In November it will be 36 years since she took over the position from Rose Thompson, originally getting involved so her children would have something to do.

"I had two daughters and they wanted to make some pocket money ... Alison wanted to have a popcorn stand, so that's how it started," Mrs Stevenson said.

Operating the Yanco markets each month is no easy feat, but over the years Mrs Stevenson has managed to work out a winning formula so stallholders and patrons both benefit.

In between doing that, she continues to run her Euroley property on her own.

While being in charge with the running of the markets, Mrs Stevenson herself has always had a stall of her own.

MORE NEWS

"I've always had a cooking stall ... pickles and jams and things," she said.

"What I love about it is the friendships I've made over the years. It's about the company and just getting off the farm for a little break.

"You stay friends with a lot of the stallholders even long after they've moved on."

With the markets themselves having been held each month for decades, Mrs Stevenson was hopeful people would continue to support the event each month, particularly those in Yanco.

"We do get a lot of people from Leeton coming and the stallholders come from all over the area," she said.

"A lot of people come from Griffith or Wagga for the day too, so it all helps." Over the years Mrs Stevenson has found the winter markets to be the hardest.

"A lot of people get sick you see, so sometimes stallholders will pull out at the last minute, you can't help it, but it can be hard," she said.

The busiest markets every year are October, November and December as the weather starts to brighten and people start thinking about Christmas presents and items for stockings.

While Mrs Stevenson loves the markets, she knows one day her tenure will need to come to an end.

"I do put the job up every year at the AGM, but no one takes it on," she laughed.

****

While youre with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox every Friday at 6am from The Irrigator. To make sure youre up to date with all news in Leeton sign up here.