Welcome Spring!

Saturday we celebrate the first day of Spring, and it hasn’t come soon enough! Stop by Local Roots this weekend for your first taste of spring. Whether Spring tastes to you like fresh greens, some locally-raised lamb, delicious herbed cheeses, or tasty cookies, we’ll have something to wake up your taste buds!

Expanded Hours Fridays from Noon to 7 PM

Our doors are now open Fridays from noon to 7 PM, so stop by and pick up some goodies for the weekend! (Please note that many producers will still bring their products in later on Friday or Saturday morning, so it may be a while until the store is fully “stocked” on Friday; stop by after work anyway!)

What’s Cookin’?

The demonstration kitchen will be busy Saturday morning, so stop by and try something new!

9-11 AM: Lynn McGinnis from Weedy Ways will bake her gluten-free goodies and be available for questions on living gluten-free.

11:30 AM-1 PM: Elizabeth Geiser will offer a cooking demo for kids. Bring your young ones and introduce them to the fun of cooking!

We’ll also have guitar music by Morgan Quinn to liven the shopping atmosphere from 10 AM to noon. Come in, grab a cup of locally-roasted coffee and a delicious treat from the bakery case, and enjoy the music!

Ready to Green Up Your Thumb?

Don’t forget, our Square Foot Gardening workshop will take place this Saturday (the 20^th) from 1 PM to 2:30 PM. You can get all the production of a traditional row garden in just 20% of the space, with only 2% of the work and no weeds. Master Gardener Cassie Holderman D’Aula has trained directly with the author and creator of Square Foot Gardening, Mel Bartholomew, and in this class she will cover the ten basics of the method. It’s so easy, you’ll be able to get started right away!

We still have places available in the class. The cost is $5 for Local Roots members and $10 for non-members, and the class will take place in the meeting room at the market.

Get Your Fresh Food Fix With a Couple of Clicks

Members, have you used the online order system? If not, you’re missing the chance to order ahead on almost 300 different items, from fresh produce to select cuts of meat to specialty pastries and more, some of which are only available online. If you think you’re too busy to spend time shopping at Local Roots, shop online and make your trip quick, easy, and efficient. The next order cycle begins on Sunday.

Volunteers Needed!

We’re having a volunteer day on Tuesday, March 23 from 10 AM to 4 PM. We still have much to do to spruce up the market. Stop by next Tuesday to help Jessica clean, make t-shirts, and more!

Local Roots Re-opens!

Local Roots reopened today -- but not as a farmers' market, as an honest-to-goodness store that features local foods. We received our Retail Food Establishment license from the Wayne County Health Department this week, thanks to all the hard work from our volunteers, so we're now ready to be a year-round store!

Producers didn't have to be on-site (though a handful were at least part of the time), and items for sale were arranged by general category (with shelves or tables for producers to display their products):

The new freezer and coolers housed locally-produced meats, cider, milk, butter, cheeses, and LOTS of eggs.

One row of display units featured racks of assorted baked goods...

...while the produce growers had the tilted tables in the middle of the floor loaded with potatoes, onions, squash, apples, and high tunnel roots and greens.

The new coffee bar does not yet have all the equipment needed for brewing freshly-ground locally-roasted coffee, but volunteers offered samples of these coffees throughout the day.

At the other end of the coffee bar, a glass pastry case allowed local bakers to show off their specialty items: muffins, bagels, German lye rolls, cupcakes, French pains au chocolat, and more.

While we didn't have as many people stop in to shop as we did at the holiday farmers' markets, the crowd provided a steady stream of activity throughout the day, and most people seemed impressed with the store design.


The new checkout area still needs some work, and volunteers are still getting used to the new checkout system, so lines were slow, but we are grateful that shoppers were patient with us! (It will get better, we promise!)

We also had a modest but enthusiastic turnout for our community garden discussion in the meeting room at 1 PM. Representatives from local gardens shared their experiences and answered questions, and others expressed their interest in starting other gardens or helping out where possible.

Local Roots Market will now be open on Saturdays from 9 AM to 3 PM. The online order system is now live, with the first pickup date scheduled for next Saturday, February 6. (The online system is open to members only.)

So what are you waiting for? Stop by Local Roots for your shopping, and become a member to make your shopping even more convenient by going online!

We're definitely taking Roots in the community!

First Snow Ball a Success!

On Saturday, January 23, volunteers cleared the main retail floor in preparation for the Midwinter Snow Ball. Around 100 people showed up to dance to the lively music of Pocketful o' Gimmick and the calling from Susan English and Bill Alkire.


Squares or circles, lines or contras, no matter the style of dance, people of all ages jumped in and had a great time!


Susan and Bill took turns on the calling, and they chose dances that were easily learned by newcomers and familiar to more experienced dancers.


The floor was packed! And look at those smiles! Volunteers brought refreshments ranging from sweet to savory, so even when people weren't dancing, they could enjoy good local food and conversation with friends.

Several people said they enjoyed themselves so much, they'd like to do it again! So we'll be planning another dance for this summer -- and hope to make the Midwinter Snow Ball an annual tradition.

(In the meantime, you're welcome to attend the Wooster contra dance on the 1st Saturday of the month, October through May, from 7:30 to 10:30 PM at Valley College Grange on Rt. 226.)


Wouldn't you want to join in at a fun night like this?

Photos courtesy of Bill Boyer, who has a CD-ROM with more photos and video clips from the dance available to anyone who's interested. Catch him at the market and ask him about it!

A New Look for the New Year

If you've managed to stop by Local Roots lately to look in the windows, chances are you've seen a lot of activity. Since just after Christmas, our hard-working volunteers have given the market a whole new look:


In late December, volunteers pulled up the carpet in the meeting room and the main market retail space.


Once the carpet came up, volunteers scraped up any glue that remained, and a crew came in to grind the floor down to a beautiful dusky red concrete (not seen here) before refinishing.


After knocking down a wall to install new electrical wiring for our new coolers and freezer, volunteers replaced it with fresh drywall and laid a couple new coats of paint on the walls. We've also had a couple of experienced carpenters come in to build a coffee bar (seen in progress here).


The plumbers came in to install new plumbing for our commercial sinks. (Don't worry, this hole in the floor has been filled in, and the bathroom is functional once more!)

There's more work to be done this week, though, from finishing the construction of our coffee bar and checkout counters to catching all the little finishing details required by the county health department for inspection. If you're available and interested in helping, contact roots (AT) localrootswooster (DOT) com and let us know when you can come in to do your part!

And a very BIG thanks to all of our wonderful volunteers who have made this all possible!

Photos courtesy of John Anderson, Local Roots steering committee member.

Volunteers for Marketing

If you missed our August 31 community meeting but wanted an opportunity to help us spread the word about Local Roots, here's your chance!

We invite you to meet with us at the Market (at 140 S. Walnut St., Wooster) on Tuesday, September 22nd at 6:00 PM to discuss and sign up for helping with specific marketing-related tasks including website, writing projects, promotion, event planning and more.

Please RSVP and let us know if you will be able to attend. If you have any questions prior to the meeting, feel free to send us an email at news (AT) localrootswooster (DOT) com!

We look forward to seeing you!
The Local Roots Marketing Team
Jessica Barkheimer
Jen Hugon
Jennifer McMullen