Merrill Area Farmers Market returns to Normal Park
TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
The Merrill Area Farmers Market is set to begin again this year and will be returning to Normal Park on Wednesdays and Saturdays from mid-June through October, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Located at the corner of N. Center Ave. and E. 7th St., the Farmers Market is easy to find and has parking available.
The Farmers Market features locally grown and handcrafted wares – from locally grown fruits, vegetables, plants, and flowers – to home-baked breads and bakery; locally canned jellies and jams, pickles and relishes, salsa and spaghetti sauce, and more – as well as locally produced honey and maple syrup, handmade soaps and lotions, and handcrafted items of all varieties such as birdhouses and gift items.
New this year to expand the offerings to our local Merrill community, the Farmers Market is open to vendors beyond Lincoln County. Vendors from Marathon County, as well as other counties surrounding Lincoln County, will be accepted. The only rule is this: All items must be produced by the actual vendor.
The cost of becoming a vendor at the Merrill Area Farmers Market is $100 per year and includes a full voting membership. Or, vendors can sell at the Farmers Market for a one-time daily fee of $25 which does not include voting membership, if space is available.
Member fees help cover the cost of advertising, insurance, and other incidental costs, and a membership or vendor application can be obtained by contacting Susan Hass, Market Manager, at 715.536.7364. [Or stop at her booth once the market opens.] Management reserves the right to reject applications according to market guidelines. Additional information is also available on the group’s Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/MerrillAreaFarmersMarket.
History of the Merrill Area Farmers Market
What is now the Merrill Area Farmers Market originally began as Merrill Market Day on July 14, 1990. It was organized through the Merrill Chamber of Commerce [Dee Olson was President then] and Pat Cadwallader and Helene Pagoria were Market Managers. It was held on Tuesdays in the Pamida store [now County Market] parking lot and on Saturdays in the Lincoln County Jail parking lot, and the vendor fee for setting up was just $2 per time.
“In 1992, the association had a meeting to get more organized, and Bernice Sauer was elected Market Manager,” said current Market Manager Sue Hass.
She remained in that position “until she and her husband Lavern stopped going to the Farmers Market,” Hass said.
In addition to Bernice and Lavern Sauer, Pat Cadwallader, and Helene Pagoria, other early vendors included Carl and Elaine Mittelsteadt, Elgart and Miriam Salefsky, Roland and Marge Williams, Sue Williams, David and JoAnn Sauer, Ed and Betty Johns, Ted and Lila Schleif, and Roger Trumbly, she said.
In earlier days, “The group entered many parades in Merrill and Tomahawk and won prizes several times,” Hass added. “Bernice always used the prize money to plan a party with food and games.”
Sponsors sought to cover increasing expenses
With costs on the rise, Hass said the Merrill Area Farmers Market is currently searching for weekly sponsors. Sponsorships will help cover the increasing costs of advertising and other expenses, she said, in exchange for being featured in the Farmer’s Market advertising and having their name and business information displayed at the weekly markets.
For more information, contact Hass at 715.536.7364.