“Eat local, buy local” is the inspiration behind the Hamburg farmer’s market, which reopened in a new State Street location on Sunday, July 10.
The reimagined market will continue Sunday afternoons through Oct. 9 under the direction of co-managers Angela Heffner and Casey Schneck.
Vendors this Sunday offered fresh fruits and vegetables, savory and sweet treats, locally-bottled teas and handcrafted items. Customers browsed stalls and made purchases; children sprawled on the grass to enjoy a snack while parents talked.
“It’s kind of a slow turn out,” Heffner noted on Sunday afternoon. “And I’m hoping we can do more. It’s about more than having people sell their stuff. It’s about restoring a sense of community.”
The idea of selling local was a draw, noted Joel Smith as he restocked boxes of produce, baked goods and jellies at his stand, The Smith Homestead. The first thirty minutes of the day were busy for Smith, and he sold out of some products, all raised on his property in Bernville using organic methods and no GMOs.
“I didn’t even have a chance to get everything out,” Smith said of the busy start. He added that in the eight years he’s been growing his own food, he’s noticed a shift in people’s perspective about what they eat.
“I’m seeing a change in their mind set,” he confirmed, with people wanting to buy from local growers.
“It’s good for the area,” his mother, Linda Smith, said of the local market. “People need to know where their food comes from and how it’s grown.”
Linda lives near Kutztown and was visiting to support her son and the other vendors. She stopped to try a sample at the Pure Wild Tea truck. There, vendor Sherry Furman invited customers to touch the leaves on the strawberry-mint plants used to create one of her drinks.
“It’s really cool,” she said. “You actually smell the strawberries when you rub the leaves.”
Furman’s family lives in Bernville and bottles several varieties of tea, including strawberry-mint and chocolate-mint. She made participation in the Hamburg market a priority even though it meant splitting time between it and other local festivals held that day.
“Hamburg is an area [where] I sell a lot of product,” Furman explained. “I like people to be educated and to get to try the product. It’s great exposure and a great way to sell.”
Nearby, Eileen Himmelberger took orders at the Smudge Smokehouse food truck. She called orders into the truck where her husband, Todd, and daughter, Leah, prepared food including tacos with mango salsa and pulled-pork stuffed “Smudgie” pastries.
“I saw the market posted on Facebook, so I contacted Angela and next thing I knew, we were rolling,” Himmelberger said. She lives in Mohrsville and this is the first time they’ve opened the food truck this year. “We thought this would be easy, since it’s only once a week on Sundays.”
“It’s close, and there are short hours,” confirmed Carol Beickler, a Shartlesville resident and vendor. She read about the market in the paper and signed up. Her stand was full of colorful plants and hand-crafted bags, towels and hot pads, many with animal motifs. She is in the process of obtaining two female goats and hopes to add milk and cheese from the animals in future weeks at the market.
Karen Ulrich of Bern Township decided to sell her wares at the market after reading about it on Facebook. She offered homemade jewelry and pet items, with all proceeds going to pet shelters and a cancer fund. “It’s a little slow, but that’s to be expected,” Ulrich said of the first week, noting she plans to return throughout the summer.
The sun beat down on the dozen customers milling around the market around 2 p.m. Co-managers Schneck and Heffner surveyed the scene, happy to see their idea to re-eestablish a local market in Hamburg a reality.
The previous market closed a few years ago, Schneck explained. It was held Saturday mornings at the Pine Street lot. Schneck is a recent college graduate who bought a farm property in Windsor Township and hopes to begin selling produce from it. He contacted Hamburg’s Our Town Foundation (OTF) to see about reopening a market in town earlier this year.
When Heffner contacted OTF with the same idea shortly thereafter, Schneck and Heffner joined forces to make the idea reality. Heffner also lives in Windsor Township. She and her husband purchased a rural property and hope to raise cattle-fed beef. Both Heffner and Schneck plan to participate as Hamburg vendors next year.
OTF had recently purchased the “grass lot” on State Street and offered it as a location. The co-managers began spreading word to vendors, using social media as well as notices in papers and old-fashioned flyers and word-of-mouth to spread the word.
Twelve vendors committed to the market’s relaunch, and five of those were present on opening day. Schneck said he expects more to participate as the summer progresses.
“We’ll have a lot more produce and eggs,” he said, “and handcrafted items like soap.”
The Hamburg Farmer’s Market will be held every Sunday through Oct. 9, with the exception of Sept. 4. Stands will be open from 1 to 4 p.m. Local residents are invited to check out the market next Sunday. Potential vendors should email Casey Schneck at ccschneck@comcast.net) or Angela Heffner at angela_heffner@yahoo.com, or call Schneck at 610-207-3810 to apply.
