Farmers’ market musings

Mary Kelley
Maclaine Fiori came by the Farmers’ Market Table one Tuesday to
say hello to her former fourth grade teacher, and it turned out she
was interested in volunteering with me at the Market Table. As
promised, she showed up on the following Saturday, ready to help.
By then, Shelby Manoukian and Taya Levine had already been there
since 7 a.m., positioning the signage and setting up the Market
table and trailer, which freed me up to help farmers and vendors
find their parking spaces. Kate Barrett had recently finished
rebuilding the Market trailer the week before, and Susan Rose would
arrive soon to help throughout the day. At the end of the day,
Dayton Hiles would help to pick up the signs and pack everything
back up in the Market truck.
All this support arrives at a time when one of our regular
market volunteers, Judy Biondollilo has had other commitments on
Saturdays, and I have a sprained rotator cuff. Now, more than ever,
I appreciate the help. Although tomatoes are six weeks behind where
they were last year, the market is filled to the brim, and helping
farmers and vendors with parking between 7:30 and 8:30 can be
hectic.
The sales of Farmers’ Market totes, tees, and caps are the only
fundraiser for our non-profit, but they only sell when volunteers
are at the Market Table to sell them. All these volunteers do a
tremendous service to the market, and I love their company; but
what makes me REALLY happy is seeing the market trailer fill up
with produce. The members of the team take turns visiting the
farmers and other vendors and planning their meals for the week.
Susan Rose has a cooler that is full by the end of the market. Judy
and Taya and Kate make their usual rounds and stash their produce
on the trailer. Dayton is still in high school, and these are
Shelby’s last few months of living at home, so I don’t expect to
see them making purchases of produce. That’s why I was startled
when their peer, Maclaine, bought her own market canvas tote and
filled it with produce.
I asked her what she had purchased, and I helped her match a
name to the farmers she had visited: cherries from Neufeld Farm;
mixed salad greens from Mario Ortiz of Ortiz Brother’s Farm;
strawberries from Ramon De La Herran, peaches and garlic from Yael
Bernier. That is a great start for a beginner! Mac didn’t venture
far from the market table so she happened to be in the corner where
three growers come from a greater distance than the rest of the
farmers at the market; she noticed that they were friendly and had
reasonably priced produce and added variety to the crops that are
grown here in Healdsburg, such as early corn and late cherries.
Then she ventured over to the North Aisle, which has 90 percent of
its produce grown within 10 miles of the Plaza, to find Yael.
I wonder what is motivating these young people to dedicate
Saturday mornings to the market. I met Shelby at Rotary when she
was introduced as the recipient of an academic scholarship for
Fresno State, where she will be studying Communications in
Agriculture this fall. Dayton is considering a future in
agriculture, because he knows he wants to work in the outdoors. His
aunt and mother are selling produce at the market, and he is
considering Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo for college next year.
But what about Maclaine, whose interest is in music? When I
learned that Mac had recently seen the movie “Food Inc.,” I asked
her if the film had something to do with her commitment to the
market. “I was really disgusted by what I saw in the film,” she
responded. “I decided I wanted to do something about it. I think in
the back of our minds we all know that something is not right when
our food system is treated like an industrial corporation, and this
movie made me more aware of the problems. I decided I want to make
better choices about the food I eat. I want to know where my food
is grown and who grows it.”
Maclaine’s dad, Kim Fiori, is a chef, and both he and Mac’s mom
Robin See, are well-informed, so Michael Pollan’s book, “The
Omnivore’s Dilemma”, has been floating around their house for
awhile. Mac told me that after seeing “Food, Inc.”, which brings
Michael Pollan to the screen, she finally picked up the book and
started looking through it. Maclaine bought her own market tote,
and bought her food at the market, because, as she told me, “I want
to support the Farmers Market and I want to support local farmers.”
I think that simply sums up why all of us are spending our Saturday
mornings at the Farmers’ Market Table.
Mary Kelley is the manager of the Healdsburg Farmers’ Market.
The Saturday morning market continues through November. The Tuesday
afternoon market continues through October.