by Kim Quintero, Volunteer Coordinator

Join the fun Saturday Mornings at the Farmers’ Market!

Volunteers are needed at the Farmers' Market Welcome Booth and other areas throughout the Market!

Come enjoy the fresh air, fresh produce and all the tasty treats the market has to offer all while helping out our local farmers’ market.

We are starting our third season in an exciting NEW location – 6210 Dempster St., Morton Grove.

We have over two dozen vendors signed up this year! We are GROWING – and we need YOU!

• Date(s): Saturday mornings May 12 and June 2nd – October 20th (except June 30th)
• Market Hours: 8:00 am – 12:00 pm
• Volunteer Hours: 6:30 am-1:00 pm
• Contact person: Kim Quintero
• Phone: 773-719-2484
• Email: volunteer@mgfarmersmarket.com
• Website: http://mgfarmersmarket.com/
• Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/MGFarmersMarket

Volunteers needed for the following areas;

• Set-up and Tear Down- assemble pop-up tents, set-up tables & chairs (light duty), good with chalk? sidewalk artists wanted!
• Welcome Booth- Smiles a MUST! Welcome people to the market, hand out materials, wagon rentals, etc.
• Kiddie Korner- Assist our young artists with the craft of the day Face painting
• Ideal Hours- 6:30 – 9:30 am 9:30 am – 12:30 pm 8:00 am – 12:00 pm

These hours don’t work for you? No worries … happy to have you whenever you have time.

Families, organizations, and businesses may sign up as a group!

We are happy to write community service hours letters if needed.

Come join the fun!

This year’s Morton Grove Farmers’ Market Spring Market will be our largest Market to date!  On Saturday, May 12th, we are expecting 25 vendors to attend our first event in our new home at 6210 Dempster St. in Morton Grove.

Join us from 8 am – 12 noon for shopping, dining, and getting to know your farmers and neighbors.

Students from Golf Middle School will provide musical entertainment from 9:30 – 10:30 am.  Our Community Group of the week will be Shot @ Life.  At our Spring Market Sponsor table will be Bath Fitter – Chicago North.

Here is a list of our 2012 Spring Market Vendors (in alphabetical order) with a brief description of what they will have to offer:

