ALMH Farmer’s Market begins season two with a great turnout

[May 15, 2017]  LINCOLN - Saturday marked the opening day of the 2017 season for the ALMH Farmers Market. The Market, which is managed by Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital, offers a wide variety of locally grown or made products that help promote fresh, healthy food choices for local shoppers. The market also offers a wide variety of other features including homemade breads, options for buying farm fresh eggs, as well as locally grown meats, and some specialty products made locally such as barbecue sauces and rubs by Nuthatch Hill. There are also dining options from Bean Sprouts restaurant, educational fun and games for kids through the Power of Produce programs, Zumba for young and old alike, and periodic health checks through the “Know your numbers” project.

On Saturday, the day began with a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the Lincoln/Logan County Chamber of Commerce. Chamber Director Cathy Wilhite was joined at the ribbon by members of the chamber staff, Chamber Ambassadors, city of Lincoln officials, and representatives from the hospital as well as the organizers and managers of the ALMH Market.

Wilhite began by welcoming all the guests and shoppers to the first day of the ALMH Farmer’s Market. Wilhite noted, “What a great day for the opening of the market. How blessed are we to have this fantastic venue in our community?” Wilhite then turned to ALMH Administrator Dolan Dalpoas for opening remarks.

Dalpoas said he was excited for year two of the market. He said, “Year one was a phenomenal success with over 12,000 people visiting the market.” He gave additional numbers in reference to the visits to ALMH programs, exercise classes, and the Power of Produce programs. He finished saying, “We are here to try and improve health in a new and innovative way. And offer one small step to change and inspire the culture of health in Lincoln and Logan County.”

Lincoln Mayor Seth Goodman was asked to speak, and said he would keep it short and sweet. “What a great addition this is to the community, and what an awesome way to showcase the talents within the community.”

Wilhite was joined at the ribbon cut by the market ladies who oversee the entire event weekly on behalf of ALMH. The scissors were given to Nicole Cox who did the honors of snipping the ribbon on behalf of the market managers.

When the opening bell rang, shoppers flooded the doorway. They were greeted by market volunteers handing out a map of the vendor locations as well as a schedule of special attractions to be offered each week, now through the end of July.

In less than a minutes shoppers started coming back out the door, carrying what was soon proven to be the hot item of the day, hanging baskets offered by Ioerger Farms. The beautiful baskets were targeted as a premier gift to give on Mothers’ Day and the inventory at Ioerger sold down quickly.

This season, all of the vendors from last year are returning, plus a few new ones.

Vendors for this year include (listed alphabetically):

Altman’s Family Farms
Bean Sprouts/By the Bean
Crump Family Gardens
Humane Society of Logan County
Ioerger Farms
Irish Indulgences
Knead Bread
Local Roots
Nuthatch Hill BBQ
Pasta Alley
PrairiErth Farms
Roasted by Ethan
Samantha Danosky
Westside Bee Boyz
Witzig Farms Meats
Yours Truly

There is also an offering of interactive child and family programs through the Power of Produce program. This includes a learning center as well as a toddler play area.

On opening day, Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital nurses were on hand for the “Know your numbers program. Located in the building next door, ALMH staff and volunteers encouraged visitors to have a quick check of their blood sugar and cholesterol levels, along with getting their Body Mass Index figure and blood pressure.

Lincoln Mayor Seth Good braces for the needles stick Saturday morning as he signs up to have his ‘numbers’ recorded.

The free testing will be available again on June 10th, and July 8th. Participants were given a tri-fold wallet sized card with the Saturday test results recorded. They were encouraged to keep the card, and return next month for another check to see if they have improved or maintained healthy numbers.

At the Power of Produce, kids had the opportunity to make a cool summer time tee-shirt that also came with a promise – “I eat local.” Volunteers guided the kids in cutting up the shirts, turning them into tank-tops, then creating a knotted fringe along the bottom hem.

Throughout the season the POP Club will offer different activities including a “Guess the ingredients” game and a “Two bite Challenge.”




Later in the morning, at the small pavilion across from the ALMH Farmers Market, Janell Woolard of Reps Gym led a free Zumba class. The combined aim of the market is to support a healthy life-style, which includes regular fitness. As high energy music played, Woolard had everybody smiling and moving with this intensely aerobic form of exercise.

Zumba will be offered each week throughout the season.

The Rock the bike will return again this year with the self-peddled juice mixer for guests to exercise their way to a delicious smoothie. Each week, there will be a different flavor offering made available to the peddlers.



For opening week, the Zoo Lady Face Painting was offered to kids free of charge. The Zoo lady will also return at regular intervals throughout the season.

A fun feature this week came from Altman’s Family Farms as youngsters had the chance to see and pet baby chickens.

Later in the day, Eric Smith of Bean Sprouts would offer a cooking demonstration. Cooking demonstrations will be a regular part of the market this year with different guest chefs offering instruction on how to make the most of the produce bought at the market.

A big attraction on Saturday was breakfast by Bean Sprouts. Restaurant managers Luke Welchel and Eric Smith along with staff were kept busy filling orders for delightful breakfast sandwiches with fried potatoes on the side. Guests such as Michael Schmidt of Central Illinois AG, and his son; and Lincoln Alderman Rick Hoefle with Brad Luckhart of Nuthatch Hill enjoyed the food in a special café area set up in the Lincoln Stage building. Just a few feet from the ‘Know your numbers’ booth, Hoefle joked, “Don’t get your cholesterol checked after eating this!” He along with the other three guests found eating commented that the food was absolutely the best.



 

Talking about the fact that Bean Sprouts utilizes many “farm-to-fork” products, Luckhart noted that the eatery is purchasing meats from him, showing the dedication not only to farm-to-table, but also to doing business locally.

Throughout the morning, folks came and went at the market, in large numbers. Some of the more popular booths were at times should-to-shoulder with shoppers, while kids enjoyed the POP Club, and some folks sat down to eat or enjoy a great cup of coffee. There were folks who enjoyed visiting with friends and the vendors, and those who were there to snatch up good produce and yummy baked goods. All in all, opening day was surely as good as anyone could have hoped for, and signified the coming of another great season for the ALMH Farmers Market.

The ALMH Market will run weekly on Saturday mornings through October. Hours for the market are 8 a.m. to noon each week.

[Nila Smith]