Discover This!

On March 22nd, the Live Earth Farm Discovery Program will host the 5th annual Sheep to Shawl Fair at Live Earth Farm. Professional shearer, Bruce Wool, will demonstrate his trade throughout the day, while his wife spins yarn alongside him. Guests will participate in hands-on demonstrations of every part of the process of making wool into clothing and art. Adding to the fair like atmosphere local fiber artists will display their creations for sale, Happy Girl Kitchen Co. will sell lunch and preserves from their VW bus, Penny Ice Creamery will delight with scrumptious scoops and 3 of a Kind will have sparkling juices on tap.

Watsonville, CA, February 20, 2014 – On March 22nd, 2014 10 am to 2pm at 1275 Green Valley Road in Watsonville, the Live Earth Farm Discovery Programs 5th annual Sheep to Shawl event, will feature hands-on stations demonstrating the entire progression of processing wool. Local artisans will share their wares, and lunch, ice cream and sparkling juice featuring Live Earth Farm ingredients. The event will take place in and around our renovated turn of the century redwood barn rain or shine.

The Sheep to Shawl event is one of three annual, on farm events open to the public; all of which aim to further our mission of helping local under served youth build confidence in learning to be active caretakers of themselves, their community and their environment. Children and adults will delight in interacting with our sheep and shearer, dying yarn, making drop spindles, trying knitting and crocheting, and washing and combing yarn, all with expert help and child friendly tools.

The Live Earth Farm Discovery Program (LEFDP) is a farm-based education non-profit organization in Watsonville, California. LEFDP makes seed to mouth, farm to fork, and child to community connections through a variety of hands-on educational programs serving the youth of Santa Cruz, Santa Clara and Monterey counties and beyond. A special emphasis is placed on reaching under served people in the community to bolster individual, community and environmental health. We welcome volunteers in a number of different capacities. Please get in touch!

Happy Holidays!  Can you believe the New Year is almost here? Help us get ready for the 2014 tour season by raising $5000 before the end of the year. We have raised $2171 which means we have $2829 to raise in the next 4 days!  Please make a tax deductible donation to the Live Earth Farm Discovery Program before the end of 2013.

Your contribution today will help LEFDP surpass our 2013 accomplishments in 2014.

• 2000 kids, and even more adults have benefited from our hands-on education in the farm fields.
• 57% of the students we taught to build a healthy plate of plant-based foods were from under served schools.
• LEFDP paid for transportation for 180 students!

Let’s outdo ourselves in 2014!  Here is how you can help:

Peter Hay Golf Course care of www.tripadvisor.com

We need someone from the Live Earth Farm and Discovery Program community to golf for us.

Chevron Shoot-Out Qualifier
Birdies for Charity participants are invited to qualify and potentially earn up to $50,000 through the Chevron Shoot-Out Qualifier. The Qualifier will be held on Saturday, January 18, 2014 at Peter Hay Golf Course in Pebble Beach and will determine the four charities to be represented in the Chevron Shoot-Out on Tuesday, February 4 with potential to win up to $50,000. The format of the Qualifier is “Closest to the Pin.”

So LEFDP golfers, we need you. If you consider yourself a pretty good shot, and you would like to play for LEFDP, please get in touch with Jessica by e-mail by December 29, 2013. We will do the rest.

Peter Hay Golf Course care of www.golfholidays.com

Chevron Shoot-Out
The 2014 Chevron Shoot-Out will take place Tuesday, February 4 at Pebble Beach Golf Links. The event features current or former San Francisco 49ers versus current or former San Francisco Giants in four two-man teams. The Shoot-Out format, covering holes No. 1, 2, 3, 17 and 18, will consist of alternate shots of two players. Each hole will be worth $10,000 to the winning team’s participating charity (the total purse is $50,000). In the case of a tie, the amount will carry over to the next hole. If a team does not win any holes, a grant of $1,000 will go to the charity being represented in the event.

