Bringing People Together at the West Bench Farmers Market

In June, Boise gained a new farmers market - one with international flair, ethnic foods, and fresh local produce grown by farmers through the nonprofit Global Gardens. We were lucky enough to be there for the grand opening under the big red pergola at the Idaho Asian Plaza, sharing the excitement and talking to market-goers about Open Streets Boise happening this fall on Ustick Road.

The West Bench Farmers Market was born from a collaboration between Global Gardens and Global Lounge - two organizations with overlapping missions, both recognizing the need to provide a fresh food resource to a diverse community while creating economic opportunities for small-scale producers of ethnic goods and produce. 

A couple of weeks ago, the market held a World Refugee Day Celebration. Loading bikes, cones, chalk, and more into a trailer, we set out with a handful of volunteers to put up a temporary traffic garden. These pop-up courses are designed to help kids learn how to ride and understand the rules of the road while riding ‘round and ‘round again! Since this was the first event of its kind, we didn’t know what to expect. What we thought there might be twenty or so kids stopping by to ride the course throughout the evening quickly turned into dozens at a time, with the need to swap kids on bikes every few laps to make sure everyone was able to ride! 

Generally, women in our Shifting Gears Program help us run traffic gardens. These women volunteer with the program to repair bikes given to children in the community, and are also invited to run events like this one. By the end of the evening, we would have warmly welcomed the extra hands and energy, but alas, the kids and teens riding in the traffic garden brought more than enough joy and excitement for all, keeping us on our toes and eating sambusas one-handed! 

Sisters taught sisters to ride, parents walked the course alongside their children, and we saw vast improvement in the riding skills of a handful of riders. With dresses flowing in the wind and pant legs cuffed, these kids rode with all the enthusiasm they could muster. We say it repeatedly - bikes bring people together. No matter what language they speak, age or gender they are, or culture they’re from. Thank you, West Bench Farmers Market, for creating a timely and inclusive space where people can come together and celebrate exactly who they are.