May 30, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Farmers Market vendor forms, information sheets and regulations for 2014 now available

Vendors looking to sell local food, arts and crafts, and other items at the 2014 Sitka Farmers Markets can find all the vendor forms, information sheets and regulations for this year by going to the Documents page on this site, or look at the bottom of this post for the documents. The forms are in downloadable Acrobat PDF files.

The 2014 Sitka Farmers Markets will be managed by Ellexis Howey and Debe Brincefield, and they can be reached at sitkafarmersmarket@gmail.com or 738-8683 during the market season. Our 2014 Sitka Farmers Markets will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on six alternating Saturdays starting in late June (June 28, July 12, 26, Aug. 9, 23, and Sept. 6) at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall on Katlian Street.

Ellexis and Debe already have hosted one pre-market meeting for potential market vendors, and the next pre-market meeting for market vendors is at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 17, at the See House behind St. Peter’s By The Sea Episcopal Church on Lincoln Street. All potential market vendors are encouraged to attend. Ellexis and Debe are available to answer questions and to make suggestions that will help new and returning vendors adjust to any food regulation changes from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, changes to the Alaska Quest electronic benefits program, and any other changes.

For more information, contact Ellexis or Debe at the numbers above.

Sitka Farmers Market vendor forms

• Guide to Operating a Successful Home-Based Food Business (March 2014 document from UAF Cooperative Extension Service and Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation includes Alaska food safety information and regulations for farmers markets and other food sales)

• 2014 City and Borough of Sitka Sales Tax Form for Sitka Farmers Market Vendors

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market Vendor Rules And Responsibilities Packet

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market Vendor Registration Packet

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market Vendor Guidelines Signature Page (this must be on file for all vendors)

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market EBT Alaska Quest Vendor Agreement

May 12, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Farmers Market vendor forms, information sheets and regulations for 2014 now available

Ellexis and Debe will host at least one pre-market meeting for potential market vendors, tentatively scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21, at the See House behind St. Peter’s By The Sea Episcopal Church. They will be available to answer questions and to make suggestions that will help new and returning vendors adjust to any food regulation changes from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, changes to the Alaska Quest electronic benefits program, and any other changes.

For more information, contact Ellexis or Debe at the numbers above.

Sitka Farmers Market vendor forms

• 2014 City and Borough of Sitka Sales Tax Form for Sitka Farmers Market Vendors

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market Vendor Rules And Responsibilities Packet

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market Vendor Registration Packet

• 2014 Sitka Farmers Market Vendor Guidelines Signature Page (this must be on file for all vendors)

March 11, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Local Foods Network extends application deadline for 2014 Sitka Farmers Market manager and assistant manager

The Sitka Local Foods Network has extended the application deadline as it seeks a manager and assistant manager to coordinate the 2014 Sitka Farmers Markets this summer. These are contract positions, and the manager and assistant manager (who reports to the manager) receive small compensation depending on experience for their work organizing the six scheduled farmers markets this summer. The new application deadline for both positions is 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 18.

This is the seventh year of operation for the Sitka Farmers Market, which features six markets from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. every other Saturday from June through September at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall (this year’s tentative dates are June 28, July 12, 26, Aug. 9, 23, and Sept. 6). The farmers markets feature booths from local farmers/gardeners, local fishermen, and artisans and craftspeople. These events are great Sitka gathering places, and we promote local foods and other local goods at them.

A detailed description of the market manager duties can be found at the link below. For more information or to submit applications, contact Maybelle Filler at 738-1982 or mocampo25@hotmail.com, or you can email the Sitka Local Foods Network Board of Directors at sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com. Applications (a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three recommendations) are due by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 18. The market manager of the Sitka Farmers Market reports to the Sitka Local Foods Network Board of Directors.