This week we are wishing the best to Grace as she moves on. Grace is from the area, so we won’t lose her entirely. Grace has spent a little over a year and a half pouring her heart into running all of the education programs at Live Earth Farm, which means almost all of you have had a chance to enjoy her spark.

We were lucky to find Grace right out of UCSC, and she hit the ground running just after her graduation ceremony. She is a natural with kids. She believes in our work, and she worked her but off to make it all happen more and more independently as time went on. Grace has a talent for curriculum development and did a great job of taking time to make each program she was involved in great and educational.

We would like to thank Grace for doing such a great job as Education Coordinator for us, and wish her the best in her year of fun ahead.

We welcome Peter Nelson to the position of Education Coordinator and look forward to choosing our new Program Assistant to start in February from the great applications we have received.

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”
-Nelson Mandela

We have received 13 of the 15 donations we need by December 31, 2013 to qualify for the Pebble Beach Pro-Am Chevron Shoot-Out Qualifier. We have raised $2171 towards our goal of $5000 by the end of the year.   

• In 2013, 57% of the students we taught to build a healthy plate of plant-based foods on the farm, were from under served schools, up from 31% in 2012.

Helping us reach this fundraising goal will make it possible to continue this important work in 2014.

Become a sponsor or make a tax deductible contribution of any amount

• by credit card or e-check through Birdies for Charity to earn us a 20% match
• or by check: LEFDP * PO Box 3490 * Freedom, CA * 95019

And keep reading for more ways to help before 2014!

Make your Holiday Shopping Go Further

Purchase Banana Slug String Band CD’s or Downloads at a 10% Discount and get 10% for LEFDP

*offer valid 11/29-12/31, must purchase by 12/15 for delivery by Christmas

Make a cash or art supply donation or share the information about Art Room Aid by Blick Art Materials

Do your online shopping through goodshop and get great coupons while raising a percentage of every purchase for LEFDP.

 http://www.goodsearch.com/goodshop.aspx

Plant Your Garden And Grow Cash!

Buy your garden seeds from Renee’s Garden Seeds and 25% of the order value will be donated to The Live Earth Farm Discovery Program.

Here’s how it works:

Simply go to www.reneesgarden.com and choose from the wide selection of seeds for heirloom and gourmet vegetables, cottage garden flowers and culinary herbs, special seed collections and great kitchen garden cookbooks.

At check out, just enter the code FR338A in the coupon code box on the checkout page, and that’s it! Renee’s Garden will send a year-end check to the Live Earth Farm Discovery Program for 25% of all orders who use this fundraising code. Code expires December 31 each year.

We raised $480 this way in 2012!

Docent Programs and Volunteer Opportunities at Live Earth Farm

The Live Earth Farm Discovery Program has three new docent programs and many one time volunteer events providing opportunities for local adults to get involved with this successful farm-based education organization.

How about that weather!? The garden and teaching fields are looking pretty bare after that frost, but we always find interesting things to learn about with the students who come to the farm.

Testing Water Quality at the Mouth of the Pajaro River in Winter 2011

Last week we began our winter rotation with the Santa Cruz Montessori middle school students. This winter the theme is “Water”.  I can’t think of a more important topic for our region right now, especially while we are in the midst of a record drought. Water is obviously important and a critical resource for our area’s vast agricultural industry. We must learn to care for and understand our local water systems so we can  intelligently address the current and future threats to our clean water.  Students will learn about the complex and interconnected water systems of our area by exploring, studying, and doing science. They are designing some cool science projects and thinking about research activities, like data collection, water quality testing, studying the farm’s relationship to ground water and much more.  The question posed to them by Farmer Tom at the beginning of this rotation was “What do you have physically in common with Alexander the Great or any other person who lived 1,000 years ago?” What do you think?

