‘All the goodies,' entertainment draw people to farmer's market

The fresh taste of vegetables, fruits and baked goods draws people to the downtown Beatrice farmer's market.

As the first Main Street Beatrice Farmer's Market of the season kicked off Thursday, it was no different as people from around the area gathered to purchase the scrumptious fresh produce and baked goods on sale.

“It's all the goodies,” Carol Scheve of Jansen said. “Fresh vegetables, baked goods and everything you can name.”

The farmer's market runs each Thursday evening into the fall.

Scheve said she tries to come to the farmer's market every Thursday. This year will be no different for her as she comes to purchase her fresh goods and see many of the vendors she has come to know over the years.

Bob Malstead of Beatrice said he'll certainly be spotted at the market this summer as he come to buy corn.

“I [come] all the time,” Malstead said. “I come to get roasting ears when they're here.”

This annual first farmer's market attracts vendors from all over the area, who bring their items to sell.

“It's all homegrown,” Wayne Adolf of Manhattan, Kan., tells a customer. “That's the market rule.”

With the season still early for farmers, the fruits and vegetables are not quite as abundant now because of the amount of rain the region has had this past few months, Adolf, who sells for Barbara Florez, said.

But he is confident they will have plenty to sell later on this summer.

“They've got a lot of stuff planted, it's just late,” he said.

But even with the rain and the late-arriving vegetables and fruit, vendors still had plenty to offer with tomatoes, peaches, green beans, green onions, radishes and red potatoes.

“We've got some for just getting started,” Adolf said.

For those market customers looking for something sweet, it wasn't hard to find with the many people bringing their fresh homemade baked goods like brownies, cookies, cinnamon rolls and breads.

It will be pies, pies and more pies this summer as Diana Hollman of Clatonia meets customer demands for her popular pies this summer.

“The people in Beatrice really like strawberry rhubarb or any rhubarb combination things,” she said.

Hollman has been selling at the market for 11 years, selling anywhere from 250 to 300 fresh-baked pies a year.

She has come to know many of the people in Beatrice and does well selling here, she said, which is why she continues to come back.

“The people are so nice here,” she said.

New this summer to the Beatrice Farmer's Market is Linda Baehr and Nancy Frerichs-Shea, both of Sterling.

Though they sell baked goods, including fresh baked bread rolls made with healthy flax seed, they sell a variety of handmade craft items, including fleece blankets, crocheted pieces, footwear and travel pillows, Baehr said.

“The stuff [we sell] is usually different than what is down here,” she said.

As the summer rolls along, Marilyn Stadler, Main Street Beatrice director, said they are hoping to have more vendors come down and sell their goods.

This year, Main Street Beatrice is trying to add some new and different things to the market to attract more people, Stadler said. This summer, market visitors can expect different hours, as it changed to 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., and some entertainment with musicians, dancers and possibly clowns to the market.

Entertainers to perform at the market already included classical guitarist Lisa Oltmans of Beatrice and the Wilber Czech Dancers.

“These are just some fun things so people want to come down and hang out,” Stadler said. “It should be fun.”