Owensboro Health teamed up with the Owensboro Regional Farmers’ Market to put the spotlight on local food, art and health Saturday. The event brought out local producers, musicians and arts agencies who promoted a positive, healthy lifestyle for the community.
According to officials with Owensboro Health, the annual event was scaled back this year due to COVID-19, but it was still a success that brought hundreds of people together. Tables, booths and chairs were spread out across the entire parking lot to encourage social distancing.
“We mean what we say — physical distancing is so important, so we made sure everything was 6 feet apart,” said Debbie Zuerner Johnson, OH director of community engagement. “In dealing with the pandemic over the past few months — never before have we seen the intersection of food, art and health be more important.”
Owensboro Health passed out free gift bags to the community containing a variety of items including fruit peelers, sidewalk chalk, cardboard fans, and containers for fruit and vegetable storage.
Meanwhile, officials with Theatre Workshop of Owensboro, the Owensboro Museum of Fine Art, and Owensboro Dance Theatre, among others, set up camp to promote the value of physical and mental health achieved through the arts.
Though it was a hot, humid day at the farmers’ market, with temperatures topping out at 93 degrees by the end of the event, Johnson said she was pleased to have seen the community promoting a healthy environment as well. The majority of them faced the heat with their face masks on throughout the four-hour event, she said.
“Today, even though we had to scale it back, we wanted to be here for the Regional Farmers’ Market and to say, ‘we understand and embrace the intersection of the farmers, the musicians, and the arts agencies,’” Johnson said. “We wanted to show it, and we were able to do it safely.”
