It's pretty fun, said Jason, age 15. "It gives you experience in how to market stuff, and to work together as a team and get things done." The Children's Home clients go by first names only for confidentiality.
It's a partnership with the Newington Downtown Business Association and The Children's Home, a residential treatment center, special education school and family treatment center in Cromwell, explained Dave Tompkins, spokesman for The Children's Home.
"They want to promote the Farmers' Market, and we want to teach our kids business skills. It's a work study program, part of our vocational skills program," Tompkins said.
The market started in June, and the bread sales started in July. "Every Saturday morning we pick up bread from San Remo Bakery in Kensington. They sell it to us at a good price, and we resell it at the Farmers Market," Tompkins said. "We have a rosemary olive oil bread that you just can't get anywhere else."
"We set up by 9 a.m. and stay until 11 or 11:30 or when the bread runs out, whichever comes first," he said. "There are usually two or three boys there and a job coach. We'll probably keep doing it through September, as long as the farmers keep showing up."
"We started in July, it's been going great," said Sebrina White, job coach with The Children's Home. "In the beginning of the day it starts slow, but by about 10 a.m. it starts to pick up. We usually sell out by 11:15 a.m."
The kids handle the money, they learn things like keeping track of inventory, being on time for work, having the supplies they need on hand, and customer service and being respectful to people, she added.
They learn about each kinds of bread, so they can answer questions, she said, "like 'does the garlic bread have garlic all the way through?'"
The garlic bread is baked with cloves of garlic, confirmed seventeen-year-old Joseph. Whole cloves, confirmed Jason.
A dry cleaning business on Market Street stores the tables and canopy for them during the week, Jason explained, "we carry them over and set them up."
"Every now and then someone will quit or we get a new guy," said Jason, "but mostly it's been me, Jon and Joe. We get paid for three hours, $8 an hour, minimum wage, so it's really cool."
The downtown business association came up with the idea of selling bakery-fresh bread, explained President Walter Gualtieri. "We were talking to Dave Tompkins about the Farmers' Market and we thought it would be a great thing to add the bread. We're always looking to expand the Farmers' Market."
"It gives them a chance to run a business. They go to pick up the bread, they package it, they come up with ideas and signs to promote it. They're great kids," said Gualtieri, who owns Roma Custom Tayloring.