I am writing this letter for two reasons. One, because Yes We Can! Food Drives is so deeply appreciative of the community support we have received this past year in collecting food to help our neighbors overcome food security.
Through our food drives at supermarkets and farmers markets (including the West Windsor Farmer’s Market), our volunteers have collected an astonishing 14,000 pounds of donations or seven tons.
All that fresh and canned food goes to Arm in Arm food pantries in Trenton and Princeton for free distribution to their clients, a list that includes families, seniors and veterans.
Due to the health crisis, many more people find themselves unemployed. Is it any wonder that Arm in Arm has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of individuals and families needing food support?
This brings me to the second reason for writing.
You have an opportunity to help Yes We Can! Food Drives, and by extension, your neighbors, by supporting the winter market of the West Windsor Community Farmers’ Market.
Every first and third Saturday through April, the market is held outdoors, rain, snow or shine, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at MarketFair on Route 1 in West Windsor.
Unfortunately, not enough people know about the market. What you are missing is an amazing experience—vibrant, fun and busy.
Come meet your neighbors and enjoy a Saturday morning outing while buying directly from local farmers. Available to you is fresh produce, coastal seafood, farm fresh eggs, artisan cheese, fresh pasta and sauces, soups and chili, pastured meats and poultry, gluten-free baked goods, alpaca fiber wear and much more.
Yes We Can! volunteers are set up at the outdoor market, where we use cash donations from visitors to buy fresh produce from the farmers. A win-win for both the farmers and those in need of food.
So, please mark the farmers’ market dates on your calendar, Feb. 6 and 20, March 6 and 20, and April 3 and 17. You can reach the market from the Meadow Road side parking lot in front of the AMC Theater.
For more information about the market, go online to westwindsorfarmersmarket.org. For information or to volunteer for Yes We Can! Food Drives, go to arminarm.org/yeswecanfooddrives.
Fran Engler
Engler, a longtime West Windsor resident, is publicity chair of Yes We Can! Food Drives.
