From Skilled Hands

A little over a year ago, we shared a table at a swim team function with a woman who is on the Board of the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank . We started to talk, and I shared my vision of Cups of Kindness, an art show and sale which would benefit the Foodbank.  I thought of the words from from that old song,  “we take a cup o’kindness yet for Auld Lang Syne.”  We decided to, in the words of my English mother-in-law, give it a go.

Seventy -six artists donated over 150 pieces of artwork. The logo, website design and hosting, and photography was donated. Bloggers from near and far wrote about the project.  Artwork began arriving from local and national artists. An author donated 2 signed copies of her book.  The website went live.

We hung the show at our Elements Gallery, and at the Peninsula Art Academy. The opening celebration coincided with Christmas in Peninsula, and it was wonderful!

The website is back up and running, with a new look for Spring and with some new pieces. Please take a look.  And stay tuned for updates about Cups of Kindness, 2009.

Cups of Kindness is truly a testament to the Power of One. It is what we the people can do for each other.  We the people who reach out to our friends and neighbors who are in need. We the people, anonymous all, who, when we help our community, help ourselves. We who are one.

To date, we the people have raised enough money to purchase 22,022.07 meals.  That’s not half bad.

If we believe what we read in the papers and hear in the media, the world is a dark and scary place. If, however, we open our hearts and let our spirits soar, we can see, truly see, the amazing place in which we live. Turn the volume UP and see what I mean.

Playing for Change is a multi-media movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music.

My choice this beautiful day was either replanting the peas, spinach, mesclun mix and lettuce that Dylan the cat dug up when she used the garden as a litter box, or writing the My Town Monday post which I had intended to write. Since the day was beautiful and sunny, and snow is in the forecast, the garden won. So I replanted everything and fixed the fence after I took food and drink to #2 daughter who swam 400 lengths to raise money for diabetes research and education in the Swim for Diabetes today.

Last week I wrote about Bob Hunker, who died at age 82. I wrote about his vision and his legacy, the Peninsula Valley Historic and Preservation Foundation. The purpose of the Foundation is:

A. To preserve the historic architecture and character of Peninsula, Ohio and the surrounding area both within and proximate to the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

B. To educate the public about the history of Peninsula, Ohio and the Cuyahoga Valley with emphasis on economic and social development, architectural design and construction, decorative arts and crafts, landscape, gardens, and overall built environment.

That this exists in today’s world is a gift to the community and to future generations. If you are so inclined, take a look at the Foundation’s website. There is an incredible amount of history there, from the Village’s first library, to the Bronson Chapel. All part of this Village in this beautiful Valley.

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My Town Monday’s originator is Travis Erwin. He tells us that he doesn’t have too much to say this week, but you can wander over there and ask him a question. Each week, Travis posts links to bloggers all over this fine planet who share a bit about the place they call home.

You never know who will touch your life and how. You just don’t know how one action will touch the lives of those around you.

Twenty-two years ago, we went for a drive in the Village of Peninsula. We had been thinking of moving our studio from an industrial building in the city where the temperature was a constant 57ºF all winter and 89ºF all summer. In the Village, we saw many vacant buildings, and and weed strewn parking lots. The Towpath trail wasn’t completed. We know. We tried to take a walk on it. It was impassable.

I jotted down a telephone number that was listed on a sign in front of one of the vacant buildings, and called it the next day. We had been thinking about one particular building, but the man who met us had different ideas. He drove a small car, not at all new; and an ornament of a jumping horse graced the hood. He showed us a building that had housed a sailing shop. The previous owner had left things in a state of disarray: debris was strewn all over the place, there were holes in the walls. And the walls were all painted a dark brown. 1970′s harvest gold paisley carpet covered the floors. It was quite a site.

But the feeling of the place was right. We saw beyond the disarray, and envisioned a place where we could work and bring our then less than year old daughter. And it was close to home. We didn’t feel that we could move a studio and a business until after the Christmas holidays—we had orders to fill, shows in which to participate, and our studio open house to complete. The man told us he’d hold the building for us until after the holidays. He thought that the Village needed what we had to offer. He saw us more clearly than we did, and believed in the spirit of what we wanted to do before we were sure what it was.