• Albo Acres Alpaca Wool features adorable stuffed animals, hand-knit shawls, gloves, and hats made out of wool from alpacas raised in Newark, IL.
• Aunty Jeannes makes all of her own delicious fruit jams and preserves.
• Beadlicious debuts her hand crafted jewelry made locally from crystal, glass, and silver.
• Benhart Farm returns to our Market with free range beef, pork, and chicken that the Benhart family raises in Lake Geneva, WI. They will also bring eggs, nitrate free bacon and sausage.
• Blankenship Farms is our featured vendor of the Spring Market! They will bring both fresh cut and potted flowers and early spring produce such as strawberries and asparagus.
• Brian Kabat Photography creates beautiful cards, calendars, and photo dvds from photos that he takes himself, some even taken right here in Morton Grove.
• Brick Oven Kitchen features delicious freshly made hummus and pita chips.
• Carny Brothers Kettle Corn will offer tasty sweet and salty kettle corn popped fresh on site throughout the market.
• The Cheese People brings their artisanal cheeses cut to order as well as their popular cheese curds.
• Gretta’s Goat Milk Soap debuts in Morton Grove with specialty soaps.  All these soaps are made from the milk of organically grazed goats raised by Gretta herself in Grayslake, IL.
• Jilly Bean Jar makes her first appearance at our Market with her handmade un-paper towels, sandwich wraps, and lunch boxes.
• John Bailey returns with his famous honey, honeycombs, beeswax candles all collected from his beehives in Bourbonnais, IL.
• Joy N Pure looks forward to introducing the new and improved recipes for honey nut snacks, energy circles, granola, and candied nuts.
• Katydids Homemade Condiments will provide wonderful chutneys, jams, jellies, marmalades, fruit butters, mustards, and relishes.
• LAZ Cosmetics returns for her third year with all natural lotions, lip balms, deodorants, soaps, sugar scrubs, and sprays – all made right here in Morton Grove!
• Lyons Fruit Farm will bring asparagus, rhubarb, strawberries, hanging baskets, herbs and more, straight to you from South Haven, Michigan!
• Maier’s Bakery will bring doughnuts, coffee cakes, cookies, french breads, danishes, and apple slices all made with “flour and a pinch of love.”
• Nichols Farm & Orchard joins MGFM for the first time with their early spring produce, along with potted vegetables, herbs and flowers.
• Of Spice and Men is the brain child of Chef Massimo Bosco.  The chef offers custom blended spice mixes and vinegars as well as seasoned rice, couscous and bulgar. All products are low sodium with no added salt, MSG, or nitrates.
• Patyk Farms is owned and operated by Morton Grove native John Patyk and his family.  He plans to bring lettuces, herbs, hanging baskets, and bedding plants.
• Providence Farm hopes to bring spinach, radishes, green onions, swiss chard, and several varieties of lettuce.  The following bedding plants should also be available:  tomatoes, strawberries, herbs, and dozens of varieties of perennial plants.  While the famous Twin Garden Farms Mirai Sweet Corn will not be ready yet, watch for it in the Providence Farm booth in mid to late summer.
• River Valley Kitchen and Ranch first joined MGFM at our Winter Market. They feature certified organic fresh mushrooms, pickled mushrooms, jarred sauces, and more.
• Super Cup Coffee Shop introduces custom made cappuccinos and fruit smoothies at the Market.  As always, they will have their popular lemonade and freshly brewed Casteel coffee.
• Tava Indian Restaurant brings lunch offerings from their restaurant at Harlem & Dempster. They will serve delicious Indian dishes at the Market from 10 am – 12 noon.
• Tomato Mountain Farm offers certified organic tomato salsas, sauces, soups, and bedding plants.  Learn more about their CSA (community supported agriculture) programs as well.

For an updated list of our Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze sponsors, please visit our Sponsor page or our facebook Sponsor album.  While we accept sponsorships throughout the year, our sponsor booths are booked for the season.  If you have any questions or would like to donate, please e-mail sponsorship@mgfarmersmarket.com.

We are looking for friendly, enthusiastic volunteers to help staff the two shifts at the Market throughout the season:  Set Up and Welcome Booth 6:30 – 9:30 am or Welcome Booth and Clean up 9:30 am – 12:30 pm.

If you or your children would like to help out at the Kiddie Corner, adult and junior volunteers are invited to assist children with crafts and do face painting.  If you would like to sign up for a shift (May 12 or June 2 – October 20), please e-mail volunteer@mgfarmersmarket.com.

Special thanks to Morton Grove – Niles Patch and Trib Local Morton Grove for allowing us to share this information with their readers.

by Laura Frisch

I will never look at a mushroom the same way after visiting River Valley Farm this spring and meeting Eric Rose, a mushroom man of many talents. Our trip north began when Peggy Leib, the market vendor liaison, contacted River Valley Farms to return to our market after a successful appearance in the Winter Market last December.

Every farm at the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market gets a visit by one or more committee members before or during the season, this is to ensure the local quality that our shoppers have come to expect.

Eric Rose, a mushroom man of many talents

So, on a cloudy Saturday afternoon my family packed up the car and headed north for a mushroom adventure. We pulled into the River Valley store on Route 50 just East of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. Eric Rose, the owner, was there to greet us.

Eric and his father, Bill Rose, started the mushroom farm back in 1976. Since then Eric has acquired organic status for the mushroom farm and also opened their own kitchen at the store where they created a unique system for canning dips, sauces and pickled items.

Onion and other vegetables are ready to be planted at River Valley.

Eric, his wife Jenny and a hard working crew, grow most of their own ingredients right on the farm. We saw the early garlic growing up from the ground and Eric gave us a tour of the land where tomatoes, potatoes, asparagus, onions, brussel sprouts, peppers and more will be ready to harvest this spring and summer.

