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FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 2023
VOL. 132, NO. 4 Serving the Lower Columbia Region since 1891
Clatskanie Farmers Market returns for 10th year WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
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he Clatskanie Farmers Market is returning for its 10th year this summer, and the people of Clatskanie and those transiting Highway 30 will have something to look forward to each Saturday through September. The 2023 Saturday Farmers Markets begin June 3 and are conducted from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Clatskanie’s Cope’s Park The market was first established in 2014 in the community. Executive Director Jasmine Lillich and her partner and Clatskanie Farmers Market Board President Brandon Schilling said they are excited about the continued growth of the market.
The reason why the system works is because Clatskanie and Columbia County show up. And if they ever stop showing up, this won’t work. ~ Jasmine Lillich, Clatskanie Farmers Market
The Farmers Market became a nonprofit 501(c)(3) in 2015 and received a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant in 2017. That grant has laid the groundwork for the farmers market as an established force with financial credibility. Lillich and Schilling moved back to Clatskanie in March 2020 and took on leadership roles for the Clatskanie Farmers Market from the
Courtesy photo from Jasmine Lillich
Nearly 450 people attended the opening day of the Clatskanie Farmers Market in 2022.
original founders. Their goal was to expand the number of vendors in the market and get more customers. “So [the founders] decided to take a step back and step down from the board, and we assembled a whole new board with new energy, and some still founding members on that board, but we kind of reinvigorated and had a new vision for the farmers market,” Lillich said. “One: attract more vendors. Which is a desire; you want to go and find a lot of vendors when you go to a market, right? So that was a big goal. And two: attract more customers.”
Growth during COVID Lillich said they have had great success in achieving those goals. Lillich and Schilling took on their roles for the market in November of 2020 after their first year as vendors. During COVID, Lillich said they didn’t see a big impact in participation in the market from customers or vendors. The Clatskanie Farmers Market is part of the North Coast Food Trail, which is a tourism resource and guide to food-related businesses throughout the North Coast. Lillich said many of the Food Trail’s
businesses grew rather than shrunk during the pandemic. “For me, it’s been really amazing to sound the call to local producers and see all the amazing personalities come out of the woodwork who didn’t have a platform that they really could depend on or have the time to engage with,” Schilling said. “Now that there’s sort of this critical mass building, I think people are feeling a lot more comfortable to come out and incorporate their businesses and livelihood in a more communal fashion.” The Famers Market saw an increase in new vendors and more
excitement around local food and local goods due to supply chain disruption during COVID. They also saw an influx of customers. Lillich and Schilling are thankful for the infrastructure the market’s founders Darro Breshears-Routon, Steve Routon, Lynn Green, Sonia Storm-Reagan, Wanda Derby, Becky White, Kris Lillich, and Tracy Prescott-MacGregor laid. “The last three years, I’ve just been so grateful to step into an organization that has been so well established. And be able to learn how a non-profit works, how it functions,” Lillich said. “I’ve written probably $140,000 worth of grants for the farmers market in the last two years. But that was all because of the founders.” For opening day, the Farmers Market will have 26 vendors, up from 13 vendors on opening day last year. Lillich said they already have 42 vendors signed up to vend on different days throughout the season. Last year there were 446 customers on opening day, so she’s hoping for about 700 at the opening weekend this year. The vendors offer fresh produce and pantry staples, art and crafts, body products, plants & starts, and food and drink options. Lillich and Schilling have enacted a variety of strategies to help get more participation and customers to the market. The Clatskanie Farmers Market has started throwing festival days where certain products are the focus for vendors. “That has been part of our strategy is to have these themed festivals. And that’s a strategy for food hubs, too, is to really push when something comes in to harvest. Like apples, or garlic, or honey, to have a
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Clatskanie Food Hub opening June 8 WILL LOHRE Country Media, Inc.
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or those in Clatskanie who want access to local food and produce year-round, the Clatskanie Food Hub will be opening June 8, located at 80 Steele Street in Clatskanie. Under the umbrella of the nonprofit Clatskanie Food Market, Executive Director Jasmine Lillich and her partner and Clatskanie Farmers Market Board President Brandon Schilling are spearheading a project that they hope will bring the community closer to its local food systems. The Clatskanie Food Hub will be a marketplace, farmto-table venue, and food literacy classroom. The store’s hours will be: • Thursday 2 p.m.-6 p.m. • Friday 2 p.m.-6 p.m. • Saturday 10 a.m.-2 p.m. • Sunday 2 p.m.-6 p.m. The Clatskanie Food Hub is located at 80 Steele Street in Clatskanie.
Courtesy photo from Jasmine Lillich
The grand opening at 2 p.m.
June 8 will start with a “vegetable cutting ceremony.” That day, people will be welcomed into the store, greeted by 32 vendors lined up for that day. There will be festivities throughout the day, including free pizza while supplies last from Blue Bell Knoll Farm and Bakery, beverages from Crooked Creek Brewery, and live music by Blair Borax, sponsored by Fall Creek Preserve. The Clatskanie Food Hub arose out of Schilling and Lillich not being satisfied with the unsustainable food model of pulling large amounts of produce for a one-daya-week vending opportunity at Saturday markets. “‘Stacking it high and watching it fly’ is what they call it in the Saturday market world, where you have to stack your table full of produce; otherwise, no one will buy it,” Lillich said. “What happens is there is a lot of, naturally, waste because you have produce sitting out in the sun all day. And if you just
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Writing Festival organizers announce contest winners Obituaries ................. A3 Opinions ................... A4 Community Events .. AA Classified Ads ......... A5 Legals ..................... A5-6 Sports.........................A8
JEREMY C. RUARK Country Media, Inc.
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he Raymond Carver Writing Festival congratulates the 2023 Poetry Contest Winners who read their poems at the Birkenfeld Theatre on May 19. Each participant was presented with their cash prizes and plaques by Oregon Poet Laureate, Anis Mojgani. Winners
Contact The Chief Phone: 503-397-0116 Fax: 503-397-4093 chiefnews@countrymedia.net 1805 Columbia Blvd., St. Helens, OR 97051
Haiku: • 1st place: Happiness Exists Alex Reed • 2nd place: Out of Reach - Aria Brooks Adult: • 1st place: A Girl Again - Sarah Summerhill • 2nd place: The Wind Ledger Daniel Hannon Ages 8-10: • 1st place: The Acorn - Parker Jones
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The winners of the Raymond Carver Writing Festival Poetry Contest.
Courtesy photo