Danbury Farmers' Market Opens June 27th

Thankfully, I don't have to wait much longer to get back into one of my favorite seasonal routines - my weekly visit to the Danbury Farmers' Market.

The Danbury Farmers' Market opens Friday, June 27th at the newly landscaped Kennedy Park. (The park looks great by the way.) The Market will be open every Friday, 11am to 5pm, through Halloween, October 31st. (Closed July 4th.)

This year's vendors include:

• Beldotti's Bakery (Stamford)
• CIFC (CT Institute for Communities) Greater Danbury Health Center
• Clatter Valley Farm (New Milford)
• Community Energy
• DaisyMac Gardens (Danbury)
• Geremia Gardens (Southington)
• Killam + Bassette Farmstead (South Glastonbury)
• New Milford Youth Agency
• Pepe's Cream of the Crop (Stratford)
• Smith's Acres (Niantic)
• Whimsical Olive Branch (Watertown)

Increasing access to fresh food for those with limited resources has always been a driving force in this downtown farmers' market.

The Danbury Farmers' Market:

• Offers matching up to $9 per week the value of government food assistance programs
• Accepts and matches Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) "food stamps" by enabling SNAP recipients to use their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards;
• Matches Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FNMP) vouchers for seniors, low income veterans, recipients of The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC);
• Provides FNMP vouchers at the Market for seniors and veterans;
• Provides, through the Community Health Center of Danbury and the Samaritan Health Center, Fruit and Veggie Health Certificates for food-insecure community members not eligible for government assistance;
• Works with the Danbury Coalition for Healthy Kids, a collaborative enabling children to provide their families with fresh produce; and
• Makes bus passes available through HARTransit to those who need a ride home.

Plus, this year marks the launch of a matching voucher program for low income veterans, a pilot project of the Connecticut Department of Agriculture and the only program of its kind in the country. A local philanthropist and ongoing Market supporter, in addition to a generous donation, has offered to match dollar-for-dollar contributions up to $6,300.

Hope to see you at the market!