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Farmers’ market produces a win-win for youth and community By JuliAnn Graham
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ody Fischer, 17, has lived on a farm west of Hooker his entire life. Grow- ing produce for Oklahoma’s fi rst-ever, 4-H-sponsored Farmers’ Market in 2011 was only an extension of what he has done for as long as he can remember. Fischer, a member of Hooker’s Loyal Do- ers 4-H Club, said, “Our family has always grown a garden, mostly for ourselves but sometimes for 4-H projects as well.” The club’s 4-H leader is Bradley James, a member of Tri-County Electric Coopera- tive. James, a long-time volunteer with 19 years of 4-H service, said the youth involved in the farmers’ market project learned lead- ership skills and the value of community service.
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“I brought the idea to the club as request- ed by several people in the community but the kids voted on it,” James said. “We really stress community involvement in our club. Our youth do a lot for the community and don’t ask for anything in return.” James, who works for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), said the 4-H project garnered national attention when it was featured on the USDA’s blog site. That blog story drew the attention of Congressman Frank Lucas who then wrote a letter of commendation to the club citing their efforts for the community. In his letter, Lucas said in part, “Never be- fore has Oklahoma 4-H sponsored a farm- ers’ market. Never before has a Member of Congress from Oklahoma served as Chair- man of the House Committee on Agricul- ture. It is fi tting that 2011 saw both of these historic fi rsts for our state come to pass. I am tremendously honored to work every day to ensure that you keep breaking new ground in your efforts—that you keep ‘mak- ing the best better.’ In doing this good work you bring honor to your communities, your state, and your country.” While learning leadership skills in plan- ning and organizing a large project, the youth learned about agriculture. This is only fi tting since the USDA’s blog calls 4-H its ‘premier youth development program.’
“Last year, the drought was a big chal- lenge,” Fischer said. “We also had some animals come and eat the plants out of the garden. So, this year we put up a better fence to keep out animals. For me, I enjoy grow- ing plants and I’m thinking about studying agronomy when I go to college. It’s interest- ing learning about God’s creation. Going to the farmers’ market is fun too. I learned about business and handling money. I liked meeting new people and seeing old friends.” Agronomy is the science and economics of crop production, something all partici- pants in the farmers’ market project would have learned about in the process of ready- ing their produce for market.
The project was months in the making as the participants attended lessons and workshops on planting and proper plant nutrition. To help get the project started, the club received a $450 grant from the Oklahoma State University 4-H Founda- tion (Hille Family Foundation of Tulsa). Individuals and organizations instrumen- tal in launching the project include Mary Long and Liz Lewis, Texas County Master Gardeners, who led some of the lessons and workshops. Also, Bob Dietrick, the local Pi- oneer Seed representative, provided a lesson on the nutritional needs of corn in addition to donating premium corn seed. “I think it was important to establish the farmers’ market because of the need for farm-fresh produce in our area,” said Brax- ton Taylor in an Oklahoma State University publication. Taylor, 17, is a Hooker resident and the president of the Loyal Doers 4-H Club. “I think … I know that the farmers’ market went extremely well, especially with what we had. It went well because of the heart that was put into it.
“Someone could say the customers ben-
efi tted the most from our efforts, but truly the kids involved benefi tted the most be- cause of the joy and feeling of accomplish- ment it brought to each of us.” The project was so successful in 2011, the club continued growing produce and host- ed a farmers’ market in late July 2012. The date is yet to be determined as it is based on
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