The Wareham High School gymnasium was packed for the fourth annual DECA Home and Living Show, an event that connected businesses and the public while providing students a chance to hone their marketing skills.

On March 17 and 18, the show hosted around 60 vendors advertising their products or services to enhance homes. Most of the companies were recruited by members of DECA, Wareham’s branch of the national Distributive Education Clubs of America. The club is a vocationally-oriented sales and marketing program for high school students, who take several classes in marketing, promotion, sales and financial literacy.

"It's a good way for businesses to get different customers," said Molly Spinner, a member of Wareham High School's DECA club. "It's a one-stop place where you can go."

Club members were responsible for finding vendors to pay for a booth in the show and making sure things ran smoothly.

The proceeds from the show directly benefit the DECA students. The club meets during and after school and helps students prepare for their futures in the fields of marketing, finance, hospitality and management. Most of the proceeds will go to helping students travel to the national DECA competition in Atlanta on April 21.

The Home & Living Show is one of the biggest fundraisers for the DECA club, which uses the money raised to finance travel to several business competitions around the country, including the national competition.

Spinner has been a member of DECA for three years and said it has taught her many life skills.

"You meet a lot of people from different grades, you become friends with them and you learn things that you could potentially take with you," she said.

Many people from the community stopped by the Home and Living Show on Saturday to visit the vendors. Christine Cinelli was a vendor representing Imagination Destinations Travel for the second year. She also teaches at Wareham High School.

"I love to support [DECA]," Cinelli said. "They're absolutely a great bunch of kids who are working hard and representing our community in the best way possible. A lot of times in our community our kids get a bad rap, and that couldn't be further from the truth."

The Home and Living Show will also be held on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Wareham High School gym.