• Description of duties for market manager of the Sitka Farmers Market Manager (2014)

February 6, 2014 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Local Foods Network seeks manager and assistant manager for 2014 Sitka Farmers Markets

The Sitka Local Foods Network is looking for a manager and assistant manager to coordinate the 2014 Sitka Farmers Markets this summer. These are contract positions, and the manager and assistant manager (who reports to the manager) receive small compensation depending on experience for their work organizing the six scheduled farmers markets this summer.

A detailed description of the market manager duties can be found at the link below. For more information or to submit applications, contact Maybelle Filler at 738-1982 or mocampo25@hotmail.com, or you can email the Sitka Local Foods Network Board of Directors at sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com. Applications (cover letter, resume, three recommendations) are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28. The market manager of the Sitka Farmers Market reports to the Sitka Local Foods Network Board of Directors.

• Description of duties for market manager of the Sitka Farmers Market Manager (2014)

September 17, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Seventh annual Sitka Health Summit helps celebrate a culture of wellness in Sitka

The seventh annual Sitka Health Summit is coming up, and this year’s event features health fair, lunch-and-learn, community planning day and community wellness awards.

This annual event got its start in 2007, when leaders from Sitka Community Hospital and the SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) got together to try and build bridges between their health organizations. Working with other partners, they created the Sitka Health Summit as a way to help improve the health culture in Sitka.

This year’s summit opens with the Sitka Community Health Fair, which takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, at Sweetland Hall on the Sheldon Jackson Campus. This event features workers from the Alaska Health Fair Inc., who will provide a variety of medical tests such as cholesterol checks, glucose tests, vision screenings, flu shots, and more. It also includes informational booths from a variety of health-related programs in Sitka.

At noon on Monday, Sept. 23, at Kettleson Memorial Library will be a lunch-and-learn with Dr. Don Lehmann, a local physician and sports medicine specialist. He will give a brief talk called “Whistle While You Walk,” which will feature highlights about Sitka’s trail system. Participants can enter for a chance to win a set of walking sticks.

The “Community Planning Day: Selecting Sitka’s Wellness Goals” is from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 27, at Sweetland Hall. This all-day event is when members of the community get together and select two community wellness projects to work on this year. The two projects will receive $1,500 in seed money, plus facilitation to help get the project going. Last year’s three winning projects included the Sitka Downtown Revitalization project, Walk Sitka‘s work in applying for a Walk Friendly Communities award, and the Sitka Community Food Assessment. Some of the top projects from previous years include the Sitka Bicycle Friendly Community award applications in 2008 and 2012, the Choose Respect mural at Blatchley Middle School to raise awareness about sexual and domestic violence, the Sitka Outdoor Recreation Coalition’s Get Out, Sitka! project to get more families and kids outdoors, supporting the Hames Athletic and Wellness Center as a community resource, etc. There also have been several projects related to local foods, such as creating a Sitka Farmers Market, expanding community gardens and building a community greenhouse, planting dozens of fruit trees around town, promoting more local fish in school lunches, community composting,, and more. The first 65 people to RSVP will receive a free lunch (contact Clara Gray at clara.gray@searhc.org).

Finally, this year’s Sitka Community Wellness Champion Awards will be presented as part of the Monthly Grind at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 5, at the Sheet’ká Kwáan Naa Kahídi on Katlian Street. The awards are made in a variety of categories, such as physical fitness, nutrition, tobacco control and policy, holistic health, injury prevention, and general wellness.

For more information, call Doug Osborne at 966-8734 or go to the Sitka Health Summit’s website at http://www.sitkahealthsummitak.org/.

