Lewes Farmers Market names 2020 scholarship recipients

For 13 years, the Historic Lewes Farmers Market has awarded scholarships to small-scale Delmarva farmers to attend sustainable farming conferences.

This year, five $400 scholarships were awarded. Grants from the regular HLFM scholarship fund went to Zachary Dittmar of Dittmar Family Farms in Felton and Henry Bennett of Bennett Orchards in Frankford.

In 2016, the market established the Debra Schaefer Scholarship for Emerging Women Farmers fund in loving memory of Delaware farmer Debra Schaefer. This year’s three recipients are Caitlin Patton Rosenberg of Double Forte Farm in Galena, Md.; Crystal Giesey of Masterpiece Flowers in Parsonsburg, Md.; and Crystal J. Sankar of Four Mothers Farm in Princess Anne, Md.

Dittmar and Sankar will attend the Future Harvest CASA Conference in College Park, Md. Rosenberg will attend the PASA Farming for the Future Conference in Lancaster, Pa. Bennett will attend the Southeast Regional Fruit & Vegetable Conference in Savannah, Ga. Giesey will attend the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers Back to Basics for Cut Flower Nerds Conference in Oberlin, Ohio.

Consistent with its mission, the Historic Lewes Farmers Market is committed to supporting farmers and emerging farmers who grow local fruits, vegetables, produce, flowers and more, and these scholarships help small Delmarva farmers become educated about sustainable farming practices.

For more information, go to www.historiclewesfarmersmarket.org or call 302-644-1436.