By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
ssoldan@mihomepaper.com
Ortonville — The Ortonville Farmers Market has a new market manager.
Marisa Romano was previously the assistant for the Mt. Pleasant Farmers Market when she met Ortonville DDA vice president Leanne Claxton and heard about the opening.
“That’s how I got involved with the Michigan Farmer’s Market Association where I got my market manager certification,” said Romano. “That’s where I met Leanne, and we were chatting and I mentioned we were moving downstate and my boyfriend got a job in Oxford, and Leanne said they needed a market manager. It was a perfect fit.”
Before working in farmers markets, Romano worked in education.
“I was taking a little bit of a break from teaching and when I was up in Mt. Pleasant, I was looking for a job in the meantime while I decided if I wanted to stay in education,” she said. “So I applied and ended up really, really enjoying it. I hadn’t realized how much farmers markets did for a community as far as access to healthy food and food assistance programs. The way that a market can support it’s community.”
While Romano has begun working with the DDA and the Ortonville Farmers Market, Sept. 7 will be her first day as the full-fledged market manager.
“I really love it, I think it’s fantastic,” she said. “I love that it’s spread throughout downtown, it’s a very unique layout and works for this community. The vendors I’ve spoken to have been very warm and passionate about what they do. We have a great variety of vendors too. It’s exciting to be part of this community.”