Los Alamos Cooperative Market will host its Harvest Festival Sunday, Oct. 16. Courtesy/CO+OP
CO+OP News:
The Los Alamos Cooperative Market (CO+OP) at 95 Entrada, welcomes the entire community to its Harvest Festival noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 16.
A celebration of local farmers, vendors, artisans and businesses, the family-friendly event will also have kids’ activities, contests, games and music, as well as beer, wine and cider provided by Bathtub Row Brewing Co-Op. Additionally, it will be the first time the public can meet the Co+Op’s newly hired General Manager, and New Mexico native, Andre Chavez.
A variety of vendors will showcase locally made products, from skin & body care, jewelry, clothing, and accessories, handmade ceramic items, paintings, banners, New Mexico gift sets, handbound journals and notebooks, Resin/wood pieces, stone/wood jewelry, and more.
The Master Gardening Program and the Los Alamos Community Seed Library Project also will have booths and will be hosting a Seed Drive from October through February. Those who would like to donate can bring unopened packets of commercially produced seeds, or their own saved seeds with the grower names, seed types, location grown, date harvested, and other information that would help other gardeners grow them successfully. The Co+Op Market will also start taking pre-orders for organic turkeys and hams for the holiday season at the event.
The Harvest Festival falls during National Co-Op Month, celebrated by cooperatives nationwide during the month of October. It serves as an annual opportunity to raise awareness of a trusted, proven way to do business and build resilient, inclusive communities. This year’s Co-Op Month theme, “Co-Ops Build Economic Power,” showcases the economic impact the cooperative business model can have on a local community.
Through its seven cooperative principles, the Los Alamos Co+Op Market is a cornerstone of the Los Alamos and regional ecosystem, championing environmental sustainability, proactively building relationships with local producers to expand their market, and more. Its outreach and education provides an inclusive place to buy a variety of products including local, healthy, and natural foods.
“You can feel confident that in purchasing goods from the Los Alamos Co+Op Market that you are supporting local and sustainable, and that your dollars are staying in the region,” said Terra Hite, Board Member and Community Outreach Chair. “We are community-owned and started for the community, by the community. While we are built on a membership model and deeply value our members, you don’t need to be a member to shop at the Co+Op Market. We hope to see many of our friends and neighbors at our Harvest Festival this Sunday and throughout the year!”
The Los Alamos Co+Op Market continues to host a variety of its own programming and also participates in other community events. There will be an instructional Ice Cream Making Class at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14 and participants may sign up at the front desk at the Market; it is $15 for members and $20 for non-members. The Co+op Market also will be present during Los Alamos Halloweekend events later this month.
For more information about membership, programs, or employment and volunteer opportunities, visit the Co+Op Market or reach out to outreach@losalamos.coop.
