Stories

Step into the pavilion at the Athens Farmers Market and you are immediately met with the rainbow colors of fresh produce and vibrant flowers on display at the farmers’ stands, blueberry samples from Rhonda’s blueberries, and live jazz music. For customer and unofficial market ambassador, Al Marshall, this is a special place. Here, he catches up with farmers, market managers,…

Every Saturday, you can hear squeals of joy as Jan Weisman and Raylan, her 6-year old Australian shepherd, walk along the boulevard of white tents at the Monroe Farmers Market. As regulars at the market, everyone knows Jan and Raylan, particularly for their love of tomatoes. Their favorite snacks are tomatoes prepared any way, but especially homemade tomato pie, or…

Diamond Chamberlain with her box of Gala apples at Mulberry Market. If you ever find yourself walking through Mulberry Market in Macon, Georgia on a sunny Wednesday morning, you will find vendors selling everything from fresh herbs to blueberries. You will also come across Diamond, hunting down the perfect bushel of Gala apples. A SNAP recipient and mother, Diamond has…

Rachel credits SNAP and the Georgia Fresh For Less program at Athens Farmers Market for helping her get by between careers in the pandemic. A year ago, Rachel Marts wouldn't have guessed that she'd feel most at home at the Athens Farmers Market, but when the pandemic hit, everything changed. A 29-year-old native of Columbus, GA, Rachel was working full…

Bobby and Chelsea Losh-Jones are young farmers in Middle Georgia that are passionate about providing good food for their community, but struggle to do the same for their family. With their baby on the way, Chelsea and Bobby saw SNAP as a way to feed their growing household. The husband-wife duo graduated from Georgia College before starting Babe & Sage…

I ran for WWG because their mission to make fresh, healthy, locally grown food affordable for all Georgians resonates deeply with me. After visiting the doctor in 2022, I realized I’d let my health slide – I had both high cholesterol and prediabetes. While it may sound like I was eating my weight in chocolate ice cream, my diet was…