Local Market Shares Holiday Spirit During Orange Phase

Small businesses are most in need right now due to Covid, and what is a better way to support them than during your holiday shopping? Recently, a farmer’s and artisan market, located in Burton, hosted Christmas on the farm.

Whether you were looking for fresh dog treats, quilts, paintings, jewelry, or reindeer food ­­– they had it all. Most of their items were homemade, homegrown, and local.

When the province entered the orange zone, similar events chose to cancel. But, with health and safety guidelines, they stayed open.

Sanitizing before entering, wearing a mask, and keeping socially-distanced were mandatory.

After moving here from Germany five years ago, Mariam Lobinsky and her husband repaired a beloved barn in the heart of Burton. She reached out to locals and organized a market during the warmer months, which has been a huge success each year.

Although the summer market survived the pandemic, owner, Lobinsky, feared if this weekend would be possible. But, she, and her partner Jill Ward, were pleased with the ongoing support from locals.

“It’s been such a huge success this weekend after all of the craziness going on, we were unsure if it was gonna be a go or not, and actually people came out to enjoy, so it’s been a lot of fun,” said Ward. “They [the Lobinsky’s] put so much work into bringing this barn back to life to be able to have functions like this.”

This was their second year hosting Christmas on the farm.

With twenty to twenty-five vendors, many had to sell their crafts from a tent outside of the barn. But luckily, a local food truck, Twisted Chips, was parked nearby in case people needed a snack.

Emily Durling owns Soul Star Aromatics, where she creates intuitively blended essential oils.

“I’m an energy worker in an intuitive channel, so all of the oils I make are actually very much aligned and attuned to specific energies,” said Durling.

Durling spent her time recommending specific oil mixtures to individuals depending on their energy.

In the outdoor portion, there were also glass ornaments, festive woodwork, and gifts for children, such as handmade blankets, bibs, play dough, and books.

The vendors bundled up to stay warm, but their festive spirit and positivity never faded. It was an ideal place to purchase gifts, speak with vendors about their business, and support local at the same time.

There were also goats, chickens, pigs, and horses you could see on your way out!

This local market is now closed until the summertime, but they have many future plans in store.

“We’re only getting bigger and we’re growing to have bigger and better events,” said Ward.