Farmers Market Announces 2025 Fundraising Campaign

Fergus Falls Farmers Market’s 2025 Fundraising Campaign
We just wrapped up another successful season of the FF Farmers Market. It was a fantastic 13th season - our best yet. We hope you got a chance to visit us this past summer. We have BIG plans to make next season even more special. We are asking for your help in making that happen. 

A little history: 
Our market was started in 2012 by a small group of folks who care about food access and the value of local foods. For years, we gathered on the lawn in front of the Otter Tail County Historical Society every Saturday morning, eventually adding a Wednesday afternoon market. 

In mid-July 2022, we relocated the market to the newly built Riverfront Pavilion at Spies Park in beautiful downtown Fergus Falls. Our market immediately grew and transformed into a destination, especially on Saturday mornings. 

2023 was our first full season at the pavilion location and what a season it was! During the season, we hosted over 45 different vendors, some for a few weeks while their crops were in season (think apples and corn), with many vendors participating the entire season. In 2024, a typical Saturday during the peak season sees 32-38 vendors set up while Wednesday markets average 10-15 vendors. Both days offer a great variety of products from produce to meat to artisan and canned goods. In 2024, we booked many live music acts, hosted food trucks, and held several kids' day promotions and activities. 

We would love to continue to grow our market and increase its positive impact on the community in 2025. We would appreciate your consideration of a donation to our market, either for a specific purpose, or to support our general operating fund. 

Our market is run entirely by volunteers (and we sure could use more of those too). Besides the time spent at the market (approximately 12 hours/week from June thru October), our market management dedicates another 10-12 hours a week on financial and legal tasks, vendor recruitment and management, social media, marketing, booking guests and music, customer inquiries, connecting buyers and sellers outside of market days, fundraising, special event planning, and the like. I like to say it’s the fullest part-time volunteer job I’ve ever had. 

Despite what we sometimes hear said in the community, our market is not run by the city or another well-funded entity. We are an independent organization. We do not have significant time or financial resources at our disposal. Our market is run by a very small number of people (just 2 of us the last couple of seasons) simply wanting to contribute to the community they love and live in. 

That said, we could certainly use your help (time, money, or both) to continue to grow and improve our market. 

Opportunities exist to help financially to support our Kids Day activities, pay musicians for sharing their talents, software subscriptions, general advertisement and marketing, dues and fees, insurance, printing costs, to pay for the cost of supplies for special events and activities, rental fees, signage, food access programs, kid-prenuer booths, market meals etc. 
Vendor Fees cover approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of our annual budget. The other funds required to run the market must be raised thru contributions such as your own. 
Here are some specific areas where your donations can help sustain and grow our market in 2025:

