Fun at the Library! Watch this Movie!!

Saturday, October 3rd at 6:30 pm there will be a screening of the film "Island on the Edge" and a discussion with director Nick Versteeg. What a great way to spend a cozy Fall evening!
"Island on the Edge" takes a look at how dependent our close neighbor Vancouver Island is on the mainland for food, and what could happen if the transportation of food was cut off - and how island residents can strengthen their local agricultural resources!
The SJI Ag Guild of the San Juan Islands, the SJ County ARC, Lopez Comm. Land Trust, Orcas Pub. Library, & SJI Library are all co-sponsors.
Thanks, Eliza Buck, of the Economic Development Council, for letting us know about this timely movie and this chance to see it and meet the director at a fun evening at our lovely local Library!
(Also showing 6:30 Fri. at Lopez Comm. Center, and 6:30 Sun. at Orcas Pub. Library!)

While we're thinking about it...Do you know you can get your Food Handler's Card at the SJ Health Dept. for just 10$? It takes about 45 minutes on their computer, anytime between 8:00-1:00 M-F, go here for details. With a food handler's card, you can serve food, and also give Eleanor a hand packaging the bulk items at fabulous San Juan Island Food Co-Op!

In case you missed it on Ian's San Juan Island Update, today's the last day of Wed Farmers market for this year.
Nootka Rose has incredible, beautiful vegetables and fruit, and they're across from the courthouse from before 3 - 6 pm today, just in time for dinner grocery shopping.

QUICK NOTE

We know we mentioned this in our Sept. 2nd post, but it's such a great deal...In case you missed it,
for just 3 more days, (until 9/30/09) you can
Donate any amount = Become a Slow Food Member!
Update - offer extended until Oct. 15!
Can you be a part of all that Slow Food can do? Go to this link to see more on programs Slow Food USA runs. Go here to read about International programs. We especially like the Foundation for Biodiversity, the Presidia, Terra Madre, and the RAFT and Ark of Taste. In addition to a publishing and travel arm, Slow Food also runs University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo and Collorno, Italy offering graduate, undergraduate and masters Degrees, along with being very effective working both at the political and grass-roots levels.
Our chapter has never before asked anyone to become or re-up their membership, but this is a great opportunity. You should know about it.
Until September 2009 ends, a gift of any size will make you a member of Slow Food USA.
Give more if you can, less if you can't.
Membership rates will return to $60 on October 1st.
It's a great way to re-up your new membership. Or become a member for the 1st time.
Any size donation = one year membership = no strings attached.

Your membership is not automatically renewed next year, and you do not end up getting all kinds of mailings, or anything like that.

Click here for more info.

Go here to go directly to the online membership form.

If you do it now, you won't forget.

Slow Food is really getting things done, good things, and they can use your help.

Photo and illustration above from Fedco Seeds and Acme Washington's own Uprising Seeds.
Fedco's taking orders until 9/30/09 (and beginning again Jan '10) and Uprising has garlic in now. Both are completely GMO free seed suppliers, a rarity.
Bountiful Gardens is another good source. Our B.C. neighbors on Salt Spring Island, Salt Spring Seeds, is also a great site to look at, with fantastic info and links, though they cannot ship seeds across the US border.
Scroll down our links at far right for, among other things, more info on seeds and starts.
Photo at right: the owners and founders of Uprising Seeds and Uprising Organics
They carry Inchelium Red Garlic, a variety from the Colville reservation in WA, (grown by Sowing Seed Farm in Twisp), which has been listed on the Slow Food Ark of Taste.
Uprising Seeds received a Betsy Lydon Ark Award from Slow Food in 2008.
One more thing...
Here's a link to details on how the Quillisascut Farm workshop went- (attended by one of our own Youth interns, see 9/02 post below), from Slow Food Seattle's site, written by by workshop assistant Amy Grondin. Look for Youth intern Cheyenne in the group photo!

HEY LAND & SEA YOUTH AND ALL FRIENDS! DINNER TONIGHT AT MARINKOVICH'S FAB COB OVEN!

Guess what? Another fairly last-minute no time to plan, pizza party with the beloved cob oven. Bring your favorite topping. We will have the dough, sauce, and cheese.
We want to get the Slow Food Land and Sea Youth together. We know this a school night so we will respect the cooking schedule so you can skedaddle back to the books and to reasonable bedtime, etc. Cooking starts at 5:30 - on.
Bring your parental units! Bring a friend who might be interested in this group. It is open to youth, and cob oven pizza loving friends of all ages!!
To get to Marinkovich's: drive out Cattle Pt. Rd, turn right at Portland Fair, right again at Treeline Drive, and then right again at the wooden "Think Fish" fish sign, then park.
Look for our contact info at bottom of this page for more detailed directions, questions, etc.
Thanks!!!

USDA Says Biotech Is Compatible with Organic - What You Can Do

Please read this story from the Organic Consumers Association. Especially important is reading the sidebar on the story which explains where the push on GMO's (genetically modified organisms) is coming from.

Although it's often difficult, it's really important to stay updated, and to make your voice heard - as you can see after reading this Organic Consumers Association story, it does make a difference!

Image from Cooperative Grocer
A lot is happening in our government regarding food and water regulations including fisheries - but that's not all - while we are busy with summer. We will be posting about bills such as H.R. 2749 which just passed the House and is to go on to the Senate soon. A great blog from a CSA farmer in Texas - Home Sweet Farm - with some great links on the new Food Safety Enhancement Act (HR 2749 text). Please read the links about this bill - it's being pushed through quietly and quickly - and without important changes, could be devastating for small sustainable farmers.
Contacting your legislators can be crucial, you do have the power to make a difference!

What's happening to the Frasier sockeye is an example of what happens when we don't have a chance to pay attention. Click here for an action you can take to help the wild sockeye survive.

Photos of Two Fantastic Interns, and Wonderful Local Farmer Layne Sundberg

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!)