Last Spring, Layne Sundberg, producer of delicious Quail Croft Cheese (available at the SJI Co Op, the Farmers Market, Kings, and from Layne), asked if we could help find a few local interns who wanted to learn to work with goats and learn about milk and cheese. We were lucky enough to come across Cheyenne Cook and Aaron Kendzoriak, two island young people attending Friday Harbor High. Cheyenne and Aaron have been with Layne now through spring and the summer. Cheyenne just started Senior year at FHHS, while Aaron is starting his first classes at Skagit Comm. College here on the island, with plans to go on in farming and college. Aren't we lucky to have such great kids here, and someone like hardworking Layne (who also worked many years at Friday Harbor Elem, and has seen many of our kids grow from little sprouts to young adults) to help guide them!IN ADDITION,
in August, intern Cheyenne spent a week at Quillisascut Teaching Farm in Rice, WA, learning more about cheese making, beekeeping, poultry, and other farm skills, including cooking, in a week-long Slow Food intensive workshop hosted by Lora Lea Misterly of Quillisascut. Chey attended with about 7 other young people from throughout the state. Part of the workshop tuition was provided through a scholarship made to the farm. The rest of the tuition was provided by a generous donor from our own island to our chapter, towards something to help our local kids. The lovely Ms. Cook came back happy, enthusiastic, and with many great stories to tell.
Our Slow Food Chapter was able to send Chey because of the efforts of chef Kim Bast of Lopez island - one of our members and an instructor at the Quillisascut workshop.
Thank you Kim, and Lora Lea, for letting us know about the reduced cost, saving us the spot, and for all your time and efforts!
And Thank you, Rikki!
At this time, it is possible that, through another generous anonymous island donation, we may be able to send 2 or more other young people to Quillisascut next year.
Our Land & Sea Youth Club will soon be gearing up for the school year, open to all interested kids! Events and meetings will be posted at school, and here. Go to the Land & Sea Youth link at for photos of some of our activities, and scroll down our links at right for a slideshow of a workshop at Steps Wine Bar and Cafe (where the food is incredibly delicious, affordable, and very, very local) with Chef/Owner Madden Surbaugh.
Our upcoming Youth Club activity will be pizza in the cob oven!
In other news, our co-leader, marvelous Maureen Marinkovich, has a short survey on her Compost It blog to gather info. It's for a young gal who's thinking of raising rabbits, to help gauge interest in her venture. Maureen's blog is always full of entertaining stories and great info on everything from island chickens to educating reports on the Sockeye and other salmon runs and availability of fresh fish, in addition to rich rabbit research. Also, click on the link to sign up for the fish list, and you'll be first to hear when Matt will be in town with the freshest of fresh caught salmon.
Remember - don't miss the last of those beautiful blackberries! (Freeze them on a cookie sheet, pour them into a bag, put them back in the freezer, then break them out in the middle of winter! Yum-Yum!)
