Winter Market in Kingston
The Hudson Valley Farm Hub and the Kingston YMCA Farm Project Partner for Second Year
Kingston, NY – For the second year in a row, the Hudson Valley Farm Hub and the Kingston YMCA Farm Project are partnering on a winter market to make fresh produce available to Kingston and surrounding communities through the coldest months.
The market takes place every Thursday from 3:30-6:00 pm in the lobby of the Kingston YMCA at 507 Broadway, and runs from November through February.
“The Farm Hub production team has been growing beautiful produce in the winter months and we’re overjoyed we can share it with the local community. We love working with the Farm Project and the YMCA – it’s a great fit all around,” says Brooke Pickering-Cole, director of the Farm Hub.
Market offerings include carrots, sweet potatoes, baby arugula, spinach, salad mixes, kale, collard greens, swiss chard, beets, butternut squash and more, all grown at the Farm Hub.
The winter market is a bilingual space where Spanish and English are welcome. Bilingual market staff and a trained interpreter write all vegetable signs in both languages and welcome Spanish speaking customers. One of the growers who worked in the production of the vegetables being sold is always on hand to answer any questions and talk with people about the produce.
Jesus Gonzalez Jr., a ProFarmer and member of the Language Justice team at the Farm Hub says, “It is also important so customers can see who is growing these products. The growers have been there since the produce was grown in the greenhouse and in the field. They themselves eat the produce and have recipes for how to cook the produce.”
Gonzalez continues: “It is important that we reach people in the community—not only people who speak English but people who speak Spanish and other languages—so more people can be here and eat more healthy foods and local foods.”
A portion of sales support the YMCA Farm Project’s programming. The market accepts cash, checks, and debit/credit cards.
Finally, the market offers the added community benefit of employing young people through the Kingston YMCA Farm Project.
In 2019, the Kingston YMCA Farm Project generated 42 paying job opportunities for local youth. “This winter market provides jobs for two of our teens. They gain valuable customer service skills and learn how to use a point of sale system,” says KayCee Wimbish, project director and farmer at the Kingston YMCA Farm Project. “Additionally, they are bilingual in Spanish and English and are able to work with the Farm Hub’s Language Justice Team to provide customer service in two languages.”
Estefany Vargas, a sophomore at Kingston High School who works at the winter market as part of the Kingston YMCA Farm Project, says, “I really enjoy working here. I think it’s really important to know where our food comes from, and I think that it is important to learn to eat healthier.”
To learn more about winter production at the Hudson Valley Farm Hub click HERE.
For pictures and captions on the winter market click HERE.
About the Hudson Valley Farm Hub:
The Hudson Valley Farm Hub is a non-profit center for resilient agriculture based on 1,500 acres of prime farmland in Hurley, NY.
Facebook @HudsonValleyFarmHub
About the Kingston YMCA Farm Project:
The Kingston YMCA Farm Project is an urban farm focused on food production, youth development, education, and food access in midtown Kingston.
Facebook @KingstonYMCAFarmProject
Press Contact:
Jennifer Crettien
(845) 331-1187 [email protected]
