4MRMarket Report: Get 'Yer Pumpkins Here!

Pumpkins abound this weekend at 4MRMarket!

The Four Mile Run Farmers & Artisans Market (4MRMarket) is open every Sunday from 9am until 1pm from late April until November 23rd  in Four Mile Run Park at 4109 Mt Vernon Avenue, Alexandria. (click here for directions)

C&T Produce has pumpkins and fall decorations galore! Come grab a decorative bundle of feed corn and a jack-o-lantern in training to prep for All Hallows Eve. With 2 weeks to go, it's the perfect time to carve that pumpkin!

It should be a brisk fall day in the mid 50s and sunny on Sunday.  Break out that lightweight jacket and enjoy breakfast and a show--Janna Audey will be onstage from about 10am to Noon.  We have a few more vendors more than normal, so it should be a great mraket!

New Vendors

New Aussie vendor "For Keepsake" starts Sunday!

There will be two new vendors at the market this weekend! Teresa is the owner of the market stall For Keepsake and is recognized by her logo ‘TS." She and her husband have recently moved from Australia and are nicely settling into the ‘Del Ray’ way of life.

Teresa’s main craft product is hand-made ‘Keepsake Boxes’ which have been beautifully decorated with embossed sheet metal, decoupaged with interesting pictures from books, and lined with soft fabrics. The boxes make great gifts to keep those special photos, and keepsake items. Styles are suitable for children and adults.

Teresa also makes a small amount of necklace jewelry using her signature ‘red bead’. They are fun, quirky and unique pieces. They are made from recycled eye-ware and each piece contains a red bead.

Did you miss Claire and Maggie Crafts at Art on the Avenue this year? Well, you have another chance! C&M Crafts will be at the Four Mile Run Market this Sunday.

Proceeds from the sales of the jewelry made by these 9-year-old 4th graders will go to support SOHO - Space of Her Own...a creative mentorship program that serves pre-teen girls by providing yearlong mentoring through engagement in life skills instruction, creative art activities and meaningful community service projects.

Charity Watch

• Correction: THIS weekend is the last weekend for the St. Rita's Annual Clothing Drive! So, if you've found some more items to donate, 4MRMarket can still help. St. Rita's Church is conducting its annual clothing drive. 
• We're collecting gently worn, clean, cold weather clothing and rain gear of all sizes this week. Look for the collection box at the 4MRMarket Tent. 
• The clothing will be distributed on Saturday, October 25th from the St. Rita School Hall to our neighbors in Arlandria.

• 4MRMarket is donating $1,000 to 4MR Park tree planting efforts. Along with the $1,000 4MRMarket won from ActionAlexandria Green Ideas Challenge (funded by Dominion Power) and $1,000 from crowd funding through Citizinvestor, that's $3,000 for trees in 4MR Park and surrounding areas!

Don't forget to check out more information about the 4MR Park Community Fall Tree Planting at: www.arlandria.org

This Week on 4MR Stage...

Janna Audey!!  Janna performs a mix of her own material and adaptations of songs by her favorite artists and songwriters.

Whether you see Janna by her lonesome for an intimate, storytelling show, as the duo alongside husband and electric guitarist, Rob Santos, where Rob's edgy, melodic playing complements the sweet and soulful timbre of Janna's voice (you should hear their cover of Pink Floyd's Hey You), or performing high energy rock with the band, (including Santos on guitar, bassist, Howard Haughery, and Terry Burcham on drums) from start to finish, you'll understand what the Janna-buzz is all about. It's about the music, providing a sense of community, connection, feeling, laughter, positive energy, and FUN

Remember, these musicians volunteer their time on Sunday mornings to make yours even brighter! They graciously accept tips and friendly applause, so please help support music at the market!

Click here to see a video excerpt of
Janna's past performance at 4MR Stage!

Please see the 4MRMarket Facebook event page for more information about the show!

Composting at 4MRMarket

Bring your (non-animal) food scraps to 4MRMarket in any type of container you choose, or purchase one on-site for a very low fee.
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4MRMarket Food Vendors this week:

• C &T Produce (White Oak, VA) - A huge selection of locally grown produce from a locally, family-run farm in Stafford, Virginia. 
• The Stifler Farm aka "What's For Dinner Now" - (Will be back in early November) Farm-raised Black Angus beef, humanely raised on lush pasture fields of the Shenandoah Valley, naturally farmed pork--plus Uncle Frank's Grilling Sauce!! 
• Tom's Amish Cheese Store (Lancaster, PA) - Artisan Cheese and yogurt, farm-fresh eggs, and Pennsylvania honey. 
• Caffeine. - Serving freshly roasted pour-over coffee (hot OR cold) from various sources at their pour over brew bar!  Also selling freshly roasted beans so you can enjoy the magic 7 days a week!
• Savory 'N Sweet (Alexandria) - Your local Bulgarian baker! Maker of Savory and Sweet Breads, Breakfast Pastries, Fruit Pies, Breadsticks, and Granola.
• St. Elmo's Coffee Pub (Del Ray) - Brewed coffee, tea, and always a few extra goodies! 
• Felicity's Handcrafted Soaps (Alexandria) - This specialty crafter of hand-made soaps and knitted items will be at the market every other Sunday!
• For Keepsake (Del Ray) - Recent Australian transplant Teresa hand-makes beautifully decorated ‘Keepsake Boxes’, plus necklace jewelry made with recycled eye-wear and her signature ‘red bead’.
• C&M Crafts (Arlandria) - Local 4th graders Claire and Maggie hand-make jewelry to support SOHO - Space of Her Own--a creative mentorship program that serves pre-teen girls by providing yearlong mentoring.  All proceeds go to SOHO.

See below all the ways to help and participate in the market!

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The supercool 4MRMarket t-shirt

BUY. Proceeds of our 4MRMarket T-shirts go to support the expansion and revitalization of 4MR Park. They cost $12 and come in 4 colors.

DONATE. Help 4MRMarket help 4MRPark. Tax-deductible donations can be made to support us in our efforts to revitalize Four Mile Run Park. Donate to the City's Living Landscape Fund to fund tree and other amenities at 4MRExpand More information here.

VOLUNTEER. We love help with set-up and tear-down and/or processing SNAP/EBT and Credit / Debit Card sales.  Just find a Market Manager to ask to help, or email us at 4MRMarket@arlandria.org for more info.

FOLLOW. Keep up to date on all the goings on by following 4MRMarket on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or via our website and blog.

SPREAD THE WORD.  Please tell folks about us. And tell folks about some of the great things we're doing. For instance, all SNAP/EBT participants can take advantage of the Inova-sponsored "Double Dollar" program again this year that doubles the first $10 SNAP participants spend at the market. 4MRMarket is the first farmers’ market in Northern Virginia (and still the only) to accept SNAP. And C&T Produce now accepts SFMNP vouchers!

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Buy Fresh Buy Local 4MRMarket products.

The Four Mile Run Farmers and Artisans Market (Alexandria, Virginia 22305) brings fresh, nutritious food to people of all income levels, provide an opportunity for local artisans and producers of goods to bring their wares to market, strive to reflect the diversity of the community, and improve the quality of life for Arlandria residents and visitors. It is part of an overall vision to expand and improve Four Mile Run park and the surrounding neighborhood.

For more info see: http://www.4mrmarket.org/

On Facebook: facebook.com/4MRMarket
On Twitter: @4MRMarket

Contact us at: 4MRMarket@arlandria.org

Or call the 4MRMarket hotline: (804) 4mi-Run1