TEMPLE, Texas — Editor's Note: The story above is of the Killeen Farmer's Market opening day in May 2021.
On the second Saturday of every month in Downtown Temple, a small contingent of entrepreneurs, bakers and crafters get together, raise up their tents, anchor down their sticks and get ready to show Bell County what they have to offer.
Kimberly Ogo, an art teacher at Scott Elementary in Temple and the owner of Candelaria Artistry, a wire wrapping jewelry business she started at the beginning of the pandemic, is excited to be a part of the revitalization efforts of downtown Temple.
"I think it's an amazing opportunity to be a part of this and I didn't realize this was even a thing for small businesses," Ogo said.
The Farmers Market is put on by the Temple Small Business Coalition (TSBC) and is not affiliated with the city. The first market was held in November of last year and continues ever second Saturday of every month, all-year long.
"It was important we partnered with vendors who focused on offering homemade, homegrown, and home designed products so we could truly showcase the many talents and abilities of our community," the Coalition said. "So far these markets have seen tremendous growth and support from community members, business owners, and even some City leaders."
Jeff and Kay Callin, of Callin's Creations, are a husband and wife duo who bring different skillsets to the their table booth in Temple.
"We each have our own craft arena that we dove into," Jeff said. "When I retired from the military I got a sewing machine and started making different things. I've made insulated bowl holders so you don't burn your fingers pulling things out of the microwave, things like that."
Kay said when the pandemic hit and everyone became quarantined she started using her Cricut machine so she could make handmade cards and kitchen towels to send to relatives and friends she couldn't see while locked in the house because of Covid.
"Some of them were really sweet, inspirational and some of them were really snarky and it was all depending on what the mood was," Kay said. "As I started sending them, people really took to them and they thought I should sell them."
Kay said in November 2020 they opened their booth in the parking lot of City Hall in Temple for the first time, she said their overall feeling in that moment was they were finally home.
"We've traveled all over with Jeff's military career and so you never really felt like you were home and now it feels like we have become a part of our community more so than just living here," she said.
Ogo said the chance to set up and sell to support her small wire wrapping business was an opportunity she couldn't let go by because she wanted a chance to be part of something bigger and support the TSBC as well.
"I started off with just a table, I actually don't think I even had a tablecloth, and my stuff and that was it," she said with a laugh. "Ever since that first market and the money I've made, I've slowly been able to upgrade my displays."
Ogo said it's hard to explain the feeling she gets when people buy something she's made and walk away with it, forever theirs to keep.
"The idea that someone would come up and tell me that something I am doing is beautiful, whether they buy something right then or not, it really is an overwhelming sense of pride," she said.
Jeff, who also designs clothes, said it's a sense of accomplishment and called it cool to see complete strangers buy and wear something created by his hands.
"When someone has seen something I've designed and they want to wear it and they do wear it, it's just like 'wow, that feels really good,'" he said. "It's cool to be useful and it's a sense of accomplishment."
Kay said the feeling of someone walking away with one of their creations is great but she said she also gets so much from those she connects with, talks with, and builds a bond with in a short amount of time.
"A lot of times for me it's almost the people who don't buy anything but come and just talk to you about what you've done, what you're doing and how you do it," she said, remembering a woman she met in June and spoke with for 30 minutes about family, pets and kids. "This is what it's really all about, just an opportunity to reach out and really kind of touch somebody and I think that's something we all were lacking so much last year."
The TSBC said its part of their vision to bring awareness to the downtown sector and to expand their reach by adding new businesses to the coalition. They plan to do so by showcasing new events that foster community and increase foot traffic where it's needed the most.
"We will be hosting an evening Food Truck Frenzy in partnership with our Sept. 11 market and we hope this will bring more food trucks to our area in light of recent changes to the City’s food truck ordinance that recently passed," they said. "Our primary goal is to show that Temple is small business friendly and can be seen as a place for existing and new entrepreneurs to grow their brand."
The Callin's said the market is growing and it's gaining traction; they love that it's pet friendly and above all else, a family affair. They said it's a community of bakers, crafters and dreamers all coming together following a COVID-19 year that most would like to forget.
"It's so many families doing this together, like one vendor is a husband and wife and their 20-something year old daughter. It's a couple that makes jams and jellies their kids come help them set up. You see the connection that people are making and then you get to see them spend time with their family and that is pretty cool," Kay said.