TOMATO TIME! Fresh fruits and veggies keep folks coming to the Benton Farmers Market

The Benton Farmers Market at the Benton Civic Center is open from 3 to 6 p.m. Thursdays. These two vendors talked shop between customers at a recent market. On the left, Richard Bochantin of DuBois chatted with Larry Leitner of Waltonville. Leitner explained how he became a vegetable peddler: 'I've always had a garden, and then when I retired in 2001, I expanded my garden and then I didn't know what to do with all the vegetables. Then someone said, Well, you outta go to the market, so here I am.' Ceasar Maragni photo

The Benton Farmers Market is busier and busier each week as area gardens are starting to really produce. Here, 96-year-old Marie Sapinski of Christopher checks out some of the freshly picked tomatoes offered by Jim and Carleen Roberts of Sesser, who were among the original vendors when the Benton market first opened 15 years ago. Ceasar Maragni photo