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Ninety minutes after a ribbon-cutting ceremony officially christened the new Dorey Park Farmers Market June 2, sisters Shawna Johnson and Nichelle Carver encountered the best kind of problem.
They were running out of product.
The siblings, Varina residents who operate Baking Divas Cheesecakes together, already had sold half their supply.
Carver attributed some of their success to familiarity with the people who came to the new market.
“There was nothing local before, so we had to go out to Hopewell,” Carver said. “But we live down the street from here, so people here know us. They’re our neighbors, and they were excited and came out this morning.”
The farmers market opened with what attendees, vendors and community leaders agreed was an impressive debut.
The market, Varina’s first, is the brainchild of Henrico resident Cappie Montgomery and her husband, John Montgomery. Cappie Montgomery is the market manager of Dorey Farmers Market, Inc., and they both serve on its advisory board.
Dorey Park, located off Darbytown Road, is the perfect location for the new farmers market, Cappie Montgomery said. From there, people from all over Eastern Henrico can easily come and purchase fresh produce and other goods.
“We love Dorey,” she said. “It’s got everything you could ask for in a park. It’s really the center of Varina.”
Her husband agreed that Dorey Park’s centrality to Varina makes it an excellent location.
“The whole idea is to grow a healthy Varina,” said John Montgomery, who also serves as the Varina District representative on the Henrico School Board. “And this part of Varina was the perfect place to do it. With the history of this area being a dairy farm, the numbers of growers who are close by and the number of families that frequent the park – it’s a great spot.”
Vendors opened their stands at 9 a.m. in Dorey Park, adjacent to the recreation center, and closed them at 1 p.m. The event drew sizable attendance, probably augmented by the Celebrate Varina event that also took place nearby.
A small crowd, including some local officials, attended the market’s ribbon-cutting ceremony at 9:30 a.m.
Addressing the audience before the ribbon-cutting, Henrico County Manager John Vithoulkas said that although the market’s fresh produce will benefit the community, it also will bring residents closer together.
“What I most appreciate about this farmers market is that it gives opportunities for residents, both young and old, to connect and experience our community,” Vithoulkas said. “It creates a place for us to come together and away from electronic devices.”
Tyrone Nelson, who represents the Varina District on the Henrico County Board of Supervisors, agreed that the market would spark important community building and lauded it as a prime example of effective collaboration between local government and the private sector.
“Dorey Farmers Market, Inc., and our Recreation and Parks division came together and made this work,” Nelson said. “It’s exciting because this is public space that can be utilized to benefit the citizens — not just Varina citizens, but the greater Henrico community in general.”
Vendors at the farmers market sold an array of products, from fresh produce to locally-made honey and pastries. The Henrico County Public Library sent representatives to set up shop and inform attendees of the programs it will offer this summer.
The farmers market could be a boon to local consumers as well as a boost to small businesses.
Among the vendors was Toby Vernon, executive director of the Community Food Collaborative, a local non-profit. He sold produce from Corner-stone Farm, which students cultivate as part of a program called Grow On! that educates youth about nutrition and equitable food access. The Dorey Park Farmers Market will help combat unequal access to healthy food in the area, he said.
“Food access isn’t exactly consistent throughout Varina,” Vernon said. “The community has been asking for this for a long time, and it works perfectly with our mission and the community’s interests.”
Jessica Wakelyn, who recently moved from Richmond to Varina with her family, said she was excited to have a new location where she could buy fresh products. Her family used to go to the Birdhouse Farmers Market every week, she said.
“It’d be really nice to be able to do the same thing out here, now that we’ve moved out here,” Wakelyn said.
The Dorey Park Farmers Market will be open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Saturday until Oct. 27. Information and a list of planned programs and events is available on its website, doreyparkfarmersmarket.org.
