August 11, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• KCAW-Raven Radio reports on how Sitka residents can double down on EBT benefits at the Sitka Farmers Market

Mira Vale staffs the EBT Quest Card table at the Aug. 3, 2013, Sitka Farmers Market

Mira Vale staffs the Alaska Quest Card/EBT benefits table at the Aug. 3, 2013, Sitka Farmers Market

The Friday, Aug. 9, 2013, newscast on KCAW-Raven Radio featured a story about how Sitka residents on food stamps can double their Alaska Quest Card/EBT benefits at the Sitka Farmers Market.

The Alaska Quest Card is an EBT, or Electronic Benefits Transfer, program that helps people on food stamps pay for food at local grocery stores. Their monthly EBT benefits are loaded onto their Alaska Quest Card, and an amount is deducted from the card each time they buy food.

Starting last year, the Sitka Farmers Market joined several Alaska farmers markets in accepting Alaska Quest Cards/EBT benefits, and this year the number of markets accepting EBT has grown to 11 markets in Alaska. Since many farmers market vendors aren’t set up to accept charge cards, people on EBT benefits can use their cards to buy tokens (wooden nickels) at a booth at the Sitka Farmers Market, and they then can use the tokens to purchase fresh food from participating vendors.

The Alaska Quest Card/EBT booth also sells a second type of token that people not on EBT benefits can use to purchase food and other items (including arts and crafts) from participating vendors. This second token allows vendors who aren’t set up for credit/debit cards to still make sales.

Kerry MacLane uses a token to purchase produce from Sitka Farmers Market vendor Keith Nyitray during the Aug. 3, 2013, Sitka Farmers Market.

The KCAW story focused on Sitka resident Stacie Joseph, who uses EBT benefits to help pay for her food for her four kids while she attends school. Because of a grant from the state, various Alaska farmers markets are able to provide double the benefits for people using EBT benefits. For example, if someone wants to use $20 of their EBT benefits, they’ll receive $40 worth of tokens. Joseph said the doubled benefits mean that in addition to providing healthy fresh produce for her family, she can have more money available to use on her health management classes at the University of Alaska Southeast-Sitka Campus, helping her improve her earning potential.

“This program improves access to fresh, local foods to community members who are struggling financially. Additionally, the program helps increase understanding of food insecurity issues in our community and how produce and other food vendors can be part of the solution,” said Lisa Sadlier-Hart, president of the Sitka Local Foods Network board of directors, which hosts the Sitka Farmers Markets.

August 3, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Gardening work parties continue at St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm

Are you interested in meeting other Sitka gardeners and learning about how to grow food in Sitka’s rainy climate? Then join us for garden work parties at St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm.

St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm is located behind St. Peter’s By The Sea Episcopal Church on Katlian Street (the brown church with the steeple above Crescent Harbor). It is a communal garden that grows food to be sold at the Sitka Farmers Markets and used for various hunger programs around town.

Garden work parties take place from 2-4 p.m. on the Saturdays when we don’t have a Sitka Farmers Market, and from 4:30-6 p.m. on the Wednesdays right after our markets. The remaining Sitka Farmers Markets this year are from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays, Aug. 17, Aug. 31, and Sept. 14, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall.

That means there will be garden work parties at St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm from 2-4 p.m. on Saturdays, Aug. 10, Aug. 24, Sept. 7, and Sept. 21. In addition, there are a few Wednesday afternoon work parties from 4:30-6 p.m. on Aug. 7, Aug. 21, and Sept. 4.

Garden work party duties include weeding, trimming plants, picking slugs, planting late-summer and fall crops, and harvesting. During the work parties, people are able to purchase ripe crops, and Alaska Quest electronic benefit transfer cards are accepted for people on food stamps. The work parties are kid-friendly, so feel free to bring the munchkins to help.

To learn more, call St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm lead gardener Laura Schmidt at 738-7009 or 623-7003, or contact Sitka Local Foods Network board president Lisa Sadleir-Hart at 747-5985 or sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com.

