What do you do?
Frank Schmidt
Where do you work and what is your title? I am president of the Pikes Peak Farmers Market. It’s a non-profit corporation. What do you do there and/or what are you responsible for? I organize the four farmers’ markets that we sponsor during the summertime. Basically, I deal with the city for the location in Old Colorado City (Sat.); with City Parks for the two days in Memorial Park (Mon. & Thurs.); and School District 11 for the Doherty High School location (Sat.), which my son-in-law oversees. How long have you been doing this kind of work (total)? How long on the Westside? I’ve been president for eight years. I’ve been a part of the Farmers’ Market since it started 18 years ago, selling honey (I’ve been a beekeeper for about 25 years). What do you like best about it (other than quitting time)? It’s very satisfying work and enjoyable dealing with farmers and vendors that participate in all of our farmers’ markets. Also, the customers that we serve are genuinely appreciative of what we do. They like the fact that they are getting fresh produce. If you could change one thing (other than pay), what would it be? You can’t change the weather; otherwise, it’d be nice to have the market year round. As far as Old Colorado City, it would be nice to have more space and more vendors. What part of your work did your training/education never prepare you for? I was previously employed in the civil service and have been on the Farmers’ Market board for 10 years. Those experiences pretty much prepared me for the bureaucracy involved in running the market and dealing with the public. What makes working on the Westside special? I think the whole atmosphere of the Westside with the trees and the park and the festive atmosphere has made it our favorite market. It’s a pleasure working over here. “What do you do?” is a regular feature in the Westside Pioneer. If you know someone who has an interesting job on the Westside (but doesn’t live here), he/she might be a candidate for this column! If you know someone who might qualify, give us a call at 471-6776. |
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