Deborah Wiig

We had a fun time at our Harvest Social on October 12th. We enjoyed great music by Laura and Paul and Peter and friends, fabulous food and drink, an art and music silent auction, and a lively pie and cake auction, led by guest auctioneer Evan Wiig, shown here assisted by Ann Austin.

Did we see you at our September meeting?
Peter and friends, “The Lone Grangers,” performed Stray Cats, complete with howling, Jim Crawford, who was a delegate to the recent State Grange Convention in Petaluma, gave us a report, and President Lawrence showed the certficate our Grange received from the California State Grange honoring our 125 years of service. President Lawrence swore in new members.
We enjoyed an inspiring presentation by Robert Van de Walle on behalf of a “bad environmentalism” group called Trashlantis. The group was here to publicize an event next year, but also spoke to the concept of “bad environmentalism” and the problem of plastic waste. “Bad environmentalism” is a concept or trend in the environmental movement that seeks to use “corrective irony” to convey the message through performance art, film, literature, and other playful media.
The Trashlantis event, planned for October 19, 2024, will be an “active transportation” festival, including a sculpture rally through Sebastopol. This group ride of kinetic sculptures and their bicycle escorts will utilize our trails and demonstrate to riders how easy it is to get to parks and shops via bicycle in Sebastopol. Booths will feature local businesses that sell durable goods made from materials diverted from the waste stream, as well as information vendors with resources for living a less energy intensive life. Music and food will ad to the fun activities. Click below for more information. We’re looking forward to this exciting event!

Celebrating 125 years of Gathering!

Organizations that our Grange has supported over the years through co-sponsoring events and providing non-profit discounts:

Auction items: Collector editions of Master Recordings

Our Art Auction features the work of the late local artist Sandy Eastoak

At our general meeting on Tuesday, Darryl Berlin, board president of CommonSpace Community Land Trust, spoke about ways to address the shortage of affordable housing. We enjoyed a great potluck meal and celebrated Shepherd’s birthday. Jonathan Greenberg, Climate Solutions Advocacy Institute founder and journalist, told us about solar farms. Laura and Paul entertained us with an original tune called “Can There Be Enough Love?”
Mark your calendar to join us at our next meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 19. Everyone is invited!

Volunteer pie bakers came together at the Grange on August 24 to make pies to be served at a State Grange luncheon to be held at our hall on Sept. 22. Appes were donated and everyone had fun pitching in with their time and talents!

Before the meeting, Grangers and friends exchanged garden produce, starts, and flowers at the Produce Exchange.

We enjoyed a soup supper prepared by Chef Matt with potluck appetizers and desserts.

Peter and friends performed a rendition of “I’m an Old Cow Hand.” There was even a little line dancing! We welcomed new members Diane and Leo Cretin, Tony Cohen, Rei Blaser, Carole Rae Wataube, Steven Schmitz, and Jana Mariposa Niernberger. Jim Crawford gave a presentation about Regenerative Agriculture.

On Tuesday July 11, 2023, the Sebastopol Grange Produce Exchange will launch the first in a series of Food Preservation Demos with the Sonoma County Master Food Preservers.  All interested folks will learn to extend garden abundance by fermenting and canning in fun-filled evenings at the Grange.  In the first class, participants will observe the steps involved in making kimchi as well as come away with a supply list, the recipe Time for Q&A will be included.

The free series will occur the second Tuesdays of July, August, September and October.  Each event will follow the 5pm Produce Exchange, where home gardeners can trade or donate surplus produce and starts.  The Food Preservation demos will be held in the Grange kitchen at 6pm and run for approximately 1 hour.  Attendees are invited to bring their picnic dinner for community-building meal time after the demo.

Schedule:

• July 11 How to make Kimchi
• August 8 How to make canned Dilly Green Beans
• September 12 How to make canned Tomato Salsa
• October 10 How to make and flavor Kombucha with Fruit

“During this fifth year of the Home Gardener Produce Exchange and Donation we are excited to add to our repertoire by learning new food preservation skills,” say Carol and Dena, Produce Exchange hosts. “Produce swapping, donations to the food pantry, and preserving food all cut down on food waste and enhance the economy of abundance.”

For more information, visit https://sebastopolgrange.org/ or email produce@rahus.org To Sign up to attend any or all of the demos go to https://forms.gle/GQTSxnwTTrJZxCTC8

Grangers and friends enjoyed a dinner of enchiladas made by Chef Matt, accompanied by delicious appetizers and desserts brought by attendees
Grange Musician, Peter, led everyone in a sing-along, clap-along called the “Grange Pride Song. Chaplain Barton shared the poem: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, by Robert Fulghum.
Scholarship recipient Miako Pizzorno shared slides and stories of her stay in France. President Lawrence swore in new Grange members Katie Krolikowski, Cindy David, and Anna Joyce.
Amy Crawford gave a presentation about Regenerative Agriculture and she and husband Jum’s mission to rebuild the soil on their Cotati farm.
Everyone is invited to join us for our next General meeting on Tuesday, June 27 at 6:00pm.

At our March meeting, we enjoyed a fabulous meal prepared by Chef Matt Roberts with potluck salads and desserts. Afterward, we watched the worldwide premier of Sonoma County Climate 2050, a 25-minute video produced by Grange President Lawrence Jaffee and funded by community donations. The video features Dr. Emily Schoerning from American Resiliency, a nonprofit that helps communities prepare for climate change.
Lawrence asked Dr. Schoerning to research US Government resources to find what climate change impacts are expected here in 2050. You can watch the video on YouTube.