July 31, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Farmers Market introduces Redoubt Rhubarb items in celebration of sixth season

In celebration of its sixth season, the Sitka Farmers Market is selling items with the “Redoubt Rhubarb” logo this summer. The items will be available at the next Sitka Farmers Market from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 3, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall, and at the remaining markets on Aug. 17, 31 and Sept. 14.

The Redoubt Rhubarb logo was designed by Sitka artist Lisa Teas, who also designed the Chatham Carrots logo used on items sold during the fifth season of the Sitka Farmers Market. This is the second in a series of logo designs honoring common food plants grown in Southeast Alaska. The Redoubt Rhubarb logo is printed on t-shirts (long- and short-sleeved), tote bags, bandanas, squares and other items.

“Sitka Local Foods Network would like to thank local artist Lisa Teas, who designed and donated the incredible artwork for this year’s fundraiser,” said Cathy Lieser, vice president of the Sitka Local Foods Network board of directors. “Last year you voted and ‘Redoubt Rhubarb’ was the clear winner. These limited-edition pieces are for sale at the Sitka Farmers Markets, or email the Local Foods Network at sitkalocalfoodsnetwork@gmail.com. All proceeds go to fund Sitka Local Foods Network projects.”

The current prices are $25 for long-sleeved t-shirts, $15 for short-sleeved t-shirts, $12 for squares, $12 for bandanas, and $20 for canvas tote bags (a denim tote bag may become available at $25). In addition, the Sitka Local Foods Network booth, usually located outside in the parking lot next to the Baranof Island Housing Authority office, has its own logo items for sale and there may be a few Chatham Carrot logo items left over from last year.

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.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

July 20, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Lori Adams offers copies of her Sitka gardening book for sale

As the owner of Down-To-Earth U-Pick Garden, Lori Adams has learned a lot about vegetable gardening in Sitka. Now she is sharing what she learned with a new book, “How to Grow Vegetables in Sitka, Alaska.”

“‘How To Grow Vegetables In Sitka, Alaska,’ is an edited and revised compilation of the Gardening In Sitka column that appeared in the 2012 editions of the Daily Sitka Sentinel (and repeated on this site),” Adams said. “It’s organized in a user-friendly format with room for you own notes with a yearly planner in the back. This book teaches you to successfully grow vegetables outside in Sitka’s difficult climate.”

The book costs $20, plus tax, and Adams has been selling copies at her booth at the Sitka Farmers Market. In addition, people wanting books can contact her from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays through Saturdays at the Down-To-Earth U-Pick Garden, 2103 Sawmill Creek Road. She can be reached at 738-2241.

July 14, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Skagway Garden Club hosts Southeast Alaska Garden Conference on July 19-21

The Skagway Garden Club will host the Southeast Alaska Garden Conference on July 19-21 at various locations in Skagway, Alaska. The cot for the conference is $99.

The keynote speaker will be Garden Writers of America Hall of Fame member Jeff Lowenfels, longtime garden columnist with the Anchorage Daily News and the author of the books “Teaming With Microbes: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to the Soil Food Web” and “Teaming With Nutrients: The Organic Gardeners Guide to Optimizing Plant Nutrition.” Lowenfels also was the founder of the “Plant A Row for the Hungry” (aka PAR) program that has provided more than 14 million meals for the hungry, and he is former president of the Garden Writers of America.

Garden enthusiasts will be thrilled at the selection of topics ranging from gardening for Alaska’s pollinators to cooking with local edibles through the science behind the process of composting. The conference will have activities for kids and tours of Skagway’s finest gardens and historic garden sites, which includes the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park’s Herbarium.

