Market Day at Burbank Heights loses its longtime sponsor
The two churches that own Burbank Heights and Orchards have temporarily stepped into the breach, but Market Day fans are still looking for a long-term solution
Once a week, for more than 15 years, there’s been a “Market Day,” featuring fruits vegetables and flowers, in the community building at Burbank Heights, a Sebastopol housing complex for low-income seniors. The market was sponsored by Front Porch, a nonprofit dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for older adults.
Earlier this month, Burbank Heights’ Judith Morgan wrote the Sebastopol Times with some bad news: “We have had very sad news from Front Porch, the organization that sponsors and underwrites our Friday market and many other markets for low-income seniors in California. They are cancelling their Market Day program as of August 1. Everybody here was completely shocked by this news.”
At first, Morgan and other folks at Burbank Heights worried that this meant their market would have to close. Yesterday, Friday, July 25, was the last Market Day sponsored by Front Porch.
The room was full of seniors shopping for fruits and vegetables laid out in baskets on tables that ran the length of two sides of the large room. People made their way around the tables, picking and choosing, and then took their finds to the cashier. Residents actually pay for their vegetables at Market Day, but at a considerably lower cost than they would at a commercial market.
“It’s wholesale, basically,” said Lauralee Aho, a Burbank resident who was acting as the cashier that day. Most of the people running the market are volunteers who live at the complex.
In the center of the room, people were were sitting around tables eating and chatting. Many were concerned that the future of Market Day was up in the air.
“There’s a lot of people here who don’t have cars and we can’t shop—or it’s a problem to shop. So this is wonderful for us,” said Alan Sands.
Judith Reimuller agreed. “The market is an incredible community event here,” she said. “The food part is very important, but it is the family part of it that is really unique and very special—the social aspect.”
Reimuller, who has lived at Burbank Heights for 22 years, has been part of Market Day from the beginning. “I’ve done every possible job: I’ve ordered, I’ve priced, I’ve cashiered. Now I’m the strawberry and vegetable pickup for Laos,” she said, referring to the strawberry stand on Highway 12 just east of town.
Market Day serves around 200 residents of the complex a week.
Judith Morgan, a resident who runs Burbank’s community newsletter, said the nonprofit owners of the complex have temporarily stepped up to fund Market Day.
“Our Board, representing the Community Church and United Methodist Church, who own Burbank Heights and Orchards, very graciously announced we will be receiving a grant of $1,500,” Morgan said. “We have applied for one other small grant. Our residents have been very kind to donate. Once we receive the donation from our board—Sebastopol Area Housing Corporation—we will have some funds to operate from week to week.”
So, for now, as long as their money holds out, the longtime resident volunteers for Market Day will be running the ship.
One difference is they will no longer have an EBT (electronic benefits transfer) machine to handle EBT cards for food assistance programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
“When we were sponsored by Front Porch, they made it possible for us to accept CalFresh EBT. Once we are established, we hope to be able to once again accept EBT. Getting qualified to accept EBT is a complex process through the Department of Agriculture, and we need to find out how to qualify and what all the expenses of the program are. Accepting EBT is a great help to our shoppers,” Morgan said.
While they can probably cobble enough money together to keep the market going into the fall, the residents at Burbank Heights and Orchards are looking for more permanent solutions.
“If a corporation or individual would want to step us to sponsor us, that would be wonderful,” Morgan said. “We have about 40 markets each year, and we need about $150 above what we take in from our shoppers to cover our expenses. We are discovering that we will have some additional expenses we did not anticipate as we are such newbies, so donations from the community would be much appreciated and help us greatly.”
In terms of what supporting the market would cost, Morgan figures it this way:
“In addition to Andy’s weekly bill, the extra expenses are the cost of supplies—bags, ties, etc.—government fees, bank charges, non-food items which Front Porch has been donating to us to sell to the shoppers at a very low cost, and what we buy from Lao’s,” she said. “We may have legal or accounting fees as we work to establish our 501(c)(3). My estimate is that our costs are probably $150- $200 above what the shoppers pay per week…That’s a pretty low cost for a great program which enriches the lives of the folks at Burbank Heights and Orchards.”
Morgan said they have 40 markets a year—from the second week in February to the Friday before Thanksgiving. At $150 to $200 a week, that’s between $6,000 and $8,000 a year.
“We take the winter off for the holidays and to give our hard-working volunteers a rest,” Morgan said.
She noted that some people suggested working with local farmers, who sometimes have perfectly good leftover produce after the farmer’s market.
“A few people have spoken to us about working with local farms,” Morgan said. “So far, we do not have anything set up. We are very interested in speaking to local farmers. We have been buying most of our great produce from Andy’s Wholesale Division for as long as our market has been open. We also buy seasonal produce from the Lao’s Highway 12 stand. We plan to continue to buy from Andy’s and Lao’s, but we are certainly open to other opportunities,” Morgan said.
Morgan also gave a shout out to Sebastopol Mayor Stephen Zollman for his help with this situation.
“Mayor Zollman responded to my note and met with Lauralee and me,” she said. “He then sent out emails to many folks in Sebastopol encouraging them to back the market. I think he had a very important effect in securing the support we have had thus far.”
If you would like to donate or help, contact Judith Morgan at jem1943@icloud.com. Judith writes, “A donor could send a check to us at Burbank Heights and Orchards Senior Produce Market (c/oJudy Morgan), 7777 Bodega Avenue, #A1, Sebastopol, CA 95472. Or a donor could send or take a check payable to Burbank Heights and Orchards Senior Produce Market to the Sebastopol Branch of the Redwood Credit Union.”
Why did Front Porch ends its participation?
A friend of mine would like to make a 1 time donation. Who does she call or mail it to??