VAN NUYS : New Farmers Market to Aid Senior Groups

Farmer’s Place, a new open-air weekly market that will raise money for a volunteer agency, opens Saturday with a traditional “carrot-breaking� ceremony.

“It’s an idea I’ve had since I saw my first farmers market at Adams and Vermont 18 years ago,� said Marie Tolbert, associate director of fund development at the Volunteer Center of San Fernando Valley. “We see it as a way to bring farm-fresh produce into the city.�

A percentage of the funds raised by the market will go to help the Retired Seniors Volunteer Program and for parenting classes run by the Volunteer Center, Tolbert said.

Any food left over at the end of the day will be donated to a local church program for the homeless.

A 9:30 a.m. opening ceremony is scheduled to include Los Angeles Councilman Marvin Braude, former Councilman Michael Woo and El Cholo Restaurant head chef Sergio Ochoa.

The market, which will be open every Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon, is at the Van Nuys Civic Center parking lot at Van Nuys Boulevard and Sylvan Street.

There are 21 vendors from as near as North Hollywood and as far away as Fresno. They will sell goods at the market, including fresh vegetables, fruits, flowers, bread, eggs, honey and nuts.

The market also will include a booth run by Operation Immunization--created by the Unihealth American Foundation and The Times Valley Edition--offering the full range of childhood vaccinations.

The opening-day ceremonies also will include an exhibition of Thai vegetable sculpting, a Cal State Northridge student who is a unicyclist, a jazz band and a troubadour.

The Volunteer Center, which refers volunteers to nonprofit agencies, is part of the Assistance League of Southern California. The RSVP program assigns more than 900 senior volunteers to agencies around the Valley.