The Weblog
The local foods movement is alive and well in Champaign County! Here are some updates on other projects while we finalize our virtual market:
Local Producers Map:
Our local producers map is ready for publication and you will soon be able to find it on gochampaign.com. Copies will be distributed around the community, in the local telephone book, and other “hangouts”. The guide lists the location and contact information for nearly 50 local producers within our county. The map was a project of the Local Food Council and printed with the help of some local sponsors including the Monument Square District, Champaign Bank, the Community Improvement Corporation, the Chamber of Commerce, the Farm Bureau and others. It is a great start to finding a local source for Champaign County’s finest!
I Guess, You Say, What Can Make Me Feel That Way?
I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day…
And when it’s cold outside…
Well I’ve got the month of May..
(My Girl- The Temptations)
So, here we are again, ready to reopen this little local market of love, tonight!!
We are twirlin’ right into January, but as I left the market, tonight, after closing it, I was pleasantly surprised at how light it was, outside, AND, how warm and sunny it was!!
If I had my way, we would just glide right on, from here, to the warming up months! But, I will take what we have, right now, and be happy that it was still light at 6pm, with a ray of sun still peeking through, and a tiny bit of warmth.
It’s like how I feel about this market. It’s like walking into a ray of sunshine when I hit the market, each Thursday, to get ready to greet the vendors, and then the customers. You each add your own ray of sunshine to my day. To the market. To this local fabric that we are weaving.
One of the things that I have asked each vendor to do, is to write about what local means to them. How it feels to be one of the Rock Stars Of Local? What are they doing in this local scheme of goodness?
I will begin posting their thoughts, their passion, their hard work, their triumphs, and their heartbreaks. It’s not easy being a local producer. It’s back breaking, hard work, total dedication, open as much to failure as you are to success! We are all out there, in the trenches, fighting the good fight that we call…Local Love.
Tomorrow, I will bring to you, the thoughts from Women That Farm! Brandi sent me a very heartfelt write up, that I can hardly wait to share!
But for now, I open the market for all of you. As a customer, please think about why you shop us? Why does local matter to you? When did you decide to pledge your love? We want to hear it, and we want to see it…let us know that you love our little local market of love by placing your orders!
Local Love…our market makes loving local so much fun…
Peace, Love, Good Vibes…
Cosmic Pam