“Proud of Valleywood”: Organizers happy with success of spring market

$600 raised for Caledon Community Services through sale of raffle tickets

By Zachary Roman

Valleywood neighbours got together for some spring shopping — and a good cause — last weekend.

On April 1, the Hop Into Spring market was held in the community room at the Margaret Dunn Valleywood branch of the Caledon Public Library (CPL).

The market brought together entrepreneurs from Valleywood, Mayfield West and the surrounding areas so they could showcase their handmade goods to their neighbours.

The market also featured face painting and glitter tattoos for kids and a visit from the Easter bunny. All in attendance could enjoy complimentary coffee and baked goods.

Sonia D'Alimonte, who runs the @valleywoodcommunityevents Instagram page, organized the event alongside presenting sponsors Abhiraj Kumar and Prashant Upreti of AP Real Estate.

The market was also a fundraiser for Caledon Community Services' (CCS) Kidz in Caledon program, which helps Caledon families enroll their kids in various recreational sports and activities.

Raffle tickets were sold with proceeds going to CCS, and in total $600 dollars was raised. 

“It's really, really good because I wasn't expecting that much,” said D'Alimonte. “I'm super proud of Valleywood for supporting the bottle drive and supporting the raffle fundraising… we look forward to coming together as a community and continuing that support throughout the year.”

As D'Alimonte mentioned, there was also a bottle drive at the market being held in support of Cassie's Place, which is a home away from home for people with differing abilities. Cassie's Place provides day programs and summer camps among other offerings.

It's not known yet how much was raised from the bottle drive, but many truck beds full of empty bottles were collected and D'Alimonte said it's safe to say the bottle drive was a success too.

D'Alimonte was at the market with her daughter Mikaela, who runs her own business creating and selling buttons made of recycled materials. There were many interesting vendors at the market selling items like wooden lawn ornaments, laser-engraved decorations, cute crocheted animals, and beautiful jewelry.

The spring market is going to be made into an annual event, as D'Alimonte said after its success this year it would be silly not to make happen every year. She estimates over the course of the market's run time, over 300 people passed through. As a bonus on market day, attendees could get a sneak peek of the extensive upgrades to the Margaret Dunn Valleywood branch of the CPL, which is not yet open to the public.

“(The market) will be something really nice that the community will look forward to every spring,” said D'Alimonte. “We appreciate the community coming out and supporting it the way they did. It turned out to be a fantastic day… it exceeded everyone's expectations.”