Robert Hunker was a complex and interesting man. He owned many of the buildings in the Village and had the foresight to put them in an historic trust. He knew the value of historic buildings and worked to preserve them. He was equally passionate about horses, hence the hood ornament that appeared on every car he owned. He frequently invited our daughter to ride her horse on property that he owned in the southern part of the state.

Bob was the kind of guy who you either liked or……. you didn’t. And he had strong opinions—lots of them. We always got along with him. We treated him with respect and care and he responded in kind. When our daughters were little, he’d come in to see them, asking, “How’s my girlfriends?” He’d gently hold them, walking them around the space, as they pulled on his beard.

When the Village held its Harry Potter Fest, Bob volunteered to play Dumbledore at the End of Term Banquet. He was a generous and gracious host.

Bob Hunker died last Monday at age 82. He leaves a legacy of history, of restoration, of valuing things that should be saved just because they should. Bob was a visionary, seeing the Village as it is today and how it could be in the future, treasuring the rich history that created this place and the feeling it holds. He loved this Village and the beautiful Cuyahoga Valley National Park in which it sits.

The Village of Peninsula, population 601, gently resisting change since 1827.

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Travis Erwin is the cruise director of the My Town Monday ship. You can visit his site for links to other MTM Marauders’ sites around the world.

photo courtesy Laura Weldon

I have known Laura Weldon for a pretty long time. We don’t see each other all that often, and talk infrequently. There’s a connection. We see many things similarly, and know that the choices we make are political statements. We both remain optimistic in the face of adversity and challenge; we share an idealistic spirit; and we cherish the time we have with our families.

Laura does many things. She and her family live on a farm in rural Ohio. Bit of Earth Farm is a lovely place. Eggs and beef and amazing honey come from her family’s farm. You can have a taste of some of Laura’s writing here, and her blog, here. You won’t be sorry.

At our Food Coop distribution, where she was on time and I was not, we talked about the need to support our local economies. If you live in the Medina County area of NE Ohio, you can find out about the Medina Food Coop here. I asked Laura to share her thoughts about conscious, healthy and economical meals. This is what she wrote:

Six Ways to Save Money on Healthy Meals

Concerned about sacrificing your healthy diet because of today’s difficult economy? According to the International Herald Tribune, “The Department of Agriculture forecasts that food prices will jump by 4 percent or 5 percent in 2009, compared with 5.5 percent this year. Some predict much steeper increases.” This is the largest increase in food prices in over 15 years. But there are changes you can make to your daily and weekly routine that will help you maintain a reasonable food budget. Advance planning and networking with others can result in bountiful rewards for your taste buds, your wallet and your commitment to sustainable meals.

Try these six tactics.

1. Eat at home.

*A recent issue of Progressive Grocer reported that meals consumed at home cost about a third of those purchased away from home. That choice alone saves $66 of every $100 in the food budget.

*An analysis presented at the Southwest Human Development Services showed that when in-home meals are made without convenience foods the savings are even greater. More importantly, the nutritional value of meals made from scratch is higher than those made from prepared foods or mixes. The difference extends to fresh ingredients as well. The report noted, “The bagged salads keeps growing in popularity even though they cost nearly 5 times as much as buying and washing your own head of lettuce…Compare the volume in the bag that is edible to what you get in one head of lettuce, you are left with a price difference of about $1.50 but about three times more edible lettuce from the head of lettuce.”

*Eating at home allows you to be more innovative in food selection than in any restaurant. You can eat beans, tomatoes, avocado and salsa for breakfast if you choose.

*Learn the time-honored methods of frugality your grandmother may have used. For example—advance meal planning; creative use of left-overs (one day’s entrée served over a salad the next day); using pricier food items as garnish rather than main focus of a meal; using healthy staple foods in a variety of ways; making home made sauces, drinks and cereals. And chances are grandma’s generation ate those well-balanced meals while conversing at the table, considering food eaten standing up or listening to media chatter as the height of rudeness.