The conference includes a Friday evening opening reception at the Red Onion’s Bombay Room; Keynote and Saturday program at the Arctic Brotherhood Hall; Saturday continental breakfast; garden tours; lunch at the Westmark Hotel featuring Laurie Constantino , author of “Tastes Like Home: Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska;” glassblowing demonstration and dinner at Jewell Gardens; and Sunday workshops. This year’s conference is hosted by the Skagway Garden Club and sponsored by the Skagway Convention and Visitors Bureau.

• Master schedule for the 2013 Southeast Alaska Garden Conference

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.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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/.

June 15, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• Sitka Farmers Market among 11 farmers markets accepting Alaska Quest Cards

(The following is from a press release from the Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Agriculture)

PALMER, Alaska – Eleven farmers markets throughout Alaska, including the Sitka Farmers Market, are now accepting Quest Cards, enhancing the state’s efforts to make healthy, locally-grown food available to Alaska households. Six markets (including Sitka) accepted the cards in 2012, and two markets accepted them in 2011, according to the Division of Agriculture.

The Alaska Quest Card is used by households qualified through the Alaska Food Stamp Program to purchase food from farmers markets and grocery stores.

“This program improves access to fresh, local foods to community members who are struggling financially. Additionally, the program helps increase understanding of food insecurity issues in our community and how produce and other food vendors can be part of the solution,” said Lisa Sadlier-Hart, manager of the Sitka Farmers Market (Editor’s note: A correction, Sadleir-Hart is president of the Sitka Local Foods Network board of directors, which hosts the Sitka Farmers Markets; Bridget Kauffman is the market manager).

Quest cards are accepted in the following locations:

Anchorage

Spenard Farmers Market; the Anchorage Farmers Market; and the South Anchorage Farmers Markets (Saturday and Wednesday)

Kenai Peninsula

Anchor Point Saturday Farmers Market & Swap Meet, and the Homer Farmers Market

Western Alaska

The Bethel Farm Stand and the Dillingham Farmers Market

Fairbanks

Downtown Fairbanks Market and Calypso School Garden Farm Stands

Southeast Alaska

Sitka Farmers Market

These markets will also host Match Days, when Quest card holders can get twice the amount of fresh, local food for the first $20 spent with their cards. Match Days are listed below:

Anchorage and Kenai Peninsula

First market of the month (markets happening twice a week will have matching both days);

Western Alaska, Fairbanks and Southeast Alaska

Throughout the summer until funds run out.

Check the Alaska Division of Agriculture website at http://www.dnr.alaska.gov/ag/ag_FMI.htm for more information on Alaska’s farmers markets, including those that accept Quest Cards. For more information on the Alaska Quest Card, go to http://www.akquest.alaska.gov.

See you at the market, where it’s Closer. Fresher. Better.

May 27, 2013 by Charles Bingham

• St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm schedules Saturday and Wednesday work parties through the summer

The Sitka Local Foods Network will host several work parties on Saturdays and Wednesdays throughout the summer at St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm communal garden (located behind St. Peter’s By The Sea Episcopal Church on Lincoln Street).

Work parties are scheduled for 2-4 p.m. on several Saturdays this summer — on June 1, 8, 22, July 13, 27, Aug. 10, 24, and Sept. 7 and 21. Wednesday afternoon work parties take place from 4:30-6 p.m. on July 10, 24, Aug. 7, 21, and Sept. 4.

Produce grown at St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm is sold during the Sitka Farmers Markets to help fund Sitka Local Foods Network projects throughout the year. The work parties also are great for newer gardeners to learn about growing food in Sitka’s rainy climate.

During these work parties we usually need people to shovel dirt and sift soil, weed, mulch and spread fertilizer (seaweed) on the existing garden beds. Most garden tools will be provided, but we will need people to bring shovels and pick-axes if they have them. The work parties are kid-friendly, in case you want to teach your children about growing food.

For more information, contact St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm lead gardener Laura Schmidt at 623-7003 or 738-7009, or contact Lisa Sadleir-Hart at 747-5985. Fresh vegetables usually can be purchased during the work parties once crops start to ripen, and people who volunteer may be able to take some veggies with them when they go home.