Meet the Team
The Team Behind the Relaunch:
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We wanted to formally introduce ourselves, we’re Kate Kimmel and Freddi Swanson, two devoted friends, and canyon locals who are determined to launch a successful and sustainable market here in Topanga. We met through a mutual friend who Kate actually met at the Topanga Farmers Market back in 2016! So one could argue that we wouldn’t be friends if it weren’t for the former farmers market! We’ve raised our families together here in the canyon for the past 8 years and are so happy to be working on this important project together.
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Kate and her husband, Ryan, relocated to the canyon in 2015 while expecting their first child. They sought a home immersed in fresh air, surrounded by trees, and supported by a nurturing community. Now, as a mother of three canyon kids, Kate draws upon her background in public education, philanthropic consulting, and non-profit leadership to contribute to the community. Her expertise spans project management, event coordination, strategic change planning, and fundraising, all fueled by a deep passion for fostering community and living sustainably.
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Freddi has been a Topanga local since 1995 and she and her husband, Patrick, chose to raise their own two daughters amidst the natural beauty of the canyon. She has a passion for fundraising for important causes and has devoted the last 15 years to running a marketing agency, with her husband, that caters to non-profits.
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Sarah Seelinger, Market Manager
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Sarah will be managing onsite every Friday along with Freddi and Kate. She is an artist and educator with a passion for art, local food communities and native plant gardens. She is the former Market Manager for the previous Topanga Farmers Market (that closed in 2018) and three other farmers markets in Los Angeles.
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She has lived in Topanga for nine years with her husband Geoff, daughters Diana and Gwyneth and four dogs. Prior to moving to Topanga, she lived in Venice where she taught a sustainable cooking program for kids called “Farm Style Cooking for Kids” at farmers markets and in after school programs.
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Sarah and Geoff hold life drawing workshops at “The Yellow House” (the name they affectionately gave their 1930’s home) and enjoy painting plein air with the Allied Artists of the Santa Monica Mountains.
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Sarah is excited to return as Market Manager for the new Topanga Farmers Market.