2. Take it with you.

*Pack your lunch. Surveys indicate that two out of three employees pack a lunch at least once a week. The main motivation is to save money. Nutrition gets a boost too, because packed lunches generally have fewer calories and smaller portions.

*Bankrate.com offers a Lunch Savings Calculator at http://www.bankrate.com/brm/calculators/savings/lunch_savings_calculator.asp

Plug in numbers for how often you plan to replace lunch out with a brown bag meal, finding out what your savings will be in a few years. The example given at the site shows that replacing lunch out during the workweek for four years results in savings of nearly $4,000.

*Always have healthy snacks available. Avoid single serving packages and convenience snack foods, even the healthiest versions are expensive. Instead, pack your own in reusable bags and containers. Keep a bag of almonds in your backpack, a jar of pumpkin seeds in your car, some granola in your briefcase. This helps avoid impulse buys when you, your children or companions are hungry.

*Don’t leave the house without something to drink in a reusable container. It takes a few moments to fill it with water, juice or a quickly blended smoothie.

3. Share the cooking

*Create a lunch club with co-workers. This is an excellent antidote when boredom or time considerations make packing a daily lunch difficult. Two, three or more colleagues can take turns bringing homemade lunches for the others. This saves time several days a week for everyone.

*Set up a potluck group with friends or neighbors. Get together on a regular basis either at one another’s homes or at the local park. This is a great way to try new foods, exchange leftovers and enjoy companionable dining without the expense of a restaurant meal.

*Create a cooking night cooperative. Such a co-op allows people to swap chef duties in exchange for upcoming “catered” meals. For example, if four couples set up a cooking night cooperative for Tuesdays, each couple would take one Tuesday in the month to cook and deliver a meal to the other three couples on “their” night. On the other three Tuesdays a homemade meal would be delivered to them as each couple took a turn.

4. Buy wisely.

* According to a report titled “Food Without Thought” produced by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, U.S. consumers spend more than half of every food dollar on ready-to-eat food items. Most of these prepared foods are high in sugars, fats and additives. Processed foods, including frozen and baked goods, claim over 40% of total supermarket sales while fresh fruits and vegetables represent 9%.

*Pay attention to regular prices so you can gauge the validity of “sale” prices. Buy when on sale. If product must be used soon, make double batches of recipes to freeze or share.

*Buy in bulk for savings if necessary, splitting items with friends and family. Store food safely. Glass jars with tightly fitting screw top lids provide excellent storage for grains, beans, seeds, spices and teas.

5. Eat seasonally

*The “Food Without Thought” report indicates that U.S. farm policy has skewed pricing of foodstuffs in a profoundly unhealthy direction. It states, “…the real cost of fresh fruits and vegetables has risen nearly 40 percent in the past 20 years. The real costs of soda pop, sweets and fats and oils, on the other hand, have gone down.”

*Purchase locally grown produce items in season. Learn to can or freeze them for out-of-season use, if you choose. A Saturday spent with friends or family to pick apples, make applesauce and “put up” the results in canning jars can be a memorable yearly tradition.

*Grow your own. Even a small yard can produce a substantial produce yield. Urbanites can choose community gardens, container gardens on windowsills and balconies, plus growing sprouts and herbs indoors.

*Connect with area producers. Patronize farmers markets, join a CSA, visit local farm stands. Along with the fresh food purchased you’ll also gain invaluable insight about the people who tend the land and the meaning of locally raised products.