But it is the mushrooms that are the heart of this operation. Eric walked us through the huge mushroom barns where carefully tended layers of mushroom flats were growing at various rates. Small white buttons, brown ones and hand size portabellas flurished in the natural “dirt”. Eric starts his compost for the mushrooms right here in Morton Grove, delivered by truck from Freedom Woods Stables.

Why organic mushrooms? Eric said to think about what a mushroom is, basically a sponge, so would you want to eat one with or without chemicals…I think I’ll eat mine all natural.

Jenny takes the mushrooms and various other home grown ingredients and creates sauces, dips and a wide variety of pickled items. Our favorite were the “Hotter Pickled Mushrooms” they really leave your tongue tingling! If you want something different try their pickled brussel sprouts or their famous garlic cheese spread. All of these will be available at the Spring Market on May 12 from 8am to 12pm at 6210 Dempster Street, the new farmers’ market home at the Morton Grove Park District.

For more information about the market check out http://mgfarmersmarket.com or friend us on facebook. If you would like to visit the River Valley store in Wisconsin find directions and some great recipes at https://www.rivervalleykitchens.com.

In less than three weeks, the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market will have its first event of 2012.  The Spring Market will be on Saturday, May 12th from 8 am – 12 noon.  This Mother’s Day Pre-Season Sale is the first event in our new home:  6210 Dempster St.  The Morton Grove Park District is generously hosting us at their newly acquired site surrounded by Harrer Pool, Harrer Park, the Morton Grove Historical Museum and the American Legion Civic Center.

The Spring Market will feature many gift items, just in time for Mother’s Day.  While our farmers will not have any summer produce yet, they will bring early spring produce and bedding plants.

For both the Spring Market and the regular season, the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market welcomes back many of our favorite vendors from last year and are eager to get to know the new additions to our Farmers’ Market family!  This season we will have more vendors than ever! 

We plan to have all of our farmers back from last year (Blankenship Farms, Lyons Fruit Farm, Providence Farm/ Twin Garden Farms, and Red Barn Farm Market), as well as a couple of new farms (Nichols Farm & Orchard and Patyk Farms).

Shoppers will enjoy a variety of fruits, vegetables, herbs, spices, baked goods, snacks, gift items, prepared foods, drinks, and much more!  A variety of bakeries will be providing delicious gluten free and traditional products.

We will have plenty of prepared foods and drinks to enjoy at the market or bring home.  Our line up of vendors will be announced shortly.

As with our regular markets, the Spring Market will feature live entertainment, a Featured Vendor of the Week, a welcome booth, a community group, a children’s area with activities or crafts, and a sponsor table.  Visit the friendly volunteers at the Welcome Booth to learn about our vendors, what’s in season, and to enter our weekly drawing for a free basket of Market goodies.

allmanagers@mgfarmersmarket.com

847.750.MGFM (6436)

A bit timid, the alpaca quickly warm up with the promise of a cookie.

By Laura Frisch

Market Manager Kristina Otte gets a first hand look, from farmer Rick, at the wool which will perhaps be made into a hat to be sold at the market.

Spring is finally here and the managers of the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market are busy visiting farms and checking on the food and products that will be sold at the market this season. Many of last year’s vendors will be returning along with some new ones.

Market Managers children got a close up look at how farms work and the process that gets the products to the Morton Grove Farmers' Market.

A favorite from the 2011 Winter Market, Albo Acres, will be returning and was the site of a manager visit last week. Managers Kristina Otte, Peggy Leib and Laura Frisch along with their children, drove out to Albo Acres farm in Newark, Illinois to see just how they get such fine alpaca wool garments, yarn and wool.

Farmer Rick Gast has a special touch with his herd on the Albo Acres farm.

