Newday Church is serving their local Parker community this summer by providing a free farmer’s market at a local apartment complex. The market, which is a partnership with the Parker Task Force, offers fresh produce to residents who might not otherwise be able to afford it.
Each Sabbath afternoon, the task force supplies Newday with high quality fresh fruits and vegetables. Volunteers from the church then transport the produce to Parker Hilltop Apartments, which the task force has identified as housing a high number of residents who are financially insecure. The volunteers display the produce just like a traditional farmer’s market, and residents from the complex are invited to come shop the market free of charge.
To publicize the market and encourage residents to come, Newday kicked off the season with a free barbecue on the market’s opening day. Despite the hailstorm that rolled in during the afternoon, the event was well attended by both Newday members and residents of the apartment complex.
In addition to offering free produce, the market also features a sample station. Newday volunteers serve mini portions of simple, healthy recipes—such as strawberry spinach salad or whole grain banana bread—that are made using some of the ingredients at that week’s market.
One resident recently passed a note of gratitude to a volunteer at the market to express how much the market has meant to her.
“Thank you so much for your farmer’s market,” the resident wrote. “This month is very tight as I have to pay my child’s bond fee at the end of the month. You help us!”
Jamie Santa Cruz attends Newday Church in Parker, Colorado.
