Catherine Schnur
Catherine Schnur has seen Grow Ohio Valley’s Public Market through an incredible period of transportation since she started her service with The Hub’s AmeriCorpsVISTA program in July of 2019. After serving in an AmeriCorps State program, Catherine was looking for an opportunity to serve an organization with a commitment to revitalizing the community. Grow Ohio Valley’s Public Market commitment to creating new opportunities in a designated food desert in Downtown Wheeling filled that desire.
Since she started, the Public Market has opened to the community and has seen tremendous demand. The pandemic has put a new focus on and interest in local foods, which has given Catherine opportunity to expand the local vendors who also benefit from the market.
Catherine says that she was pleasantly surprised by how many people have genuinely cared and are interested in what her service site is doing, as well as how many people wanted to be involved in some way. She has developed lasting relationships for herself, and for the Public Market, that will last for years to come. Catherine reflected that her service has been “a great lesson in the importance of clear, straight-forward communication.” Her site has shared that Catherine has continued to grow her communication skills exceptionally through her time, and everyone has benefited as a result.
Catherine is finishing up the Public Market’s project with Grow Ohio Valley in July. While she still is figuring out her next step, she knows that she wants to continue to grow on the skills she has developed over the last year and a half.