“Have you had any of my sister’s granola?”
For Laura Carter, that question started it all. After growing tired of store-bought granola, Laura began to develop her own recipe, not thinking much of it. But, 15 years later, after her sister had asked friends and family that one question countless times, Laura took a chance. She drove to The Lands at Hillside Farms, dropped off two bags of granola, and went for it. Four months later, My Sister’s Granola was born—an ode to that pivotal question and its questioner: her sister, Meghan.
In many ways, Laura’s life has come full-circle. Born-and-raised in Wilkes-Barre, Laura’s childhood was filled with dance performances, friends, and animals (rabbits, hermit crabs, dogs, and cats—just to name a few). NEPA served as the backdrop for many of her most formative childhood experiences: she attended Heights Elementary when she was young, Wyoming Seminary in her teens, and danced at David Blight School of Dance throughout her childhood. But, when she was 21, and unsure of what direction she wanted to take her life in, Laura left Northeastern PA to join her sister in New York City. Today, after spending 15 years in New York City and five years in Denver, Colorado, Laura lives right next door to the house she grew up in, once again calling Wilkes-Barre home.
But Laura’s return to NEPA would not be nearly so significant if it weren’t for the 20 years she spent away from the area. Before My Sister’s Granola came to fruition, Laura spent over 15 years in the music industry. She credits her time spent working for companies like Live Nation and Superfly with fostering her creativity, and instilling in her a willingness to try and fail. It was that very willingness to try and fail that led her to My Sister’s Granola, and brought her back to the area.
Laura can be found all over Northeastern PA, whether she’s out hiking with her dogs, selling granola at a local farmers market, or serving her community as one of Wilkes-Barre’s Block Captains. We met up with her at Gather Community Space—the kitchen she makes her product in—to chat and, of course, to ask the burning question: Why NEPA?
How long have you lived in NEPA?
I grew up here. I stayed in Wilkes-Barre until I was like 21, and then I left for New York City. I left the Wyoming Valley for about 20 years, and then I moved back post-Covid to start fresh in my hometown.
What do you love about your town?
I love that the cultures and nationalities have changed around here. When I was growing up, it was a lot of the same. I was the most different-looking person—let me put it that way—within a however-many-mile radius. And I love that culture and nationalities have been brought to this town. The food scene is different. The growth of it is so different than when I was here. But I also love that each of these neighborhoods that we live in are still communities. There’s still the East End and there’s still the North End. That has not changed—it’s still South WB.
We have these cultural enclaves around us, whether it’s Eastern-European, Latino, Black, White, or whatever. It’s just kind of like a melting pot here in Wilkes-Barre. And that’s what keeps me here, coming from places and big cities that also have all of this culture and everything. So, this kind of melting pot that is happening here—I really appreciate it.
What’s your favorite NEPA restaurant?
It’s called Tacos El Torito Blanco, and it’s down on Carey Ave. They have some of the best fresh juices, tacos, and salsa. I mean it’s to-die-for. It’s called little white bull—I think—in English.
What’s your favorite thing to do in NEPA?
I would say hiking, and really just enjoying the outdoors; we have so much of it here. I love going to places with water, especially for my dogs. I have some secret spots that I’m not going to tell anybody about. Well, because there’s nobody on that trail, right? I can just let my dogs run free. That’s their natural habitat. That’s what I love for them to be able to do. Like, I’ll have a week where I’m not able to get my dogs to the woods, and it’s a sad week for me. So, when I get to go into nature, I see how much better that makes my entire week. You just have to be in it, and it heals you. Mother Nature is there for you. So, yeah, that’s my favorite.
What’s next for you?
The growth of My Sister’s Granola is really my next step. How do I get into the hands of more people? On the back of every package the first ingredient is love. And that’s such a true statement for me—I’m not making granola just to make granola. Really though, you can go get granola anywhere. I mean, I know mine is amazing—I agree—but this passion is going to help me fuel a 501(c)(3) so that I can rescue animals. That’s a driver for me. I do a lot of rescuing, fostering, trapping, and treating of animals in my neighborhood. I work very closely with the SPCA and animal control to help as much as I can. So, the growth of My Sister’s Granola leads me to saving animals. That’s it. That’s the path. That’s my passion and push to grow this thing.
And, get love to people. Food is love. What we put in our mouth and who’s making it is an energetic situation. We don’t really realize that. I know that kind of goes a little bit deeper, but there’s an energy that comes through the food we’re eating. So, if I can help put more love into the world, via people and animals, I truly think that the world will be a better place.
Where do you see NEPA heading in the future?
I think there’s going to be a resurgence of younger generations staying here to make money, and putting it back into our area. All of my friends and I left for 20 years, but I’d love and I’d hope to see a resurgence of younger generations staying here to make their lives at 20 and 30 years old. So that, hopefully, more businesses come to help support salaries for people who are going to college.
Like maybe you go away to college and you still come back because you can make money in this area, and still be here with the access to Philly and New York, and the ability to go see shows. It’s such a great, easy place to be—even to fly out of. There’s a lot of things here, so I’m hoping that we see that resurgence come through so that this area starts to thrive again not only with an older generation and a very young generation, but with this middle generation. And I think if we all work on it a little bit, those things will happen along the way.
Why NEPA?
Because it’s a kind and simple place. Life isn’t overly complicated. You can walk down the street and smile at someone and say hi. There’s not a heavy weight here like I felt in other cities. It’s not a grind here. NEPA is a community-driven place. We don’t have a big city like a Philly, or something like that, keeping us going. So having our farmers and having local people and having these communities is really why I want to stay here—to help support that, and to enjoy it. To enjoy life a little bit without this heavy weight that seems to be everywhere else. To me, it’s just a lighter and brighter place to be.
