Greenup County Extension leadership continues to identify economic development as an important area for the Greenup County Cooperative Extension Office to focus programming efforts. The Family & Consumer Sciences and Fine Arts Agent are continuing to support this area by expanding ongoing programming efforts for local farmers and artisans.  The Greenup Holiday Market began four years ago in effort to provide Greenup County farmers and artisans an outlet to provide holiday shopping for local buyers. This event is held at the Greenup County Extension Office and houses 22 vendor spaces for set-up.  

Over the years this event has become very successful and vendors were looking to expand the possibilities through this partnership.  This spring the event expanded to also include a Spring Market on Mother’s Day weekend to encourage community members to shop local.  The Fine Arts Agent has connections through the Fine Arts program to contact local artisans to be a part of this project.  The Family & Consumer Sciences Agent promotes the event to local Home based Microprocessors to highlight their home produced goods.  This event is also a fundraising outlet for many of our Greenup County Homemaker Clubs to provide 4H camp scholarships to local youth.

Sweet Bee Gardens a local home based microprocessor stated, “The Greenup Holiday Market is always one of our most successful events.  It has helped us to build our customer base and the addition of the Spring Market will only grow these relationships in the community.  I have an entire flat of orders bagged up here from folks who contacted us prior to this event so their favorite items don’t sell out.”