• Power of Produce Kids Days - we typically host 4-6 Saturdays during the peak season offering children 12 and under each coupon for $2-3 toward fresh produce. Funding this program annually runs about $1200-$1800. In 2024, we were not able to fund a Kids Day in October and our September Kids Day, we were only able to offer $2 coupons due to lack of funding at the end of the season. If this is a topic that resonates with you, please let us know that you’d like your donation directed to this program. 
• Food Access Programs - we offer EBT/Snap benefits at our market as well as the Senior/Farmers Market Nutrition Program. These program’s benefits are fully funded, but advertising and education regarding their availability as well as staff to run the program are self-funded by our market. If food access is important to you or your business, we’d love to partner with you to fund the management and promotion of these programs at our market. The staffing budget for 20 weeks, 7 hours per week (Weds 3 hours, Sat 4 hours), $15/hour to run the program is $2100. Advertising and education are also not currently funded. 
• Live Music - if you’ve ever been to our market on a warm sunny summer Saturday, you’ve probably enjoyed a bite to eat, visiting with friends and neighbors, as well as the talents of some local musicians. They haul in their own equipment, entertain us for 2-3 hours, and receive $75 (plus tips). In 2024, we had live music most every Saturday. In 2025, we’d love to be able to budget for music every weekend). We’d be happy to display signage near our musicians with your sponsorship info. 
• Technology Subscriptions - yes, even a farmers market needs a website and a little software to help run things smoothly. In 2025 we are moving away from paper applications, spreadsheets, and me tearing my hair out trying to figure out where each vendor sets up, who is signed up for each week, how to fit them all in, who needs power, how much space their booth requires, etc. Honestly, this is probably the most important and least liked task on the market manager’s to do list. The use of a software program instead of paper will also allow us to grow the number of vendors we can manage making the market even more of a destination for our entire community. If technology is your thing and/or you are inclined to want to help save my sanity, a donation specifying “technology” will go a long way toward smoothing the bumps in the road. Our subscriptions run us $1500 per season. 
• Kid-Preneur Booth - in past seasons we have received a nominal amount to partially cover the booth fees for kid entrepreneurs. Basically, we offer a 6 foot table “for free” to local kids who want to sell their wares a time or two each summer. In past seasons, we’ve had kids setting up and selling baked goods, jewelry, candles, bath bombs, LEGO art, crayon art, art art, and the like. We love to encourage their entrepreneurial spirit. Perhaps this sponsorship hits the right note with you or your organization. Donation amount is at your discretion, but $400-$700 would allow us the freedom to actively promote this opportunity in the community, as well as displaying signage acknowledging your contribution. 
• Market Meals/Cooking Demonstrations - we have been working diligently for several years to recruit more “traditional” market vendors selling items such as honey, eggs, maple syrup, cheeses, meats, herbs, flowers, canned goods, breads, and, of course, produce and other products of the farm and products using local ingredients. For the 2024 season, we added three to four egg sellers (still not enough), bison, two beef sellers, a pork seller, a honey and maple syrup seller (who sold out completely in August), and several new produce sellers. Our next goal, in addition to adding more sellers to represent these traditional products every week through the whole season and fill in what we’re missing—we’re looking at you chicken, cheeses and bread— is to offer market meals, cooking demonstrations, seasonal recipes, etc. These programs could take on many forms from meal kits, to a community meal, to recipe cards and samples.

Really, the sky’s the limit here. These projects require not only funding, but people. Have we sparked an idea? Or, would you rather we work it out and you provide financial support? Let’s discuss. Markets that fund these types of programs attract not only more customers, but high-quality vendors as well. 

• General Fund - the market incurs general expenses each season such as printing costs, signage, badges, website fees, market management software fees, advertising, insurance, chamber dues, rental fees, etc. These expenses are typically covered from our general fund. If you’re so inclined, or simply can’t decide on which other aspect of our market resonates most deeply for you, a contribution to our general fund is always appreciated. 

If none of these sponsorship opportunities align with your goals, but you still want to help…reach out. We will make something work for you.
 
In addition to financial resources, we are always looking for volunteers to help out on market days — Saturdays and Wednesdays from June thru mid-October. Market day tasks include assisting vendors with set up or tear down, running the information booth, answering customer questions and directing them to resources or vendors, setting out and storing signs and trash and recycling receptacles, kids day activities, activity booths, merchandise sales etc. 

We would love to hear from you should you have any questions about our market. Choosing to sponsor us and/or volunteer in 2025 will ensure that the community treasure that is our market will continue to grow and thrive. 

Please contact Jan Werkau at 425-244-1446 (cell), or send an email to FFFarmersMarket@gmail.com for further information or to make a donation. 

Checks should be made payable to:
Fergus Falls Farmers Market
We can also send you an invoice via email if that is easier. Alternately, a deposit can be made directly to our checking account with Bell Bank in Fergus Falls. 
No matter which level you choose for sponsorship of our 2025 season, we appreciate you beyond measure. Every donation matters! 
We understand that not every company, organization, or individual is able to donate enough to cover the full cost of one of the items listed above, but if a particular program is of interest, we are more than willing to accept donations to partially fund a specific program. Not all donations have to fully cover the costs of a program. We appreciate donations in any amount. 
Opening Day of our 2025 season will be Saturday, June 7th. The 2025 season will run for 20 weeks through Saturday, October 18th. We are changing up the Wednesday schedule in 2025 hoping to capture a larger lunchtime crowd, as well as groups enjoying the splash pad next door. The Wednesday market hours will be Noon to 3pm next season.  
Thank you in advance for your generous support of our 2025 Season. We plan to make it our best season yet!