It may not often cross our minds, but the stakes are high when it comes to the type of food we regularly eat. Consistently unhealthy food choices will take their toll on anyone’s body. This is why it is so important to have healthy options. Helping provide some of those healthy options is the Kenbridge Farmers Market on Fifth Avenue next to the Town Office.

I commend the town and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development for facilitating easier access to the market. They are doing this through the creation of a pavilion that will shield both customers and vendors from the summer sun.

“The town received a grant from USDA Rural Development to have a pavilion built for the farmers market,” Kenbridge Town Manager Robyn Fowler said. “Since the market is open during the hottest time of the year … the shade will bring much relief from the hot sun.”

The town had been approved for a $108,000 grant, and the project was expected to cost approximately $115,000.

R.F. Howerton Inc. is the contractor of the project, and B&B Consultants Inc. is the project engineering firm.

Samuel Carroll, CEO and project manager with B&B Consultants Inc., said the organizations involved with building the 30-foot-wide and 64-foot-long pavilion were authorized to begin construction in mid-August.

Weather permitting, construction on the wooden pavilion with a metal roof is projected to be completed by the end of this week. Fowler cited the projection.

I also commend the vendors and the customers making use of the market, helping highlight it as a resource more residents of Lunenburg County can take advantage of. Fowler said there had been between six to 10 market vendors each week during the market’s operating schedule in 2016 and 2017, and the number of visitors to the market, on average, was between 40 and 50.

As stated on the town’s website, from the first Saturday in June through the last Saturday in October, the farmers market is open 8:30 a.m.-noon every Saturday — rain or shine.

Titus Mohler is the sports editor for The Kenbridge-Victoria Dispatch. His email address is Titus.Mohler@KVDispatch.com.