COLUMBUS, Ind. — Originally, the forecast predicted Mother Nature would rain. But clear skies and shoppers with a sunny disposition reigned Saturday at the kickoff for the 2021 Columbus Farmers Market along First Street downtown.
Organizers estimated that more than 400 people, most masked, attended the opening among 50 area vendors with temperatures in the low 50s. And it might have been one of the largest crowds since 2019, since last summer’s crowds were down amid some of the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jacob Hendricks, among the organizers for the Columbus Parks and Recreation Department event, proclaimed the day a success.
“I don’t know for sure if Mother’s Day had anything to do with it, but we had a lot of vendors with freshly-cut flowers, and I later saw a lot of people walking around with bouquets,” Hendricks said.
But he acknowledged that simply seeing ample clusters of shoppers and buyers was a beautiful sign of growth for the new season of the weekly Saturday gathering through Sept. 18.
For the complete story, see Tuesday’s Republic.
