Community volunteers stepped in to help reopen the Street Eats Market in Hamilton after a powerful windstorm destroyed about three-quarters of the market last month.

During August, Street Eats Market founder and CEO Philip Suos started the market in Hamilton Mountain to bring people together and support local businesses. The powerful windstorm caused major damage to the 75,000-square-foot market, flipping tents and pergolas and even destroying picnic tables. The storm caused about $18,000 in damage to the Street Eats Market at Lime Ridge Mall in Hamilton. The owner was worried about how to recover from the damage and be ready for the upcoming long weekend, but local volunteers stepped in to help clean up and get the market ready to reopen for the Labour Day weekend.

Around 10 volunteers, including some customers, came forward to help rebuild the market, put up tents, and repair wooden pergolas. One volunteer, Angie Toms, a pastor with Kingdom Connections, stopped by while heading to an event and saw how exhausted the team was. She gathered people to help, and within two hours, they had cleaned up the entire site.

Suos shared that the kindness of the community was so touching that some team members were brought to tears. This story shows how people coming together to help a local business can make a big difference during a difficult time. Thanks to their kindness and hard work, the market reopened in time for the long weekend.

Source: Jeffery Tram, CBC