Also this month our awesome Homeschool group will be coming to the farm for lessons on seeds, compost, and how water connects it all.  The mighty Coast Live Oaks (Quercus agrifolia) are dropping acorns by the ton so it is time to learn about them.  How does an Oak tree make an acorn? Who eats these acorns? Who hides them? How do they become a mighty Oak?  We will explore what happens when a bean, seed or acorn meets water. We will look closely at a variety of seeds and see if we can observe the three different parts. Do you know them?

So much to learn! Happy Holidays and lets all hope and wish for rain!

As the year comes to a close, and the Holiday season reaches a fever pitch, I can’t help but let it influence me a little bit.  Brainstorming recipe ideas on the farm, I asked my colleague, Laura, what we had an abundance of in the cooler.  She told me that we are loaded with romanesco right now and then proceeded to tell me that she thought the florets look like Christmas trees.  That got us going on a conversation that involved mashed potato snow banks, rosemary bushes and parmesan snow and I decided it would be a great kids recipe for the holidays!

Now if you don’t celebrate Christmas, you might be feeling a little left out right now, but the history of the Christmas tree actually comes from a pagan tradition centered around the winter solstice.

** “Long before the advent of Christianity, plants and trees that remained green all year had a special meaning for people in the winter. Just as people today decorate their homes during the festive season with pine, spruce, and fir trees, ancient peoples hung evergreen boughs over their doors and windows. In many countries it was believed that evergreens would keep away witches, ghosts, evil spirits, and illness.

In the Northern hemisphere, the shortest day and longest night of the year falls on December 21 or December 22 and is called the winter solstice. Many ancient people believed that the sun was a god and that winter came every year because the sun god had become sick and weak. They celebrated the solstice because it meant that at last the sun god would begin to get well. Evergreen boughs reminded them of all the green plants that would grow again when the sun god was strong and summer would return.

Germany is credited with starting the Christmas tree tradition as we now know it in the 16th century when devout Christians brought decorated trees into their homes. Some built Christmas pyramids of wood and decorated them with evergreens and candles if wood was scarce. It is a widely held belief that Martin Luther, the 16th-century Protestant reformer, first added lighted candles to a tree. Walking toward his home one winter evening, composing a sermon, he was awed by the brilliance of stars twinkling amidst evergreens. To recapture the scene for his family, he erected a tree in the main room and wired its branches with lighted candles.”

If you have some picky eaters, this recipe is for you!

Romanesco Christmas Trees with Mashed Potatoes and Cheese

Serves: 4 (as a side)

2 large Russet Potatoes (peeled and boiled)

4 tablespoons butter

1 sprig of rosemary (finely chopped)

2 cloves of garlic (pressed)

1/2-1 cup cream (depending on how creamy you like your mashed potatoes)

salt and pepper to taste

1 large head of romanesco (separated into individual florets and steamed)

8 tablespoons of parmesan cheese (grated or shredded)

8 slices of cooked bacon (crumbled)

Instructions:

1. Peel and chop potatoes, toss in boiling water and cook until soft.

2. Remove from heat and drain.

3. KIDS! Add butter, rosemary, garlic, and cream and mash potatoes until you reach preferred consistency.

4. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. KIDS! Wash and pull apart romanesco head until you have a bunch of small “Christmas trees”.

6. Steam trees until soft, strain, set aside to cool.

7. Once the romanesco is cool (not cold, just cool enough to handle), evenly spread mashed potatoes in to four separate bowls, ramekins, or one large dish.

8. KIDS! Place romanesco in mashed potatoes to look like little Christmas trees.

9. KIDS! Sprinkle tops of romanesco with parmesan and bacon bits.

Enjoy!

**http://www.history.com/topics/history-of-christmas-trees

LEFDP Pledges to spend every dollar raised on #GivingTuesday, December 3^rd, 2013 to bring kids to the farm to learn to grow and choose food that is healthy for themselves, for their community and for the environment. The Banana Slug String Band will help with a 10% discount and 10% donation on CD purchases and downloads.