September 7, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Scenes from the fifth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2013 summer

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
Sitka Farmers Market Interim Manager Garrett Bauer, left, and Co-Manager Francis Wegman-Lawless, right, present the Table Of The Day Award to Taylor Ihde, center front, (with Taylor’s mother, Jennifer Ihde, center back), at the fifth market of the season on Saturday, Aug. 31, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall in Sitka. Taylor makes homemade earrings and other jewelry, which she has been selling at the Sitka Farmers Markets for a couple of years. She received a gift bag with fresh produce, fand a certificate and a copy of the Alaska Farmers Market Cookbook. This is the sixth year of Sitka Farmers Markets, hosted by the Sitka Local Foods Network. The sixth and final market of the season is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 14, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St. For more information about the Sitka Farmers Markets and Sitka Local Foods Network, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/. Also, don’t forget the Sitka Local Foods Network will host the annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28 (registration at 10 a.m. and costume contest at 10:30 a.m.), at Crescent Harbor Shelter. The Running of the Boots is a fundraiser for the Sitka Local Foods Network. Some late-season vegetables and other items will be for sale at this event.

Rain was the reality of the fifth Sitka Farmers Market of the summer, on Saturday, Aug. 31, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall (235 Katlian St.).

We had a decent crowd, despite the rain, though most people spent their time indoors sampling the wares of those booths.

The sixth and final Sitka Farmers Market of the season takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 14, at ANB Founders Hall. A slideshow with scenes from the fifth market is below.

Also, don’t forget to mark your calendars for the 19th annual Running of the Boots, a costumed fun run that serves as a fundraiser for the Sitka Local Food Network. The Running of the Boots will be at 11 a.m. (registration at 10 a.m., costume contest about 10:30 a.m.) on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Crescent Harbor Shelter (there is an entry fee). Some late-season vegetables will be available for sale at this event. To learn more, watch this site for updates.

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August 23, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Scenes from the fourth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2013 summer

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
Sitka Farmers Market Interim Manager Garrett Bauer, left, and Co-Manager Francis Wegman-Lawless, right, present the Table Of The Day Award to Peter Apathy and Carole Knuth of Reindeer Redhots at the fourth market of the season on Saturday, Aug. 17, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall in Sitka. Peter and Carole sell Alaska-made reindeer and all-beef hot dogs and Polish sausage, with sauerkraut and chili sides from their cart, which is open at the corner of Lincoln and Lake streets on most big cruise ship days (http://reindeerredhots.com/). They received a gift bag with fresh produce, fresh rhubarb jam and a copy of the Alaska Farmers Market Cookbook. This is the sixth year of Sitka Farmers Markets, hosted by the Sitka Local Foods Network. The next market is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St. For more information about the Sitka Farmers Markets and Sitka Local Foods Network, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/.

The fourth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2013 summer took place on Saturday, Aug. 17, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St.

For the first time this summer, we had to deal with a bit of rain during the market, but the downpour was only temporary. We still had a decent crowd, and there were even a few new booths.

The fifth Sitka Farmers Market of the season takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31, at ANB Founders Hall. To learn more, watch this site for updates. A slideshow with scenes from the fourth market is below.

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July 26, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Scenes from the second Sitka Farmers Market of the season

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
Sitka Farmers Market Co-Managers Garrett Bauer, left, and Sabrina Cimerol, right, present the Table Of The Day Award to Jean Frank of Jeans Jellies Etc. at the second market of the season on Saturday, July 20, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall in Sitka. Jean has been a regular vendor at the Sitka Farmers Market since it started, selling jellies, jams, honey and more. She received a gift bag with fresh produce, fresh rhubarb jam and a copy of the Alaska Farmers Market Cookbook. This is the sixth year of Sitka Farmers Markets, hosted by the Sitka Local Foods Network. The next market is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 3, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St. For more information about the Sitka Farmers Markets and Sitka Local Foods Network, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/.

The second Sitka Farmers Market of the season took place on Saturday, July 20, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St.

We again lucked into a break in the rain and there was a pretty good crowd for the second market of the season. We had a lot of familiar booths selling fresh veggies, fish, baked goods, arts and crafts, plus some new faces joining the vendors.

The third market of the six planned this summer will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 3, at ANB Founders Hall. To learn more, keep watching this site. A slideshow of scenes from the second market is below.

