Our Story

When Dianne Shenk converted an old hay wagon into a fresh produce stand on an empty lot in Hazelwood, she didn’t realize she was making a move that would affect an entire community.

That was ten years ago. After operating her farm stand in an empty lot for two successful summers, she moved into a permanent indoor space on Second Avenue, establishing Dylamato’s Market. The market provides fresh produce and healthy food options in an area that was, for many years, a food desert—a geographical classification attributed to impoverished and isolated areas where there is a lack of grocery stores and limited access to fresh food.

Dylamato’s Market has been embraced by local residents, recently celebrating its first anniversary. It’s the first real grocer to open in the area since Dimperio’s Market— which served Hazelwood for 80 years—closed in 2009. When it closed its doors, residents had few grocery options other than making a trek to neighboring towns, which for some involved a two-bus commute.

Once bustling Hazelwood earned its name from its proliferation of Hazelnut trees lining the Monongahela river. It experienced years of decline after the city’s last steel mill closed in 1998. While many businesses and people moved away, other residents were left behind with not much around them, especially when it came to shopping options.

Dianne Shenk grew up in Tanzania and Kenya before moving to the U.S. for high school and college. After moving to Pittsburgh, she enrolled in the Masters in Food Studies program at Chatham University studying global food systems and markets with a particular interest in underserved urban communities. She interned at Penn’s Corner Farm Alliance and worked at Matthew’s Family Farm. But it was her involvement with the Fishes and Loaves Buying Club in Hazelwood, a community-driven effort to provide fresh food to locals, that inspired her to open a market that could truly serve the community.

Then Councilman Corey O’Connor credits Shenk with spearheading change in the area. “When Dianne first had the idea for the farm stand, it really got the ball rolling, to show that there was fresh produce available right here in the community.” he says. “Now, instead of just simply driving through the area, people are actually stopping and spending money in Hazelwood.

“The market makes great sandwiches and has become a lunch destination where customers not only support a small business but are helping to revitalize a community,” notes O’Connor.

Part of Shenk’s mission is to partner with other locally-owned micro-businesses to create viable livelihoods in the Hazelwood community. She engages with other local food makers and farmers to find ways they can support each other directly. It’s not just about fitting in, but about holding up the community as a support beam.

Shenk stocks Dylamato’s Market with fresh vegetables including lots of greens, fruits, local meats from Pittsburgher Highland Beef and Thoma’s Meat Market, bread from Mancini’s Bakery, organic grain products from Frankferd Farm, fresh eggs from Baker’s Golden Dairy, fresh baked goods, juices, cheese, and dry goods. There are even gardening supplies like fresh compost from Steel City Soils Co-Operative.

Kyle Pattison of Hazelwood Farms is one of the farmers providing Dylamato’s with fresh produce. He supports Shenk’s small market, community focused approach because it more closely matches how the agricultural food system worked years ago. “You grow your own food and take any extra to the market to sell to your neighbors, then you can buy the things you are unable to grow,” says Pattison.

This article originally appeared in NextPittsburgh in April of 2017 and was written and photographed by Tom O’Connor. Some minor edits have been made for usage on our website.