The Historic Lewes Farmers Market has tickets for its popular Hoedown event now on sale. The party starts at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, April 26, at the Officers Club at Cape Henlopen State Park and continues 'til the cows come home.
The HLFM Hoedown benefit celebrates the community and the producer-only market that welcomed more than 50,000 visitors last year. This biannual event features food grown by farmers from the market, prepared this year by Executive Chef Bill Clifton from Henlopen City Oyster House. It's a chance to have a real farm-to-table feast with friends who support the weekly market, and then guests can kick up their heels to the live band Michael Shockley and the Moonshiners.
A highlight of the evening will be a live auction with a chance to bid on some really spectacular offerings such as a personal guided tour of the Winterthur estate and gardens led by the curator and director of the horticulture department for 25 years; a weekend for four at a luxurious apartment centrally located in Ottawa, Canada; a party and a tour for the winning bidder and 20 friends at the Dogfish Head Craft Brewery; a week at a spectacular home in Key West and much more. Funds from the 2014 Hoedown will help the market operate so its 36 local farmers and vendors can grow, support their families, and continue to build the local food movement in Delmarva.
The funds also help support and expand the market's educational and charitable programs including: scholarships to farmers to attend sustainable conferences; farmers market workshops for farmers to help educate them on how to be successful at farmers markets; demonstrations by local chefs and others every Saturday during the regular season; and support for the Bonus Bucks Program that provides matching funds for customers using the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as food stamps.
Tickets are $95 and can be ordered online at historiclewesfarmersmarket.org, or send a check to Historic Lewes Farmers Market, P.O. Box 185, Nassau, DE 19969. Questions? Email historiclewesfarmersmarket@comcast.net or call 302-644-1436. This event typically sells out quickly.
