Farmers Market Offers Food, Fun

Monroe's third annual Farmer's Market got off to a fast start this season, as crowds of shoppers flooded the Town Green on a sticky Friday afternoon.

Vendors' tents offered a wide variety of locally grown produce, baked goods and homemade jewelry

Angel and Roger Fekete brought their children, Alyssa, 3, and Roger, 4, to the market's opening day.

Angel carried a bag of veggies in one hand and her daughter in the other.

"I've got some lettuce, tomatoes, some zuchinni and we're going to get some blueberries," she said, turning to Alyssa, "Right?"

"We come to this every year, usually a few times," Roger Fekete said. "We come for the local produce. It's good stuff. You know? It's better than the grocery store, that's for sure."

The farmers market will be held on the green every Friday, from 3 to 6 p.m.

One vendor, Ed Gazy, hitched a long wagon loaded with crops and flowers to a pickup truck and towed it to town from Gazy Brothers Farm in Oxford.

Boxes overflowed with everything from tomatoes, bok choy and cabbages to broccoli and squash. A growing line of customers inspected the merchandise and tore plastic bags from rolls overhead when they found what they wanted.

When asked about his bountiful inventory, Gazy said, "You have too. Grocery stores have a good selection, don't they? People have gotten used to it --- one-stop-shopping."

Gazy Brothers Farm has participated in the Monroe Farmers Market since it began three years ago.

Gazy watched women gather around his truck. "We've been pretty busy today," he said. "This is pretty good today."

Family fun

Lynn Lewis sang the Beatles song "I'm a Believer" as crowds of toddlers danced and jumped around.

Lynn Lewis and Friends, an act specializing in children's entertainment, performed Friday, along with musician, Liz McNichol.

"Oh, it's great," Amy Merriman of Monroe said. "Kids have a lot of fun with Lynn Lewis all the time. It helps the moms when you can have the kids happy."

Merriman's two-and-a-half-year-old twin daughters, Alison and Lindsey, enjoyed Lewis' show.

"I try to go as often as possible," Merriman said of the market. "Last year was my first year."

Children who weren't dancing took turns petting goats Doodles and Kitty inside a pen brought by Kelly's Kreations, a goat farm in Seymour.

Owner, Kelly Nastri, said the kids are three months old.

"We do goat milk soap and we run a program 'I Met a Goat Today,'" she said, "and kids get to go in the pen and play with the goats."

Nastri's youngest children, Dominic and Antoinette, manned the pen, while their older sister Courtney, 15, sold soap at a table.

"Once school is out, this is what you get," Nastri said of Friday's large crowd. "This is pretty much the turnout."

Strong roots

Pat O'Hara of O'Hara's Nursery was a Town Councilman three years ago, when he proposed the formation of the Monroe Farmers Market.

Sue Muro of Monroe read a newspaper article about the town's need for an organizer and gave O'Hara a call.

"Pat said, 'Do whatever you want to do,'" she recalled. "I went to all the farmers, most I had visited at other farmers markets."

The owner of Guy's Eco-Garden, who runs the farmers market in Shelton, helped Muro with the effort.

"He helped me find some farmers and I worked closely with the Connecticut Department of Agriculture," Muro said. "There are a lot of things that comply with food regulations."

"We had an amazing opening day, 2008 was a great opening day," she recalled.

The first farmers market had 13 vendors, and it has since grown and held steady at 17.

This year, Muro organized the market with fellow Monroe resident, Rita Crispino.

"We get nothing but positive feedback," Muro said, "and the town seems to love it here. It's mostly about good, real food. You have entertainment every week. It's a great gathering place."

No more a pie

While most tables dished out organic staples, Scratch Baking satisfied every visitors' sweet tooth.

Leslie Flick, owner of the business, had fresh baked ciabotta rolls, foccacia bread, knishes, brownies, cookies and granola.

"I had pies," she said, "but they're gone."

Opening day sponsor, Aquarion Water Co., promoted environmentally conscious practices at its table.

"We're giving away biodegradable water bottles, so people use that instead of the bottled water in the store, which is bad for the environment," said Lorraine Bukowski, public relations manager for Aquarion.

She held up an Aquarion bottle. "This degrades in three to five years in a landfill," Bukowski added.

The water company also handed out water-drop-shaped sponges to encourage people to use less paper towels when cleaning up spills.

Those in the farm market crowd who already satisfied their appetites could check out homemade jewelry from Bridget's Jewelry Design.

"I'm selling enough to make it worth being here," said jeweler Bridget Nossek. "But being a Monroe resident, I enjoy feeling like part of the community. I get my fresh produce and see my friends."