From A Seed.

Marigold started over 40 years ago in my Great Grandma Liz’s
kitchen where I would sit quietly eating her apple butter on toast
while she visited with just about every farmer in town as they took
turns in slow rotation at her table.

I come from farming stock – tenacious Midwestern folks whose
existence depended on their intimacy with the land, their ability to
nurture the potential of a seed, and their neighborly relationships
with the people of their community.

I spent summers among rolling fields of golden corn, stirring
pots of fragrant strawberry jam, pinching buttery pie crusts,
straightening the canned stores in the cellar that would get my
relatives through the winter months, and eating succulent chicken
dinners from healthy hens raised and culled right down the road
by family friends.

My people instilled in me a great appreciation for all things of
the land. They gardened and cooked, baked and preserved.
They sowed and watered, weeded and harvested. Growing and
nourishing is in my blood.

After years of traveling and living in some of the world’s most
beautiful places, being inspired by the rugged landscapes of
the Rockies and the relaxed wild beauty of coastal California,

I’ve returned to a place that feels so much like the terrain of my
youth. Raising my children in Durham where they can run through
blossoming almond orchards and experience the changing
seasons is both a homecoming and the beginning of a new
chapter.

Drawing on my creative career as a professional photographer,
my borderline obsession with all things culinary and artisanal, and
my passion for bringing people together, this community market
is my version of what my people have always done. It’s taking
the seed of a dream for our community and growing it to life. My
grandmothers loved and grew marigolds, so the name honors
them and all that they handed to me.

Today I feel most at ease when I’m connecting with the farmers
and makers of this land. I love the feeling of small town
connections weaving through people and place. I can think of
nothing better than chatting for hours over coffee, keeping up with
the latest goings on.

Join me in growing something beautiful for Durham – Marigold
Marketplace – where we can gather, be nourished, and fed.

Gratefully Yours,
Kelly Kirlin Schill xo