Thank you for making our Kickoff a huge success!
We're pretty sure it was our best attended market yet - thank you for coming out and supporting your Missouri and Illinois farmers and all the food and craft artisans.
Five Bistro Fundraising Dinner
We are very excited to be partnering with Five Bistro on a series of fundraising dinners that will celebrate the market's seasonal produce and help us raise funds for our operating budget. There will be three dinners during the 2012 season and 25% of proceeds will be donated to the farmers' market.
The first dinner of the season will take place on May 24 at 7pm and will feature 4 courses made with ingredients straight from our farmers! Five Bistro is collaborating with St Louis' own Four Hands Brewing to make perfect beer pairings for every course.
The dinner is $60/person and includes beer pairings. Reservations are required, please call Five Bistro at 314-773-5553 to make yours. Remember, 25% of proceeds will be donated to the farmers' market and go directly into our operating budget!
Also, look for Chef Anthony Devoti, owner of Five Bistro, at the farmers' market on May 19. He will be demonstrating some of the dishes you will be eating at the dinner!
Biver Farms Returns
We know some of you were saddened and disappointed last week by the prospect of the fantastic Biver Farms not returning to the market this season. But, lo and behold, we got a call this week from Keith Biver letting us know he would be back!
Fundraising
If you love the market and want to help us keep up the good work, we urge you to make a donation and help us reach our 2012 fundraising goal. We are one of the only independent farmers’ markets in the region and we rely on your contributions for a large part of our operating budget. In addition to increased expenses as the market grows, we also have an additional staff member this season and EBT processing and equipment fees we need to pay for. Help us reach our goal of $20,000 by making a contribution at Saturday's market or online today. Thank you for your support!
Click Here to Donate Now
Vendor List
Baetje Farms - goat milk cheeses
Biver Farms - goat milk cheeses
Black Bear Bakery - breads, bagels, granola, sweets
Buila Family Farm - seasonal produce
Centennial Farms - seasonal produce, preserves, honey
Companion Baking - breads, bagels, granola, sweets
Countrysprout Organics - organic fruits and vegetables
del Carmen - Cuban-style black beans & other foods
Double Star Farms - seasonal produce, honey
Freeland's Vegetable & Berry - seasonal produce
Gelateria Del Leone - gelato
Holy Crepe! - crepes
Hot Skillet Farms - city-raised produce
I Scream Cakes - organic ice cream & cakes
Kakao Chocolate - artisan chocolates
Kimker Hill Farm - seasonal produce, beans & grains, baking mixes
Kitchen Kulture - prepared foods
Kuva Coffee - locally roasted coffee
Live Springs Farm - biodynamic pork, chicken, eggs
Marcoot Jersey Creamery - cow's milk cheeses
Midwest Pasta - St. Louis made, fresh pasta
Might As Well Ranch - Longhorn beef & eggs
Mila Sweets - cookies, cakes, sweets
Missouri Grass-Fed Beef - sustainably-raised beef
Murray's Orchard - seasonal produce, preserves
Our Garden - seasonal produce, eggs
Ozark Forest Mushrooms - mushrooms, gourmet food items
Queen's Cuisine - traditional English baked goods, gluten-free
Red Fox Farm - seasonal produce
Robins Apiaries - honey and bee products
Salume Beddu - artisan salumi, prepared foods
Silent Oaks Farm - seasonal produce
Southwest Diner - breakfast tacos
Sunflower Savannah - seasonal produce, preserves, granola
The Big Cheese - gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches
The Farmers' Larder - smoked meats and charcuterie
Three Rivers Community Farm - seasonal produce
Traveling Tea - hot and cold teas, loose leaf teas
Trokey Family Farms - seasonal produce
Whisk - a sustainable bakeshop (previously known as Farm Fresh Cupcakes)
Windy Lake Farm - poultry, eggs
Yoder Produce - seasonal produce
Artisans & Others
Downzipper
Sew Good and Trendy
Stellar Batik
Benton Park Creations
New at the Market in 2012
The 2012 season will see a lot of additions to the market, we strongly urge you to read this letter in full to see all the fantastic improvements and additions!
