07/04/2025
We hope everyone is having an awesome Fourth of July weekend, and look forward to seeing you at the Scituate Rotary Farmers Market tomorrow. We will not be at the Community Roots Farmers Market any longer. For more info on what happened there see the following link: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AnNyNMEXi/
🚨 🚨IMPORTANT UPDATE:
Unfortunately, even though we had an amazing month booked for July and so many future endeavors planned, the farmers market has come to an end in its short stint. You’re finding out as soon as we are.
You see, Stacie and I (Britney) are known in this town for being “whistleblowers,” if you will. We hold people accountable for their actions and advocate for what’s right—always.
So, in full transparency, we want to share why this decision was made. Back in March, when we started getting the market off the ground, Parks & Rec and the town itself fought us hard. They did not want any part of aiding us in starting a farmers market. Fast forward to now—Parks & Rec went out of their way to involve the RI Department of Health in an attempt to shut us down.
After speaking directly with the Department of Health, we were informed this market has nothing to do with them. It is on private property not owned by the state. Each vendor is responsible for their own products and insurance. We did not require state approval, DEM approval, or town approval to operate. The Department of Health was very honest about who reached out to them—and why. But after this, is it worth it?
Stacie and I have invested our own money, poured in countless hours, networked, fundraised and missed family events all to get this rolling. We never asked or expected anything from the town. We didn’t charge vendors to be there, and many weeks we made nothing because of the rain. But we persisted because we knew this could be something special.
Eighty percent of the vendors were Coventry small businesses, and this was a significant source of income for their families. So—way to go, economic development, shutting down small businesses.
While we are in 100% full compliance, we’re not going to keep showing up to try to do something nice for the community only to wait for someone to try to catch us doing something trivial (like leaving a freezer door open for longer than 30 seconds). The constant barriers and scrutiny make it clear that continuing is simply not sustainable given everything we are sacrificing to do this. It’s exhausting and defeating to keep begging to bring joy to this town.
We had families with very little money who came every week to spend a fun afternoon with their kids at no cost—doing crafts, seeing the animals at the petting zoo, and collecting the free give aways. Children used the free book area so they’d have something to read over the summer. All of it—gone.
So, Coventry Parks & Recreation RI —here’s to you. 🍻 You now have no competition for your 2026 market. (Awfully convenient this all happened right after I questioned Summer Fest funding.)
Thank you to all our vendors, customers, supporters, and friends who showed up every week to help build something meaningful. Your encouragement means the world to us.
If you’re as angry and hurt as we are, reach out to your council member, the town manager, or Scott from Parks & Rec. Let them know how you feel.
Town Manager – Dan Parrillo – 401-822-8185 – townmanager@coventryri.gov
District 1 Representitive – Jonathan Pascua – 401-598-7562 - district1@coventryri.gov
District 2 Representitive – Alisa Capaldi – 401-214-0862 – district2@coventryri.gov
District 4 Representitive – Hilary Lima, President – 401-585-4286 – district4@coventryri.gov
Town Wide 1 Representitive – Frank Brown – No Number Listed – townwide1@coventryri.gov
Town Wide 2 Representitive – JP Verducci, Vice President – 401-286-8419 – townwide2@coventryri.gov
Director of Parks & Rec – Scott Sevegny – 401-822-9137 - parksdirector@coventryri.gov
If you enjoyed the products you purchased while here, you'll be happy to know that most of the businesses are local and can legally sell their products directly from their farms or homes. We’ll continue to monitor this page and answer any questions for the next week before we close it down. If you’d like to get in touch with any of the vendors, feel free to reach out—we’re happy to connect you.
To Ted & Candy at TLC Mini Storage & Landscaping Services: Thank you. You were incredible hosts to us, and we’re so grateful for you.
We hope to see you all again in the future—because this isn’t goodbye. 💚
—Britney & Stacie
