Donita,
an admirer of the community that once farmed
most of the land in Shaker Heights,
named the farmer’s market "North Union
Farmers Market" after the Shakers. Friend
and board member Barbara Chin designed the
now familiar Shaker bandbox logo.
NYC
Greenmarket shared their philosophy and
farmer’s producer only contract through the
help of local lawyer Carolyn Steiner. |
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Jeannie Shatten convinced Larry Albert,
then the manager of Shaker Square, to
support the project.
The original founders
met regularly to create what is now known as the North Union
Farmers Market. Board members organized fundraisers.
Attorney Tom Stevens helped them achieve IRS non
profit status.
Donita had been
approaching farmers about participating in the project. In July 1995
15 farms had signed up. On opening day six farms
came to the Square, and 500 shoppers. Needless to say it
was a success. The farmers were sold out in half an
hour!
Donita credits much of
NUFM's success to its volunteer leaders like Board President
Louis Rorimer, Dr. Doug Murphy and his wife Dana who
helped develop the farm certification program, and too
many others to name.
Peter Rubin of The
Coral Company has given generous support to the farmers
market at Shaker Square. In recent years it has expanded
to using both the eastbound and westbound lanes of
Shaker Boulevard. In 2005 an indoor
winter market
opened in part of the former bookstore space.
In the height of
Ohio's produce season an average of 65 vendors come to
the Square, with crowds of around 4,000. That's almost a
ten-fold increase since the first day the market opened.
Since its modest start
in 1995, the North Union Farmers Market has grown to
include four other markets in Lakewood, Parma, Olmsted
Falls and Westlake. In 2007 it plans on having seven
locations in northeast Ohio.
Our sincere thanks
to Donita Anderson. The North Union Farmers Market has
made Shaker Square a livelier better place to be almost every Saturday
morning.
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