The start to the 2012 season has also been a challenging one for the TGFM family. Our Organic Bean Counter/bookkeeper/booth manager/father & father-in-law, Tim Ryan, was diagnosed with a rare form of melanoma in January and has undergone a series of surgeries this spring, the last one taking place two weeks ago. He is recovering well and intends to be at the opening market. His stamina is not 100% yet, so his presence at the market may be limited initially, but he is looking forward to seeing everyone soon. Send him your prayers and thoughts and stop by and see him when you can.
2012 Additions & Improvements
Chipotle Collaboration – TGFM has partnered with Chipotle Mexican Grill for a special giveaway at our Kickoff Celebration on May 5. The first 500 shoppers will get a $10 token to use at any vendor booth at the market that day! Come early, they will go fast.
Music – Harvest Sessions is back in 2012 with a full season of great music and we are so excited to welcome Farmer Jason back to the market for our Kickoff on May 5! Bring the kids for this interactive and delightful show.
EBT/SNAP – This year technology has finally caught up to where we needed it to be to accept EBT in the park. We have an iPad system that works on 3G that will allow us to accept EBT at the market. We will also have ATM functionality for those of you who run out of cash buying all the great food at the market!
Recycling & Composting – Thanks to a generous in-kind donation from Blue Skies Recycling, we will have recycling and composting bins on the market premises. This should get us close to eliminating all waste from the market responsibly.
New Farmers & Vendors – We love welcoming new farmers to the market and this year we are happy to announce the addition of Hot Skillet Farms (STL City), Might As Well Ranch, Red Fox Farm, Windy Lake Farm, and Yellow Tree Farm! New artisan food vendors include I Scream Cakes and Mila Sweets. Come welcome our new vendors!
Food Row Addition – You probably know their cured meats already from previous years and this year we are eagerly anticipating The Farmers’ Larder move into grilling and selling their meats ready to eat! Yum!
EBT Matching Funds – Through a grant from the United Way, we are going to be able to match EBT funds at the market up to a total of $8,000. Stay tuned for the start date of this program.
Qigong at the Market – You know about the free yoga (hopefully, if not it’s every Saturday from 9-10am) and now we are excited to add free Tai Chi every Saturday! It will start at 8am (the market’s new opening time) and will take place on the lawn next to the market. What a great way to start the day!
Whew! That’s a lot! As you can see, we’ve been busy doing our best to improve the market. We’re not happy resting on any laurels, we want to continue to make the farmers’ market your Saturday morning destination and St Louis’ favorite community gathering space – and the best farmers’ market in the region!
Why Donate?
Most importantly, it helps us keep operating! We receive roughly 2/3 of our annual budget from fees from our vendors and we rely on your donations for the other 1/3 of our budget. It's a critical part of our operation.
We are growing and so are our expenses. This year we will add another employee to handle our EBT program. We will also take on EBT processing fees and extra bookkeeping costs. We estimate this will cost us an additional $5,000.
We grow St Louis businesses! So far, businesses that have started at the farmers' market and now have permanent store fronts and/or successful distribution businesses include Salume Beddu, Kakao Chocolate, and Doublestar Farms. In 2012, two of our vendors, Southwest Diner and Farm Fresh Cupcakes plan to open the doors of their new brick and mortar establishments. Through increased sales at our market, we have made it possible for many of our vendors to do what they love full time.
Farmers and food entrepreneurs will make close to $1,000,000 in sales at the market this season and much more through the business connections they make at the market.
We bring in dozens of non-profit organizations each season that disseminate information and help our shoppers live greener lives, adopt abandoned pets, and increase awareness of important issues.
We help grow neighborhoods. New Tower Grove residents include the farmers’ market in their decision to move to the neighborhood.
Click Here to Donate Now
We love what we do, we love what we have created. We couldn't have done it without you and we need your help to keep it going!
You can give easily online by clicking on the Contribute to the Market button on our Friends page. Or checks can be mailed to:
Tower Grove Farmers' Market
PO Box 220137
St Louis, MO 63122
Tax Deductible!
Remember, since the Farmers' Market is an IRS-qualified non-profit, all donations, whether cash or in kind, are tax deductible on both federal & state filings. We will provide you with the necessary receipts.
Thank you again for all of your support through our first six seasons. We are looking forward to a fantastic 2012!
The TGFM Team