6. Join or start a food-buying club.
*These cooperatives can be formed with fewer than a dozen people interested in purchasing food directly from distributors. Many operate using simple guidelines to share the work of sending in orders, unloading the truck at delivery time and splitting bulk food if chosen without any need for a central location or regular meetings. Lower prices on such items as Fair Trade coffee, vitamins and healthy foods make the effort worthwhile.
*Check with individual distributors for sign-up details. Also check to see if the distributor delivers in your area, provides a listing of existing buying clubs and has a minimum order amount. Here’s a partial list of buying club distributors:
United Natural Foods Buying Clubs http://www.unitedbuyingclubs.com/

Frankferd Farms Buying Clubs http://www.frankferd.com

Frontier Wholesale Cooperative https://wholesale.frontiercoop.com/

Atlantic Spice Company http://www.atlanticspice.com/

Sometimes a difficult economy causes us to rely more on ingenuity, thrift and community-building interdependence. We learn to pay close attention to what really matters in our lives.

Sources:

Food Without Thought http://www.iatp.org/iatp/publications.cfm?accountID=258&refID=80627

International Herald Tribune

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/11/20/business/food.php

Cost and Nutrition Analysis: Convenience vs. Homemade Foods
http://www.cacfp.org/2006ConHandouts/CostNut.Analysisoverheads.pdf

Progressive Grocer

http://www.progressivegrocer.com/progressivegrocer/content_display/features/fresh-foods/e3i38341e9ec9b07206ef2a2437f38ee32b?imw=Y

Reuters.com

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS210949+10-Sep-2008+MW20080910

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Travis Erwin, the Main MTM Marauder is busy getting ready to move into his new house. This week, Jenn Jilks is collecting links to bloggers who wrote about their towns. Wander on over there and check it out.

So here we are in March. Cold again today, and the winds make it seem even colder. The sun is peeking through the clouds, giving the impression that it is warmer than it is. Anyone who has been here before knows that it has been a long hard winter in my neck of the woods.

For the next couple of weekends, March 6-8, and March 13-15, 3 communities in this area will be hosting a Cabin Fever Tour. This is an opportunity to get out of the house and visit the Western Reserve. There are opportunities to eat (always good), purchase locally made products, tour parks and historical societies and see what folks like us have to offer.

Come and see us at our gallery, Elements Gallery. In addition to new work of our own, we will be displaying work for Cups of Kindness, a benefit to support the Akron Canton Regional Foodbank. All work has been donated by local artists; and the proceeds from the sale of the work will benefit the Foodbank, where each dollar raised provides 7 nutritious meals. (The website, with new work added, will return in April.) I toured the Foodbank again last week. It is an amazing place, serving 8 Ohio counties, providing a most basic need.

Get yourself a cup of something good and take a relaxing look at spring wildflowers in NE Ohio. It won’t be long before the Village of Peninsula, population 602, will be like this.

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You can find the Main My Town Monday Marauder, Travis Erwin, and links to other MTM sites here. Check it out. Join us if you’d like. Share tales of your town. We’d love to visit.

We the People continue to open our hearts as we show that giving is receiving. We the People show how amazing the Power of One is. We have, to date, purchased more than 14,000 meals for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. That is like feeding each of the 602 people in the Village of Peninsula more than 23 times. I’ll post the exact figures when I figure them out.

If you are so inclined, please visit the Cups of Kindness website. There are some lovely pieces that have been donated by some of the 76 artists who have participated in the benefit. There is something special about items that come from the heart through the hands.

Cups Of Kindness continues online and at Elements Gallery and the Peninsula Art Academy.

Friends and neighbors helping each other.

Our friend, Travis Erwin, who is also the originator of My Town Monday, and a stellar human being, lost his home and belongings to a fire this morning.
Everyone is fine; all possessions are gone. If you are so inclined, add Travis and his family to your thoughts and prayers, and pop on over there to let him know you are doing so.

To date, 13,800 meals will be provided through the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. That is like purchasing 29.9 meals for each of the Village of Peninsula’s 602 people.

166 hands have raised their cups of kindness and opened their hearts.
They have been joined by a community that extends far beyond this beautiful Cuyahoga Valley. A single voice was joined by another and another and another; a symphony of voices all over this amazing planet. Please feel free to join us.

Friends and neighbors helping each other.