Action Alert 10/31/8
--TONIGHT! Rural Vermont Halloween Party!
--Other Rural Vermont events
--We Still Need YOUR Art!
--Other upcoming events
**RURAL VERMONT 2nd Annual HALLOWEEN PARTY**
TONIGHT! October 31, 2008
8 - 11 pm
T.W. Wood Gallery and Art Center
36 College Street, MONTPELIER
$10 admission - All proceeds will benefit Rural Vermont – Bring Your Own Beverage (anything you like!)
--Dress up like "Rural Vermont" and WIN EXCITING PRIZES – including That’s Life Soup Gift Certificate! High Ledge Farm Bountiful Basket of Winter Vegetables! Localvore Delight Basket!
--Ten dollars at the door gets you ten tickets to vote for the best costumes. Bring your friends to vote for you!
--Live music and performances by: The Raging Grannies; Jonathan Falby on guitar; Erica Mitchell on guitar; the Modern Times String & Brass Ensemble; Lee, Lloyd, and Friends, and others!
--Games, food, and awesome silent chance auction.
**RURAL VERMONT UPCOMING EVENTS***
*Let's Nourish our Local Traditions!*
Sunday, November 2, 2008
12:30 - 2:30 pm
LACE, Main Street, BARRE
Did you miiss Sally Fallon Morell's appearance in Bellows Falls last weekend? LACE and Rural Vermont are bringing her message to Barre on Sunday! Join Vermonter and local-food enthusiast Emily Wheeler as she guides you through Sally's basic nutritional revelations. This event will also feature the documentary "The Global Banquet: The Politics of Food", clips from Sally's recent talk, games, and food tasting. See how globalization of the food supply threatens the health of your family and your local economy, and learn why many nutritional claims are down-right wrong and actually favor the food processing industry! For more info, contact Emily Wheeler at sow2seeds@gmail.com.
**RURAL VERMONT CONTRA DANCE!**
Saturday, November 8, 2008
SHELBURNE Town Hall - 5376 Shelburne Road
Family Dance: 6 pm - 7:30 pm - $5/person - Lake Champlain Waldorf School Band with Nancy Turner calling.
Contra Dance: 8 pm - 11:00 pm - $10/person (age 12 and under free) - Rebecca Lay calling with Pete Sutherland, Karen Sutherland, and Geordie Lynde playing!
Tasty snacks at the break! Great music and fun dances - all dances taught, no partner necessary! Bring clean, soft shoes for dancing.
* Catamount Healthcare Program – Films Series *
Rural Vermont partners with the Vermont Campaign for Healthcare Security Fund. Following each film will be a presentation by Vermont Campaign staff about the Catamount Healthcare program, and information about how to enroll. Bring your questions, concerns, friends, and family.
ALL EVENTS ARE 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
* Sick Around the World -- Mon, November 3rd, Ilsley Library, 75 Main St., MIDDLEBURY
A PBS special that investigates how five countries - the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Taiwan and Switzerland -deliver health care, and what the United States might learn from their successes and failures.
* Critical Condition -- Wed, November 19th, North Congregational Church, 1325 Main St., ST. JOHNSBURY
America's worsening health care crisis is investigated by following a diverse group of uninsured individuals as they battle critical illnesses without adequate medical care. Their stories reveal gaping holes in the health care system, where care is often delayed or denied ultimately, costing them their jobs, health, homes, savings, and even lives.
*Bonus Features of SICKO -- Tuesday, December 2, 2008, Rutland Free Library, 10 Court St., RUTLAND
Michael Moore's film 'Sicko' exposes the profit-oriented health care system in the U.S., and compares it to universal health care models in Canada, the U.K., and Cuba. An assortment of the film's bonus features will be shown.
*Washington and Lamoille Counties dates to be announced. (Want to help organize these events? Contact shelby@ruralvermont.org). Vermont Campaign for Healthcare Security Education Fund is a non-profit organization working to educate Vermonters about, and help them enroll in, state health care programs: Catamount Health, VHAP, Dr. Dynasaur and Medicaid.
