Meet and Mingle

Celebrate The Worker Bee
by JoAnne Leone

It's time for another celebration at this week's Farmers Market, and we have a great one planned for this Saturday. Labor Day is usually the time we gather with family and friends, often from out of town, for that last hurrah of summer. Well, gather the kids, the grandparents and neighbors and bring them with you this Saturday morning.

Oh, and could you have them dress in a white shirt, a red shirt or a navy blue shirt? More on the dress code, later.

When I first began interviewing our produce vendors and artisans for the Union County Farmers Market website, I was fascinated by their stories. I learned of their journey, both personal and by trade, and what eventually led them to be a part of our wonderful market. The afternoon I met Chanel Cordelle, she had been working all morning in her garden. The family goat was following her around like a puppy dog, and the chickens were taking advantage of the “full range”.

Chanel loves life. Not just the joy of it – but the actual workings of it. And the complexity of the beehive and the bees that run it are her specialty. I was fascinated by her explanations. This Saturday, since it is Labor Day, we'll have a very fun and informative “Ode to the Worker Bee” presented by our bee and honey experts from 9AM til 9:45AM. So grab a seat and enjoy this presentation.

The community spirit that abounds at the Farmers Market every week is special. So, one of the committee members had an idea. Why don't we do something at the Market that pulls us all together and get a group shot? We're not a big enough group to get in the Guinness Book of World Records, but this is a trial run for next year. Here's the idea. Everyone wears either a Red, white OR Navy Blue shirt to the market that day. At 10AM everyone will go out to the area that has been marked one of those colors. Actually, the markings are the American flag and we are going to fill it in and a picture will be taken from up above of our human flag. And next year, we'll try it again, only this time, for the record books.

At 11AM we'll have our watermelon eating contests. Prizes will be awarded in categories for both adults and kids. There will be a few fun challenges to make it more interesting. And we'll have bibs so those shirts won't get too messy.

As always, the biggest attraction at the Union County Farmers Market is our 57 Vendors. There's a new crop of corn arriving. Peaches are big and juicy. Cabbage, melons and squash are abundant. There's hot dogs on the grill, sweet breads and rolls warm from the oven and beautiful craftsmanship from our artisans. There are also those wonderful jams, jellies and honey to bring home to your pantry. Kick off your Labor Day weekend celebration with a visit to the market this Saturday morning. And don't forget the dress code! We want you in the picture.