The visit began with a greeting from co-owner Rick Gast and a menagerie of animals in the barn. Rick and Barbara raise six alpacas on their farm along with horses, donkeys, ducks and dogs. Most of the animals were rescued and nursed back to health by the Gasts. They make quite a herd with the donkeys guarding over all. Rick explained how effective a donkey kick can be for keeping the alpacas and the rest of the animals safe from predators.

Donkeys provide protection from predators and keep Albo Acres safe.

The Gasts also grow their own hay for the animals on the farm and use the natural fertilizer they have plenty of to help grow their fields. The market managers were impressed by how this all helps the environment.

Market Managers and their children visited with the alpacas at Albo Acres.

So, how do they get their product to the market? Rick first showed how thick the alpaca fur is, at this point the animals have been growing out their coats for almost a year and have about four inches of soft wool ready to be sheared. In the spring Rick and Barb shave off the wool, using only the best pieces to spin into yarn and then knit into garments such as hats, ponchos, mittens and more. Barb learned how to spin the wool into yarn and Rick learned how to knit that yarn into the cozy items sold at the market. At one point they had more wool than Rick could knit, and found knitting groups who were looking for more yarn, so a perfect partnership was formed.

Albo Acres offers adorable stuffed alpaca dolls and many knit items made from hand spun alpaca wool.

Barb and Rick bring their Alpaca knitted items, yarn and wool to markets around the Chicago area, including Morton Grove’s own Farmers’ Market.

Albo Acres will be among many farms and vendors featured at the Spring Market, Saturday, May 12 from 8am to 12pm at the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market’s new location 6210 Dempster Street. For more information or to volunteer at the market go to mgfarmersmarket.com or become a market friend at facebook.com/MGFarmersMarket.

The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market committee has been very busy since the Market ended last year.  We are preparing for our Spring Market (Saturday, May 12th, 8 am – 12 pm) as well as our regular season (Saturdays, June 2 – October 20, 8 am – 12 pm).  We will begin our third season at our NEW location, 6210 Dempster Street, in the heart of Morton Grove.  This year’s Market promises to be our most successful so far, with wonderful vendors and exciting festivals!

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
If you would like to be a part of our vibrant, family friendly Market, we invite you to volunteer with us on Saturday mornings.  Volunteers can sign up for short shifts at the Welcome Booth or help with set up or clean up.  Families with children are encouraged to volunteer together.

We are also looking for people to put up and take down signs around the neighborhood each week during the season.  If you are an artist or graphic designer, your skills would be welcome in our Public Relations subcommittee.  We are happy to write community service letters if needed.  Please e-mail Kim at volunteer@mgfarmersmarket.com to learn more.

COMMUNITY GROUPS NEEDED
If you are a member of a community group that would like to showcase your organization during one of our Market days, please e-mail Rosetta at rosetta@mgfarmersmarket.com.

SPONSORS NEEDED 
The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market is seeking sponsors for the 2012 season.  If your business, organization, or family would like information about how to become a sponsor of the Market, please contact Laura or Elaine at sponsorship@mgfarmersmarket.com.

SHOPPERS NEEDED
This season we will have more vendors than ever!  We plan to have all of our farmers back from last year, as well as a few new ones.  Shoppers will enjoy a variety of produce, baked goods, snacks, gift items, prepared foods, drinks, and much more!  We will feature live entertainment and a children’s area with activities or crafts.  There will be something for everyone each week!  Visit our website http://mgfarmersmarket.com.  ”Like” us on facebook http://facebook.com/MGFarmersMarket or follow us on twitter @mgfarmersmarket!

Thank you so much for your support these past few years.  We are looking forward to seeing you all soon!

The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market team

allmanagers@mgfarmersmarket.com

On March 8th, the Morton Grove Foundation became the first 2012 Platinum Sponsor for the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market with a $1,000 donation.  The Foundation presented all of their beneficiaries with checks during the annual Taste of Morton Grove gala event. The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market had over 25 local sponsors last year and is looking to increase that for the coming season. Sponsor support will allow this community based market to thrive in its third season.

