Growing Wealth & Wellness in West Virginia with WV-grown Food
www.communitymarketsinc.org
October 2025 News: Teamwork Maximizes Impact
Wow! September flew by at breakneck speed! As you read this month’s newsletter which is jam-packed full of events, programs, and updates, don’t miss CMI’s fabulous Team that I work with every day who work so hard and often go unnoticed. This small family of young nonprofit professionals courageously shows up every day to work and jumps into the controlled chaos that is Community Markets Inc. Why? Because they believe that every West Virginian should have access to healthy and affordable food and also that our local farmers are worth investing in so that the best food in the world continues to be grown within our communities!
Maria Resendiz, CMI’s Development Manager, planned and ran our three year celebration last month, successfully feeding 350 families and piloting deliveries to over 200 families, and all this while I was OOO! In addition, she’s taken on implementing and administering CMI’s Senior Vouchers and SNAP Stretch Programs, all while continuing to apply for grants and manage many others. And that Panera Fundraiser last week? She organized and pulled off that too!
AmeriCorps VISTA Members Nick Langan & Chris Hozdic have nearly served our community through CMI for one year – but they haven’t had enough – so they signed on for six more months! All this while uncertainty swirls at the federal level as to the future of AmeriCorps and during a federal government shut down! That’s courage and determination from some big hearts!
Shannon Griffin, CMI’s Program Manager, has become the backbone of our Mobile Markets, keeping ordering and fulfillment accurate and providing efficient market day management and a cheery face for customers.
Christopher Delorenzo, an IT Intern with CMI through Blue Ridge CTC, has helped a lot behind the scenes these past few months keeping the website updated and tidy while assisting with many back end tasks for programs.
Volunteer with us in October and come help feed food insecure families in our community – better yet, come Intern with us or apply to join the team – we’re always looking for collaborators to grow our impact. Truly, it’s the people that show up to serve every day that makes Community Markets Inc. who we are: Our Team, Board, Volunteers, Partners, Donors, Supporters, and Friends – Thank You!
Mark Peiffer, RPO
Operations Manager
Mobile: 703-789-1879
mark.peiffer@communitymarketsinc.org
Impact at a Glance
In three years, Community Markets Inc. has fed over 16,300 people in 11 WV counties with 187,600 lbs. of healthy & locally-sourced food and put $498,700 back into farmers‘ and small family business owners’ pockets.
In September alone, CMI fed over 1,630 people with 16,400 lbs. of fresh & healthy locally-sourced food and put over $47,000 back into local farmers’ & food entrepreneurs’ pockets!
September in Review
– CMI Celebrates 3 Years of Programming! On September 9th, CMI was blessed to partner with United Way of the Eastern Panhandle, Volunteer WV, St. James Catholic Church, and many other organizations and individuals to distribute 350 food bags to over 1,100 people in Jefferson and Berkeley Counties. Over 200 food bags were delivered by volunteers straight to families’ doors! Later in the month we fed 150 families at Trinity Temple Church of God’s annual health fair, bringing the number of families fed in September to 500 – over 1,600 people in all!
– Magnolia Market Growing! CMI began Magnolia Market in August, which serves residents in Paw Paw, WV located in Morgan County. The Market’s pilot year has been successful so far. Seniors in need have used their Senior Vouchers to make their grocery budgets go a further. Pre Orders have grown week over week to a whopping 28 this week!
Come see us this Friday from 4:30 – 6:00 pm and don’t miss our season finale on October 17th!
SNAP ACCEPTED AT MAGNOLIA MARKET!!
If that wasn’t enough, SNAP EBT is now accepted at Magnolia Market!
– CMI’s Senior Voucher Program has been immensely successful! Of the $10,000 in funding from Eastern West Virginia Community Foundation, around 40% has been redeemed in just a few weeks by seniors in need in both Jefferson and Morgan Counties. For this innovative program’s second year, CMI is grateful to partner with JCCOA in Jefferson County and Starting Points FSC in Morgan County to ensure that our communities’ most vulnerable seniors receive healthy & fresh food from local farms. CMI is applying for additional funding to expand this program.
– Panera Bread Fundraiser Successful! In a first of its kind for CMI, a fundraiser was held at Panera Bread in Ranson with 20% of sales for the day benefitting CMI. We’re grateful for everyone who came out to show support! We will share how much was raised by the event as soon as we know.
UPCOMING: October at Community Markets Inc.
– Office Space DOUBLED! As of October 1, CMI now rents Ste. 147 at the Flowing Springs Professional Center at Covenant Church, right across the hall from our initial suite! The additional office space offers a proper conference room, expanded space for operations, and space for our chest freezer to finally move from the old CMI office to our current office – our logistical nerve center! THANK YOU especially to our growing number of Monthly Donors whose consistent support allows for additional recurring expenses like rent to be covered!
– VISTA Members Extending Service! Community Markets Inc. is very grateful to our two current AmeriCorps VISTA Members Chris Hozdic and Nick Langan for extending their term of services for another six months through April 2026! Chris and Nick’s continued service will help ensure that programming is delivered through the the Christmas season and into the new year!
– SNAP Stretch Launching! Look for more info soon on SNAP Stretch beginning soon at our Mobile Markets. Now SNAP users can DOUBLE their buying power when they use their SNAP EBT benefits at St. Isidore Market or Magnolia Market! CMI is grateful to United Way of the Eastern Panhandle for the funds from the Unity Campaign this past March which acts as seed money for CMI’s newest food access program.
– Upcoming Food Box Giveaways (FBGs)! CMI looks forward to join Asbury UMC during their annual health fair this Saturday, October 4th, to feed 150 families with healthy food grown locally!
Volunteers Needed! Email mark.peiffer@communitymarketsinc.org to offer to help.
RSVP on Facebook HERE: https://www.facebook.com/share/1FPcKJYmDZ/
October’s second Food Box Giveaway is on Tuesday, October 28th at St. Leo’s Catholic Church in Inwood, WV. CMI is teaming up with Knauf to feed 150 families in southern Berkeley County!
More details on the Facebook Event HERE: https://www.facebook.com/events/748029794904936
– Mark Speaks! CMI’s Operations Manager Mark Peiffer will be speaking publicly twice in October, first at the AmeriCorps WV Fall Conference on October 21, and then a week later at WV’s Promise Statewide AmeriCorps VISTA Training on October 29th.
As an AmeriCorps alumni, Mark is grateful for these opportunities to inspire serving AmeriCorps members to better their communities each day of their terms of service and beyond!
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