Bethel Park Recreation Farmers Market offers new features
Julie Fritz-Doyle is ready to welcome customers to Beatnik Sweet Eats and Dessert Treats.
Patti Iampietro enjoys a bite to eat at the Bethel Park Recreation Farmers' Market.
Harry Funk/The Almanac
Fulfilling orders for Wu’s Shaved Ice is Chloe LoCastro of Peters Township.
Harry Funk/The Almanac
Bethel Park environmental engineer Alex Maloney, left, and farmers market coordinator Miranda Wayne are ready to greet guests at the welcome booth.
Offering Kim's K-9 Droolers as homemade organic treats for our canine friends are Kim and Shawn Jones of Findaly Township.
Offering items for the over-21 crowd is Tori Pickford of Bethel Park-based Country Hammer Moonshine.
Dining tables are back in place at the Bethel Park Recreation Farmers' Market, allowing folks like Alyssa and Tony Iampietro a better opportunity to enjoy their food and drinks.
Helping customers with their sweet-tooth cravings are Maeve McElligott, left, and Olivia Gregory of Nothing Bundt Cakes in Upper St. Clair.
Say you spot some savory ears of corn and decide to buy a couple of dozen.
Then you notice other types of produce that would go great with dinner. And right around the corner is a vendor offering the enticement of desserts.
All of a sudden, you have a bunch of bags and a bit of a dilemma as far as getting everything back to your vehicle.
If you’re a guest of the Bethel Park Recreation Farmers Market, don’t fret. A volunteer is ready to help lend a hand.
“We don’t have a great name for it yet, other than ‘wagon service,'” said Cathy Muscato, Bethel Park Recreation assistant director, following the assistance effort’s launch June 15.
Whatever it ends up being called, it’s in response to comments by customers.
“They don’t have to worry about strategizing their shopping based on what they can carry,” Muscato said. “We can help them with that part of it.”
The market is held from 3 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays in the parking lot off Corrigan Drive near the South Park skating rink, and June 22, two additional “wagon service” volunteers will be available.
“As we’re getting people used to the idea, the volunteers will probably be out scoping the customers to see if there’s anybody they can offer the services to,” Muscato said.
And if all goes well, volunteers eventually could be available to accompany guests from vendor to vendor, helping them make purchases to their hearts’ content.
Market organizers also ran with another suggestion from customers, with three handicap parking spots designated near the entrance each week.
Starting this month, live entertainment has returned to the market, and Muscato has heard positive comments from guests.
“They all say the same thing: It lends such a really nice atmosphere,” she reported. “The farmers’ market, itself, is a wonderful event, but when you add those little extra flavors to it, like the entertainment, it takes it up such a notch.”
Taking it up a notch as far as spreading the word about the market is BPTV, the municipal cable channel. A recent “Around Town” episode features host Andy Amrhein speakers with market coordinator Miranda Wayne and several vendors for a seasonal introduction, and he subsequently has been focusing on individual vendors.
“In addition to bringing great products, they’re incredibly interesting people with interesting stories,” Muscato said.
The market, sponsored by the Bethel Park Community Foundation, is scheduled to run through Sept. 28. For more information, visit www.bethelparkfarmersmarket.com.