Thank you for making our 10th season so successful!

Over the past 6 months, more than 55,000 customers attended 48 Saturday and Tuesday markets where 85 local vendors provided fresh fruits and vegetables, delicious prepared foods, meat, cheese, eggs, bread, preserves, honey, beautiful bedding plants and flower bouquets, and handmade arts and crafts.

 

More than 40 neighborhood businesses and organizations shared their work at the market as sponsors, community tables, or participants in special event days that ranging from Bike Day to Scandinavian Day to the Native American Day Celebration. Families enjoyed 6 market story times hosted by the East Lake Library and 6 “Second Saturday” community learning activities with Master Naturalist Martha Zemur. Customers sampled recipes featuring market meat and produce at 5 Midtown Flavors cooking demonstrations headed up by market volunteer Lisa McDonald, and Master Gardeners provided expertise on 17 market Saturdays.

 

More than 12,000 pounds of produce were donated to Sisters’ Camelot by vendors and customers. And during our 3rd season of offering a $5 match in Market Buck coupons for customers using SNAP-EBT at the market*, Outreach Organizer Maria Alvillar distributed information at over 40 area organizations, leading to a record $18,500 in EBT token sales and more than $8,000 in Market Bucks dispersed. Dedicated volunteers put in over 800 hours of work for the market this year-they provided music, helped at the market booth, gave us a hand with set-up and take-down, and completed fundraising and marketing projects as part of the Midtown Farmers Market’s Advisory Committee.

 

Finally, our 10th Season has been filled with community investment, connections, and celebration of the neighborhood that can’t be quantified. Thank you for a wonderful year. We’ll look forward to reuniting at next year’s season opener on May 4, 2013!

Give to the Max: November 15th!

While the season has come to an end, the market wheels are still turning as we look to next year’s season and how we can better serve the market community. But we can’t do it alone! We need your help. One of the simplest ways you can help is to give. And what better day to give to the market than on Give to the Max day, November 15th. To make it even easier, this year Give MN offers the option of scheduling your donations now.

Vendor fees pay for only 50% of the cost of running the market, which is why support from the community is vital to keep the market thriving! When you support the Midtown Farmers Market, you’re supporting local farmers, sustainable agriculture, and healthy communities–you’re helping to create the kind of community we all want to live in. So, schedule your donations now, or mark your calendars to donate to the Midtown Farmers Market during this year’s Give to the Max Day November 15th!