Teenager is new manager of farmers market

By Angie Anaya Borgedalen

It won’t be long before there should be plenty of produce, eggs, meat, plants, flowers and baked goods at the Historic Downtown Liberty Farmers Market, but on opening day May 3 only a handful of vendors showed up to peddle their wares.

Market manager Patrick McDowell, who shivered in the early morning hours, said he anticipated as the weather got warmer and more produce popped out of the ground, more farmers and customers would flock downtown.

He was right. A week later on May 10, more vendors and shoppers showed up, and one stand that was selling morel mushrooms for $20 for 8 ounces, sold out almost immediately.

Although he is only 15 years old, McDowell was hired to oversee the newly reorganized Saturday morning market on the Square. The market runs from 7 a.m. to noon from May through October.

Rich Groves, program manager of Historic Downtown Liberty Inc., said while McDowell’s youth was initially a concern, he was impressed with McDowell’s enthusiasm and fresh new ideas for the market. HDLI is in charge of the market in a change of management from past years when the market was operated by one of the vendors.

This first year under new management, Groves said HDLI wanted to try running the market with someone who was not a vendor. Groves said vendors would still be represented on the executive farmers market committee.

Groves said among the market manager’s duties were to see that vendors were in their assigned spaces and had appropriate signage, collect vendor fees and book entertainment.

“Patrick has demonstrated exceptional maturity and resourcefulness and an ability to have a good relationship with a wide variety of people. Those were important criteria for us, and we decided to give him a chance,” Groves said.

According to McDowell, 21 vendors have reserved 35 spaces. He said vendors would fill spaces along Main and Franklin streets and part of Water Street in an expansion of past years. Eventually as the market grows, McDowell said vendors would move on to Kansas Street on the inside of the Square around the old courthouse.

“I have been working closely with each of our vendors, as well as the public, to ensure that the market is just what the community wants and deserves,” McDowell said. “I want the vendors to be happy, and I want the customers to be happy.”

Vendors said unseasonably cool weather had delayed crops.

“I think the weather shot us down,” said vendor Jack Smith of Liberty, who was selling aloe vera plants, cacti and geraniums. “They’re talking about dropping down to 38 tonight.”

Groves said HDLI was still recruiting vendors and crafters and was looking for volunteers to perform on the north side stage.

“Anyone who is interested can call me (456-9339) or Patrick (914-7396),” Groves said.

Farmers, entertainers needed:

Historic Downtown Liberty Inc., a group that supports and promotes the central business district, seeks farmers, crafters and entertainers for the Saturday morning Historic Downtown Liberty Farmers Market. For more information, call Rich Groves at 456-9339 or visit www.historicdowntownliberty.org.

Liberty Editor Angie Anaya Borgedalen can be reached at 781-4941 or aborgedalen@

npgco.com.