** Rural Vermont's Fall 2008 Cooking Class Series **
Saturday, November 15th
Saturday, December 13th
MONTPELIER
$20 per class OR 3 Onion River Exchange credits + $5 ingredient fee per class
The summer series was so popular that we've decided to extend the classes through the fall! Chef Susan Reid has this to say about the types of menus to expect: "I'd like to get some goat meat for braising and make some variations on roasted veggies and perhaps cup custard, and do something with lamb in November along with brussels sprouts and pumpkin/squash pie, and maybe a chicken, apple and root vegetable curry, roasted vegetable salad with local goat cheese, and maple cookies for dessert." YUM! To sign up for one class or all three classes, email shelby@ruralvermont.org or call (802) 223-7222. Space is limited, so get in touch today!
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We Need YOUR Art!! PLEASE HELP US!!
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THANK YOU to the artists who have already contributed!
We are looking for contributions of artwork from Vermont artists of all ages to use for our NEW Rural Vermont notecards. These notecards will be sold to raise funds to support Vermont family farms and to encourage policy makers to help us to achieve our vision of Food with Dignity. Get the family involved! Children’s artwork is highly encouraged.
Our vision for Food with Dignity is for a Vermont local food system which is self reliant and based on reverence for the earth. It builds living soils, which nurture animals and people with wholesome, natural products, supporting healthy, thriving farms and communities. These communities in turn work to encourage and support current and future farmers, continuing our Vermont heritage. This abundant and generous way of life celebrates our diversity and interdependence.
The Details:
--The art should reflect Rural Vermont’s vision statement (see above).
--All paintings, drawings, collages or photos should be no larger than 24” X 24”.
--Artwork can be mailed to Rural Vermont, 15 Barre St., Suite 2, Montpelier, VT 05602 or emailed to liz@ruralvermont.org in jpeg format. Please include your full name, business name (if applicable), mailing address, phone number, email address, and website, if you have one.
--If you include a monetary assessment of your art, Rural Vermont will send you a receipt for tax deduction.
--Please specify whether you are willing to have your original artwork auctioned at one of our upcoming events, proceeds to benefit Rural Vermont.
Please note that all artwork submitted will be the property of Rural Vermont. Any artwork not selected for the first printing of notecards may be used for a second printing of notecards, or other promotional materials. Credit will be given to the artist, and we will list all artists who donated work on our website and other promotional materials, with links to artist websites, if available. All work will be used to support Rural Vermont. For more information, call Liz at 802-223-7222 or email at liz@ruralvermont.org.
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OTHER UPCOMING EVENTS
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THE FARMERS KITCHEN: Raw Milk Cooking Series
A series of cooking classes featuring raw milk will be presented at Turkey Hill Farm by Margaret Osha, owner of the farm with her husband Stuart, and organic cheesemaker Melissa Komorowski.
November 1st: Mozzarella Cheese/Pizza
November 8th: Feta Cheese
Novermber 15th: Ricotta Cheese/Homemade Pasta
All classes from 9 am - 2 pm.
Cost $50 per class.
www.turkeyhillfarmvt.com
For more info or to register, contact Margaret Osha at 802/728.7064 or msosha@gmail.com
WASTE NOT-WANT NOT: GLEANING UP VERMONT
On November 1st at 5:30pm, Theresa Snow and Loona Brogan of the Vermont Foodbank Salavation Farms project will speak about the Vermont gleaning opportunities. Salvation Farms is a cost free resource available to farmers and food sites, providing volunteer crews for salvaging farm surplus and arranging storage and distribution of fresh food donations. If you are a farmer or a volunteer who can't abide waste, this program is for you. Learn how you can enhance the harvest and feed the people. Bountiful Harvest Potluck to follow. Free and open to the public.
Grange Hall, Northfield Street (Route 12 just south of Montpelier)
Contact: Marjorie Power / Phone: (802) 229-0782 / Email: mpower9@yahoo.com
ELECTION NIGHT, TOGETHER: Tues, Nov 4; 7 pm; Black Sheep Books, 5 State St, Montpelier AND ORCA, 89 Main St, Montpelier. Live streaming of election results along with political conversation. Join with friends and neighbors to talk about politics, the meaning of this historic moment, the future, and more. Step outside your house and into the public space of Black Sheep Books and ORCA. We'll be live streaming the national election results on a big screen at Black Sheep, and ORCA will stream local as well as national results. Bring your own food and/or drink, for yourself or to share, and enjoy the conversation and company as we strive to encourage a lively political culture in Montpelier.