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July 11, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Scenes from the first Sitka Farmers Market of the summer

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
Sitka Farmers Market Manager Bridget Kauffman, left, and co-managers Garrett Bauer, second from left, and Sabrina Cimerol, right, present the Table Of The Day Award to Erin Keenan of Bear Buns during the first market of the summer on July 6 at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. Erin makes cloth diapers and similar products for babies. She received a gift bag with fresh produce, chocolate and a copy of the Alaska Farmers Market Cookbook. This is the sixth year of Sitka Farmers Markets, hosted by the Sitka Local Foods Network. The next market is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 20, at the ANB Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St. For more information about the Sitka Farmers Markets and Sitka Local Foods Network, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/.

The Sitka Farmers Market kicked off its sixth season on Saturday, July 6, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, 235 Katlian St.

We lucked into a break in the rain and there was a pretty good crowd for the first market of the season. We had a lot of familiar booths selling fresh veggies, fish, baked goods, arts and crafts, plus some new faces joining the vendors.

The second market of the six planned this summer will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 20, at ANB Founders Hall. To learn more, keep watching this site. A slideshow of scenes from the first market is below.

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June 30, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka to host six farmers markets in 2013 starting on Saturday, July 6

The Sitka Local Foods Network will host its sixth summer of Sitka Farmers Markets with six markets this year starting on July 6 and taking place on alternate Saturdays through Sept. 14. The Sitka Farmers Markets give Sitka residents a chance to buy and sell locally produced food and crafts.

The Sitka Farmers Markets take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 6, 20, Aug. 3, 17, 31, and Sept. 14 at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall (235 Katlian St.). The markets feature local seafood (fresh, frozen, and cooked, ready to eat), locally grown and harvested fruits and vegetables, baked goods, locally made jams and jellies, live entertainment, locally brewed and roasted coffee, music, local arts and crafts, and a variety of other items gathered or made in Sitka. We emphasize local products and lots of fun. We are the first farmers market in Southeast Alaska to accept WIC coupons and Quest EBT for Food Stamps. You also can vote for the Sitka Farmers Market in the America’s Favorite Farmers Markets contest by following the links at http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/.

“The Sitka Farmers Market is a great way to connect with community members and support local entrepreneurs,” Sitka Local Foods Network Board President Lisa Sadleir-Hart said. “Circulating your dollars locally also has a multiplying effect and helps your neighbors.”

The Sitka Farmers Market started as a community wellness project that came out of a health priority planning meeting at the 2008 Sitka Health Summit. These events are sponsored by the Sitka Local Foods Network, Alaska Native Brotherhood Camp No. 1, Alaska Native Sisterhood Camp No. 4, Baranof Island Housing Authority, the Alaska Farmers Market Association and the SEARHC Health Promotion and Diabetes Prevention programs.

“We are excited to have Bridget Kaufmann, bread-baker extraordinaire and former vendor, as our new market manager,” Sadleir-Hart said. “Bridget brings loads of enthusiasm and some new ideas to the market and is focused on creating a sustainable market that can be in Sitka for the duration.” AmeriCorps volunteers Sabrina Cimerol and Garrett Bauer will assist Bridget and share co-market managing duties. “As always the market will be a place to support the growing local food movement in Sitka and learn more about how to eat more sustainably.”

Vendor fees are $30 for a 6-foot table, $40 for an 8-foot table and $20 for a 4-foot table. Vendors with their own tents pay $5 per foot. As always, we offer cost incentives for vendors growing locally produced food. The fees will help us cover the costs of renting ANB Founders Hall and its kitchen, hiring musicians and other expenses. To learn more about being a vendor or to sign up for a table, contact Sitka Farmers Market Coordinator, Bridget Kauffman at 738-8683 or by e-mail sitkafarmersmarket@gmail.com. Vendor rules, registration forms and other information for potential vendors can be found on the Documents page at http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org/.