as vibrant as possible. It was a beautiful thing.”

It was the simple act of weeding that planted a seed in her heart for seniors and the importance of connection. This desire grew after college, when she worked as a communications specialist at Hearts In Action (HIA) Hospice, formerly Hospice of the Red River Valley.

“I met with parents and families to tell their stories. I spent time with people in a really unique and tender time in their life.”

During her decade at HIA, she started putting the pieces together for her future nonprofit. “Thrifting is my love language, so I thought on how we could take things that are usually discarded and use them for good,” she says.

A force for good in full bloom

Kelly preparing a bouquet of flowers in Hope Blooms' space.

Hope Blooms operates strictly on donations, from the boxes used to deliver, newspapers for packing, flowers in arrangements, and jars to house the bouquets. With an operation as big as Hope Blooms—delivering around 20,000 bouquets every year—volunteers serve as the backbone.

“I feel like Hope Blooms is a love letter to our community because it takes so much community effort to donate, collect, assemble, and deliver.”

The non-profit sees around 2,500 volunteers come through the door every year. Last year Hope Blooms had 1,700 new volunteers, 700 returning from the previous year, and 90 who consistently serve on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. A frequent way volunteers serve is picking up flowers from around town to deliver to Hope Blooms.

“We have an extraordinary relationship with , and our volunteers go around weekly to all of their locations to get flowers they would otherwise pass on.”

These flowers are usually thrown away for a variety of reasons. Sometimes a huge shipment of flowers is arriving, and the store has to make space for it, or flowers die, or product hinges with the seasons and holidays. Hope Blooms also often receives flowers that were used for events.

“I see flowers as love in a physical form, so we repurpose that love and create new memories for someone in need,” Kelly says.

Hope Blooms not only creates and delivers bouquets through their Pedal It Forward program, they also provide an activity for the beneficiaries. The Flower Empower program is a therapeutic hands-on activity for older adults, individuals with disabilities, and those in recovery centers to learn and participate in creating their own bouquets.

“The amount of people that we’ve been able to interact with and meet is very humbling. People need to know that they matter. We all need that.”

Hope Blooms’ programs create that sense of belonging and care in the harshest of times. Thanks to many supporters, local and international, Hope Blooms is able to partner with places like cancer centers, abuse and crisis centers, area shelters, and recovery units to spread joy one bouquet at a time.

Hope in the heart of the giver

Kelly Krenzel has made an immeasurable impact in the hearts of the members of the community she calls home. Whether it’s the recipients of the flowers, volunteers who use an evening to create bouquets, or those who consistently deliver or donate, all are a part of crafting moments that communicate meaning and value to strangers in the midst of all walks of life.

“We all get to create moments of joy and compassion for people that we would never have a reason to interact with otherwise.”

But no one has been more impacted by Hope Blooms than Kelly.

“Hope Blooms has helped me become a more generous person. It’s helped me be more intentional about making small moments matter in my daily life. You never know what someone is carrying, and in the end, you get more by giving to others,” Kelly says. “I just feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude with all of the incredible people I get to meet.”

Ten years in, Kelly feels like Hope Blooms is just beginning. Two years ago, she was able to make it her full-time job, and the team has been growing ever since. From the humble beginnings in Kelly’s basement, to the sprawling impact it has today, Hope Blooms’ mission has stayed the same.

“We want to inspire people to create small moments of mattering for others,” she says.

Congratulations to Kelly Krenzel on receiving the 2026 Dragon Impact Award.