VERMONT INDEPENDENCE CONVENTION
The Post-Oil Village Green
The Village Green Forum, Circus, and Medicine Show: Alternative to Empire
Vermont State House, Montpelier, Vermont
November 7, 2008
Sponsored By The Second Vermont Republic
Featuring: James Howard Kunstler, Kirkpatrick Sale, Chellis Glendinning, Lynette & Dexter Clark (Alaska), Pete Sutherland and Friends, Bread and Puppet Theater, and The Irreverend Ben T. Matchstick
A potpourri of radical music, art, theater, circus, conversation, politics, and community aimed at fomenting a Genteel Revolution against the Empire. (Free, 9-5)
For information: www.vermontrepublic.org or 802-425-4133
NOFA-VT's Winter Feed and Feeding Clinics for Organic Dairy Producers
The Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont's Dairy and Livestock Technical Assistance Program has scheduled four regional Winter Feed and Feeding Clinics for organic dairy producers. These clinics will provide producers with an opportunity to review their feeding strategy and identify possible alternatives and improvements, find out about sources of purchased forages & grains and explore long-term feed production and feeding strategies. The clinics will be informal roundtable sessions where producers will have an opportunity to discuss winter feeding and "crunch the numbers" on their own stored feed inventories using worksheets provided by NOFA-VT.
The Winter Feed and Feeding Clinics will be held from 10am-Noon at the
following locations:
*Tuesday, November 11 at the Small Business Development Center, Randolph Center
*Wednesday, November 12 at Taconic End Farm, Leicester
*Wednesday, December 3 at The Corse Farm, Whitingham (lunch and barn tour after the clinic)
*Thursday, December 4 at Applecheek Farm, Hyde Park.
NOFA-VT's Winter Feed and Feeding Clinics are FREE for all dairy producers. Walk-Ins are welcome, but pre-registration is encouraged. For further information and pre-registration contact NOFA-VT at 802-434-4122, info@nofavt.org.
VERMONT GROUNDWATER: Wed, Nov 12; 7 pm; U-32 High School, Gallison Hill Rd, Community Bldg (next to the track), East Montpelier. Larry Becker, State Geologist will give a power point presentation about groundwater: what it is, how it is located and what affects it. There will be a sample of a groundwater mapping of the Williston area. He'll answer questions about the East Montpelier proposal to bottle spring water.
Environmental Action 2008 Conference
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Vermont Technical College
Randolph, Vermont
8:30am - 4:30pm
$30 pre-paid and $35 at the door. Scholarships are available. Breakfast, a reception, and childcare included.
Join hundreds of Vermonters for a day of inspiration, training and networking as we work together to create healthy, sustainable communities. Keynote Speaker: Ecologist & Writer Sandra Steingraber. Steingraber is a former biology professor at prominent universities and author of the highly acclaimed Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment. Her work has helped raise awareness of the environmental and toxic hazards that threaten our children and ourselves and inspire and grow a movement. Hosted by: New England Grassroots Environment Fund, Toxics Action Center, Vermont Alliance of Conservation Voters, Vermont Natural Resources Council, Vermont Public Interest Research Group and Vermont Technical College. Find more information or register online at www.vtenvironmentalaction.org.
Home Energy Saving Workshops Available for Vermont Communities
Central Vermont Community Action Council (CVCAC), in partnership with the State of Vermont and the Vermont Energy and Climate Action Network (VECAN), will implement an intensive six-month public education program to mobilize Vermonters on how to save energy in their homes. Through a series of two-hour workshops around the state, citizens will learn about the fundamentals of how buildings lose energy and do-it-yourself opportunities for saving energy, including behavioral changes and low-cost weatherization measures. We are inviting you to sign up today for a Home Energy Savings Workshop in your community. If you are interested in having a Home Energy Saving Workshop in your community, please contact Diana Peduzzi, Assistant Coordinator, Button-Up, Vermont at Button-up@cvcac.org (802 279 1708), or Paul Markowitz, Coordinator, Button Up, Vermont at paul@markowitzvt.com (802 229 6307).