The market predicts more foot traffic at the new site, 6210 Dempster Street in the heart of Morton Grove, between Harrer Pool and the Civic Center. The Morton Grove Park District has generously offered to host the market which begins with a May 12 Spring Market and continues June 2 through October 20 every Saturday from 8am to 12pm.

Sponsorship is open to the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market on behalf of individuals, families, businesses, and organizations. Contact the market sponsor liaisons at fundraising@mgfarmersmarket.com for more information.

Sponsorship benefits at the Bronze level and higher include a link on the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market website, a booth at one or more Market days, name printed on the Welcome Booth banner at the Market and more!

The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market is a part of the Morton Grove Chamber of Commerce. If you are interested in volunteering or more information about the market go to mgfarmersmarket.com.

By Laura Frisch

Originally posted on TribLocal Morton Grove on March 10.

From the Morton Grove Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s March 2012 Newsletter

A great opportunity for YOUR company or business is available now at the Morton Grove Farmers’ Market. We are expecting crowds to number in the thousands this summer at our new location on Dempster Street next to Harrer Pool, the Historical Museum and the Civic Center in the heart of our Morton Grove Community. Although the market collects fees from vendors for the market season, there are many expenses that sponsors are needed for, such as advertising, tents, festival expenses and promotional items.

Each sponsor not only gets to be a part of this unique community business opportunity, but also has the chance to reach thousands of Morton Grove and surrounding area shoppers. Imagine your business name on a banner read by thousands of vehicles everyday along busy Dempster Street. To get your company name out there contact Laura at sponsorship AT MGFarmersMarket DOT com and visit our website at www.MGFarmersMarket.com along with our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/ MGFarmersMarket. The season will begin with a Spring Market May 12 and the full market will run June 2 through October 20 so get your sponsorship in early to take advantage of all the advertising opportunities!

The 2012 MGFM Managers at the 6210 Dempster location

The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market is happy to announce that its new partnership with the Morton Grove Park District has officially been approved by the Park District Board at last Thursday night’s board meeting.

Effective May 12, 2012, the MG Park District will host the MG Farmers  Market at the newly acquired site at 6210 Dempster Street, between Harrer Pool and the American Legion Civic Center.  The MG Farmers’ Market continues to be a part of the Morton Grove Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Read more about this exciting new location in our  October 2011 announcement, Morton Grove Patch, or TribLocal Morton Grove.

Click here to download and print the 2012 Vendor Application, 2012 Spring Market Vendor Application, and 2012 Vendor Application Cover Letter.

The Morton Grove Park District will host the MG Farmers' Market starting in May 2012

The first MG Farmers’ Market event at the 6210 Dempster site will be an outdoor Spring Market on Saturday, May 12 (Mother’s Day Weekend) from 8 am until 12 pm.  The new Farmers’ Market location features ample parking along with easy access by foot or bicycle.  MB Bank has generously offered Market patrons use of their South parking lot.  For your safety, please cross Dempster at the traffic light at Fernald.  The friendly and dedicated EMA volunteers will be on hand to ensure everyone’s safety.

The regular market season will take place every Saturday morning between June 2 – October 20 between 8 am – 12 pm.  We have several festivals planned during the spring, summer and fall.

The market managers are now accepting applications from local vendors for the 2012 Spring Market and the 2012 Season. The Morton Grove Farmers’ Market strives to be a local, producer only Market.   All items must be homegrown, handmade, and/or vendor-created from locally-owned operations. Fruits, vegetables and flowers need to be grown within the approximate range of 150 miles of Morton Grove.  Please contact the manager team at allmanagers@mgfarmersmarket.com, 847-750-MGFM / 847-750-6436, or www.facebook.com/MGFarmersMarket.  The deadline for applications is March 15, 2012.  Click here to download and print the 2012 Vendor Application, 2012 Spring Market Vendor Application, and 2012 Vendor Application Cover Letter. 

Volunteers make this wonderful community market possible.  If you are interested in helping out on Saturday mornings or joining our committee, let us know!