With No Music, Dedham Farmers Market Braves Rainy Day

In spite of a canceled performance by booked bluegrass duo Grass Gypsies (postponed for a future date) and depressing weather conditions, Dedham Square Circle didn't hesitate for a second in setting up the weekly farmers market Wednesday.  

No one was singing at the Dedham Farmers Market due to the persistent rain, and very real possibilities of electrocution and damaged electrical equipment posing the greatest threats for the scheduled musical act.   Nonetheless, spirits shone brightly on, not a trace of dampness in sight, only the occasional herd of umbrellas. 

Each tent display was filled with fresh produce and wholesale organic foods brought forth by local farmers and distributers who all prefer dealing directly with consumers.  

They also adhere to a strict value system that goes beyond simply saving or making a buck.  Joanna Hamblin makes sure of it, both through social media strategy and pouring all her environmentally focused edifying into one of several practical outlets. 

Hamblin serves as a member of the Sustainability Committee and pulls the reins as a market consultant on such an ideal-heavy operation as the farmers market, which she's managed two of the three years it has taken place.  She certainly doesn't let a little water stop her from carrying out what she passionately believes in.

"It's hard [for this kind of business] when you do have the easy way out, with a covered, climate-controlled supermarket, but it's not a huge counter-insurgence or anything like that," she said. "When it comes down to it, [a farmers market] is the best place to get food, and even it is rainy and cold, people will still go with their dollars."

A similar faith in the local community was had in the pasta tent. Jim Matteson, who stood behind a marker board menu full of carb-packed options made by a chef in Manchester, Vt., actually attributed the lack of visitors to the time of day.

"We do a lot better [earlier on] than in the mid-afternoons.  We get a fair number of regular customers; we're not just a bunch of masochists standing in a parking lot," Matteson said.

Elsewhere optimism and self-assured composure stood firmly under flimsy canvas shelters.  Representing Foxboro Cheese, a bespectacled Barbara McAuliffe stood warmly in front the open door of a full-sized van that contained a cache of cheeses and meats. 

She braved the rain with a dedicated handful that makes it no matter the weather – compared to the 18 to 20 vendors that would normally appear on a sunny day.  McAuliffe said every Wednesday couldn't be as beautiful –and hot – as it has been this summer.

"You can't complain.  We've had a nice summer and only a few days of rain, so it is what it is," McAuliffe said.

Observing some children splashing in puddles in leg-swallowing, neon-colored rain boots, she said, "Where else can you go and have this kind of thing." 

In trying to shake what she referred to as an "elitist" misnomer, Hamblin said the market's goal centers on informing low-income residents.

A recent grant for the Department of Agriculture made it possible for shoppers with SNAP to receive bonus "Dedham Dollars" that double their money to use at the market, helping the organic message reach families who regularly can't afford it. 

"People seem to be willing to receive low, but continuous pesticide exposure, pesticide-laden berries, even if autism rates are going up," Hamblin said. "We want to take this message to low-income families as to where they can find the freshest and most nutritious [alternatives].  It's about health, community, and the environment."