NOFA-VT’s On-Farm Animal Processing Workshop Series
**Friday, November 7th On-farm Pig Slaughter 9am-1pm
**Saturday, November 8th Whole Animal Butchering 8-5pm
Flack Family Farm, Fairfield, VT
Join us for a two-day workshop at the Flack Family Farm. Carl Russell, of Earthwise Farm and Forest, will be leading the Friday slaughter workshop where he will review procedures, techniques, and infrastructure along with tool and food safety. Rural Vermont will join the conversation to address current on-farm slaughter regulation and policy. There will then be a slaughter demonstration with scalding and carcass prep. Saturday morning Cole Ward, Head Butcher at Sweet Clover Market, will lead the group through the breakdown of the whole carcass. He will go over primals and retail cuts, along with how to maximize quantity and quality of product. In the afternoon Aaron Josinsky, Executive Sous-Chef at the Inn at Shelburne Farms, will lead the group through techniques in further processing: making fresh sausage and pate, brining hams, smoking bacon, and curing salami. Pre-registration required. Please bring a lunch for Saturday. Cost: Friday: $20 for members, $30 for non-members; Saturday: $40 for members, $50 for non-members.
**Friday, November 14th Poultry Processing
1-4pm Fair Winds Farm, Brattleboro, VT
Join us for a poultry processing workshop at Fair Winds Farm. Andy Rice of Hoggott Hill Farm will go over set-up, procedure, and safety of on-farm processing followed by a live step-by-step butchering demonstration of a variety of poultry including; chicken, turkey, duck, and goose. Rural Vermont will join the conversation to address current on-farm slaughter regulation and policy. Interested participants can be guided through the process using one of the farm’s chickens or can bring a bird of their own to process. Cost: $15 for members, $20 for non-members. Pre-registration required.
**Friday, November 21st On-farm Pig Slaughter 9am-1pm
**Saturday, November 22nd Whole Animal Butchering 8-5pm
Warren, VT
Carl Russell, of Earthwise Farm and Forest, will be leading the Friday slaughter workshop. He will review procedure, technique, and infrastructure along with tool and food safety. Rural Vermont will join the conversation to address current on-farm slaughter regulation and policy. There will then be a live pig slaughter, scalding, and carcass prep. Saturday morning Cole Ward, Head Butcher at Sweet Clover Market, will lead the group through the breakdown of the whole carcass. He will go over primals and retail cuts, along with how to maximize quantity and quality of product. In the afternoon, Andrew Taylor, professional cook with Clio Restaurant in Boston will lead the group through techniques in further processing: making fresh sausage and pate, brining hams, smoking bacon, and curing salami. Please bring a lunch for Saturday. Cost: Friday: $20 for members, $25 for non-members; Sunday: $40 for members, $50 for non-members. Pre-registration required.
**Friday, December 5th On-farm Pig Slaughter 9am-1pm
**Saturday, December 6th Whole Animal Butchering 8-5pm
Brown Boar Farm, East Wells, VT
Join us for a two-day workshop at Brown Boar Farm, a diversified farm where they raise heirloom pork, beef and produce. Roger Shaddock will lead the Friday slaughter workshop reviewing procedure, technique, and infrastructure along with tool and meat safety. Rural Vermont will join the conversation to address current on-farm slaughter regulation and policy. There will then be a live pig slaughter including the scalding and carcass prep. Saturday morning the group will go through the breakdown of the whole carcass. The butchering demonstration will review primals and retail cuts, along with how to maximize quantity and quality of product. In the afternoon the group will be lead through techniques in further processing: making fresh sausage and pate, brining hams, smoking bacon, and curing salami. Please bring a bagged lunch for Saturday. Cost: Friday $20 for members, $25 for non-members; Saturday: $40 for members, $50 for non-members. Pre-Registration required
PRODUCER SURVEY: The Vermont Agency of Agriculture is conducting a general survey of processing needs for all farmers and food producers in the state. This survey should provide an overview of current gaps in our processing infrastructure, adding details to existing concerns and showing areas of need that may have been overlooked. It will act as a supplement to recent regional or product-based studies and a starting point for groups that want to do new research in a particular area. Take the Survey here: http://www.vermontagriculture.com/news/2008/survey/vfpSurveyOct15.html by November 15th.
THE GOLEDN CAGE: Through December, VT Folklife Center, 88 Main St, Middlebury. Photography exhibit of Mexican Migrant Workers and Vt Dairy Farmers. Photographs by Caleb Kenna with interviews by Chris Urban. Info: 388.4964
END OF AMERICA FILM: Anytime; online. If you only have a few minutes, watch a four-minute preview of "The End of America" with Naomi Wolf at myamericaproject.org. When you have more time, watch the entire 75-minute version for free at Snag Films