Waking Up Early with Prize Eggs

There are countless home VHS tapes of me, my sisters and cousins scrambling from the one end of the front yard to the other end of the backyard searching for the coveted prize egg from years of family Easter Egg hunts. Looking back, most of the footage is pretty embarrassing. The rushing and looking under every shrub in the yard and all for a neatly folded crisp $10 bill inside a big plastic egg that smelled like chocolate.

This past weekend was Easter and countless cell phones took video recordings of children holding colorful baskets scrambling about looking for the prize egg, just as we have done for generations. It’s a tradition that was held onto. It made me think of the wholesome traditions that were lost somewhere along the way.

Local produce stands and farmers markets were once a lot more common than they are now.

The years of the pandemic hit the tradition hard. This past Saturday the Downtown Blakely Farmers Market was very successfully launched. The historic and creative sides of me see this as a revival of a much-needed tradition for the people of Early County. There were so many people there I honestly can’t say I had ever seen half of them before. It was clear the market had attracted people from out of town. That’s real tourism, y’all. I saw so many smiles. I heard so many laughs. I shook many hands and hugged even more necks. It was refreshing even as the temperature increases throughout the morning. Not only is that tourism. It’s a sense of place and community.

When Beth Chandler came to meet with me in my office because she had an idea to develop a local farmers market, I was overjoyed. It was obvious from the start she was a true cheerleader for Downtown Blakely and would play a valuable role in strengthening community bonds.

Her vision for a local farmers market was right on target with the mission of the DDA.

Throughout all of the community surveys, conversations and overall feedback gathered from Early County in over two years, a farmers market was in the top five things mentioned as “missing” or “an opportunity” for Blakely. It was an answered prayer having someone approach the Downtown Development Authority to help organize and manage a downtown market. That’s what economic development is all about! People are encouraged to use their skills and talents to shape the development of the community in a positive way.

Through Beth’s excitement, organization, thoroughness and attention to detail, it was clear she had the passion and desire to work tirelessly to help Early County succeed.

On the day the farmers market became eligible to receive EBT benefits and the information was released to the public, we were admiring the official flyer. I remember Beth saying to me: “That is amazing! Can you believe we are pulling this thing off?”

If you were at the grand opening of Downtown Blakely’s Farmers Market, you know you had to be there by 8:45 a.m. to get a loaf of sourdough bread, but you also know the team that organized the market did not just simply “pull off” the event, they knocked it out of the park with a home run for Blakely.

I think a lot of us marveled at the ultimate success of the event over the weekend. The consensus is Early County truly is blessed with great residents and businesses, supportive neighbors and a bright future for all who want to participate.

We are fortunate to have prize eggs in this community that don’t require a lengthy search to be found. Fortunately, they shine very brightly with enthusiasm and genuine compassion. Thinking back to the initial meeting with Beth, it never crossed my mind to not believe the event would be anything short of the most successful market for the community.

Even as the “pre-market butterflies” tried to creep up on her a few days before opening, Beth never lost her enthusiasm and passion. That’s why she was never doubted. Someone with that much “give a durn” and care will encourage others. Early needs a team with people such as this that push for improvements. It’s a commitment to following-through and ultimately working hard to secure wins for the community every time.

Shared with permission from The Early County News.