Friends of the Rochester Public Market

Do you LOVE the Rochester Public Market? Do you want to ensure that your community has access to affordable, healthy foods? Your generous support of the Friends of the Rochester Public Market sustains local farmers and provides the opportunity for your neighbors to live healthy and meaningful lives. Since 2005, the Friends of the Rochester Public Market have partnered with the City of Rochester to champion and steward the Market, an enduring source of community pride that thousands rely on for healthy, seasonal food. The Friends enhance the resources of the Market, through programs and services that benefit customers, vendors, and the community throughout Monroe County. Your donation goes to support our largest program: The Market Token Program. This vital service helps individuals who have Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamp benefits, purchase fresh fruits, vegetables, and other healthy affordable foods available at the Market: The Market Token Program is the largest program of its kind in the country. This important program assists families in our community who would not traditionally be able to afford fresh foods, access the ingredients for healthy meals. We also provide free educational opportunities at the Market that include volunteer lead tours for mostly school groups that highlight the history of the Market, the role of local farmers and entrepreneurs, and the importance of healthy eating,as well as facilitating healthy eating programs show market shoppers how to prepare fresh, local produce, and delicious ways to eat healthy. The tours re-enforce environmental responsibility, art, urban-rural-suburban living, and diversity. In support of our local artist community, the Friends run the Artist Row event, an annual juried art show, highlighting over 220+ emerging and experienced artists from the region and draws a crowd of over 15,000 people to the Market. Funding for the Friends of the Rochester Public Market programs comes primarily from donations, grants, and revenue generated by the sale of Market-branded merchandise. But we could be doing so much more to increase accessibility for our neighbors! The pandemic has only highlighted the importance of the Market to our community. There are people in our city and county that we could be reaching, and we need your help to get there. YOU can help us bring expanded healthy food access and educational programming to the City of Rochester and Monroe County in 2022. Help us ROC the Day with a contribution to the Friends of the Rochester Public Market. Your generous donations support local initiatives and programs that strengthen our community and make Rochester a great place to live. We couldn’t do it without you.

We focus on: Health, Education

Where we are: Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates