Making makers

PALMER — The Monday Market at the Palmer Train Depot is well into its second year and appears to be well on its way to becoming another creative, community driven staple of the small and cozy town. Founder, Kenda Huling is looking to establish this market as a community hub churning out local products and mentors to teach others to work with their hands. A handful of vendors are gearing up for their upcoming workshops in April and May.

“I have an eclectic group of people that are community minded- and they all get along,” Huling said.

Based in the Palmer Train Depot, the Monday Market serves a multitude of purposes. It’s a locally driven produce, craft, food, clothing market. Huling wants “real” products, “Valley meat, Valley eggs,” and so on.

“She’s not just looking for stuff, she wants it local. After all, we are an agricultural town, ” Said Denise Statz, owner of Non-Essentials.

The Monday Market also serves as a community classroom. In addition to selling goods, members of the community lead classes and workshops with a range of topics Huling wants to keep ever expanding. She envisions a growing movement of local artisans sharing their skills with the community. She really means diverse, she has a nearly endless list of class ideas and potential candidates to teach them, ranging from alcohol ink classes to writing workshops.

“I think people love to learn things,” said one Monday Market vendor, Sonya Funaro.

Funaro owns Just Botanicals, an organic skincare business in Palmer and she has been involved with the market for about 2 weeks. Funaro runs workshops at the Annex on a regular basis, teaching participants how to make their own natural skincare products like creams or oils. She said that she plans to bring her workshops to the Monday Market, which will further expand Huling’s dream of a diverse range of topics to learn in this ongoing community classroom.

Funaro said that she has already learned a lot from her fellow artisans and small business owners. Palmer’s own pioneer, Statz was one of Funaro’s mentors and she helped her showcase her wares with simple tricks like facing them in such a way that’s appealing to the eye.

“Denise is very community minded,” Huling said.

Statz was at this last Monday’s market and she seems to be big supporter of Huling’s mission. She lingered long after the last vendor took down their booth. She gestured to the gauntlet of tables one sees when first walking in.

“There’s a lot of thought that went into this,” Statz said.

Bill Lance has been in the Monday Market for two years and said it’s been a great way to advertise his many skills and services and meet new people. Lance has diverse set of talents, ranging from custom knife and ulu making to gardening. He’s worked with his hands for over 40 years.

“When you gotta’ eat, you learn t do a lot of things,” Lance said.

He will be teaching a five week gardening class starting April 16. He said that in the long run, if you put in the work, gardening will save you money. He said that growing produces is a big payoff after a relatively small investment of some seeds, soil and the materials. He encourages everyone to engage their mind and hands, picking up skills along the way.

“If you live in a community, you contribute to it and benefit it from it,” Lance said.

Statz said that the town of Palmer is abundant with creatively-driven and community minded people. She is hopeful for the Monday Market and what it means. She said that buying local for many people, is a lifestyle, one that wants to support neighbors, to bite into something that grew down the road and learn how to start crafting their own creations.

For additional information or to enroll in a class, stop by the Monday Market, call 907-770-3532, or look them up on Facebook.