East Chain Holiday Market to mark a decade
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EAST CHAIN -- You're bound to find holiday treasures at the East Chain Holiday Market, which is coming to town for its 10th year.
"We are excited," said organizer Ashley Jensen, who, in addition to her family members Sarah Emmert and Sharon Boyden, heads up the committee and preparations for the event, which she took on from family members Dale and Cyndi Jensen, who own and operate the East Chain Activity Center.
Ashley is marking seven years of being involved herself.
"I do crafts. I'm the Fairmont Elementary School art teacher, so it was right up my alley to take it over and work on it."
The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 14, at the East Chain Activity Center, located at 395 280th Avenue in Blue Earth. The event includes more than 45 vendors hailing from Minnesota and Iowa, offering items including baked goods, clothes, jewelry, toys, holiday gifts and more, with meals catered by Feed Mill Coffee Co. of Algona, Iowa and door prizes provided by different vendors which will be announced and awarded each hour.
"We have lots of new vendors this year. Our space is always limited so we always have a waiting list of people to get in but we try to make sure we always have some new variety in there," Jensen explained. "We have a new caterer. They are serving breakfast, lunch, desserts, drinks. It's probably the biggest menu we've ever had."
Jensen concurred that this event has become an area holiday tradition for many. "It sets the tone for the holiday season. People do their shopping. It is a community event. We know people come down from Marshall, people come from Emmetsburg, so it does pull to our community," Jensen said. "We're very proud of it, for sure."
While the East Chain Holiday Market reigns as a huge holiday staple at the East Chain Activity Center, the building facilitates other events throughout the year, including weddings, graduations, family reunions, private parties and more. Regarding the East Chain Holiday Market, Jensen shared that preparations for next year have already begun.
"The community is very proud of the facility and it fills a lot of needs," Jensen said.
The East Chain Holiday Market has consistently reached the hundreds range of customer attendance. Jensen anticipates another great crowd this Saturday.
"It has always been big, and we just kind of keep growing and people hear about it and talk about it, and vendors do a great job advertising for it and they're excited about it. I see them posting online all the time, and I'm like, 'Oh, that's us. They're talking about us,'" she recalled.
Jensen's goals for the event are for it to run smoothly.
"And that it will be a positive experience for the customers, the vendors that are there," she added.
Jensen said that the community can support the East Chain Holiday Market by donating crafts, goods and items towards the door prizes, and attending, which helps grow the event and encourages shopping locally.
"I think it says a lot to support the people that are our neighbors and our friends and our family," Jensen said.
For additional information about the East Chain Holiday Market, visit facebook.com/CalkinsJensen or facebook.com/EastChainMarket.