Watsonville, CA, November 26, 2013 – The Live Earth Farm Discovery Program (LEFDP) has joined #GivingTuesday, a first of its kind effort that will harness the collective power of a unique blend of partners-charities, families, businesses, individuals-to transform how people thing about, talk about and participate in the giving season. Coinciding with the Thanksgiving Holiday and the kickoff of the holiday shopping season, #Giving Tuesday will inspire people to take collaborative action to improve their local communities, give back in better, smarter ways to the charities and causes they support and help create a better world. Taking place December 3, 2013-the Tuesday after Thanksgiving-#GivingTuesday will harness the power of social media to create a national moment around the holidays dedicated to giving, similar to how Black Friday and Cyber Monday have become days that are, today, synonymous with holiday shopping.

The Live Earth Farm Discovery Program joined #GivingTuesday to aid in efforts to diversify the holiday shopping season experience. We shop during this time of year for the thrill of giving, to buy presents for those we love, so that we can see their faces light with joy upon opening our gifts. On #GivingTuesday LEFDP offers the community a little bit of everything in a combined initiative with the Banana Slug String Band, and the Monterey Peninsula Foundation to raise funds for their educational programs in the organic farm fields of Live Earth Farm.

The Monterey Peninsula Foundation (MPF) will match all gifts by 20% through their Birdies for Charity Program and give an extra $1000 to the charity that raises the most on #GivingTuesday. Direct gifts can be made to LEFDP through their website: https://events.r2it.com/birdies/r.aspx?site=ATTPebbleBeach&charity=TheLiveEarthFarmDiscoveryProgram

The Banana Slug Sting Band is offering 10% off all Slug CDs & downloads, then giving 10% profits to Live Earth Farm Discovery Program (which will be matched 20% by MPF).

• CDs can be purchased via the Banana Slug String Band website: https://www5.cruzio.com/w5a146/prds0708.html

• Digital tracks/albums can be downloaded here: http://bananaslugs.bandcamp.com/ (customers need to use the code holiday_sale to get the discount)

“Our students learn to eat well on the farm. They learn that their food choices make an impact on the local economy and on the environment. They become aware of their place in the ecological system as they harvest and consume healthy snacks, then feed the scraps to chickens, who produce eggs. They learn responsibility for their choices because they are part of a community,” says LEFDP Director, Jessica Ridgeway

Seeing an opportunity to channel the generous spirit of the holiday season to inspire around charitable giving, a group of friends and partners, led by the 92^nd Street Y, came together to find ways to promote and celebrate the great American tradition of giving. Thought leaders in philanthropy, social media and grassroots organizing joined with 92^nd Street Y to explore what is working in modern philanthropy and how to expand these innovations throughout the philanthropic sector.

“#GivingTuesday is a counter narrative to Black Friday and Cyber Monday because it reminds us that the sprit of the holiday giving season should be about community and not just consumerism,” said Kathy Calvin, CEP of the UN Foundation. “The most meaningful gift we can five our children, loved ones, friends and neighbors is the commitment to work together to help build a better world.

Those who are interested in joining the Live Earth Farm Discovery Program’s #GivingTuesday initiative can visit www.liveearthfarm/givingtuesday/. For more details about the #GivingTuesday movement, visit the #GivingTuesday website (www.givingtuesday.org), Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/GivingTuesday) or follow #GivingTuesday (https://twitter.com/GivngTues) and the #GivingTuesday hashtag on Twitter.

About #GivingTuesday

#GivingTuesday is a movement to celebrate and provide incentives to give. It will culminate with a global day of giving on December 3, 2013. This effort harnesses the collective power of a unique blend of partners-charities, families, businesses and inviduals-to transform how people think about, talk about and participate in the giving season. #GivingTuesday will inspore people to take collaborative action to improve their local communities, give back in better, smarter ways to the charities and causes they celebrate and help create  better world. #Giving Tuesday will harness the power of social media to create a global moment that is dedicated to giving around the world.