Just this past week Kathy Marshall presented a few of the entrees in the new Good Cheer Cookbook to our Board of Directors. The great thing about having a blog is that we can share this with you.

Just in time for holiday gift giving; Good Cheer’s beautifully illustrated 50th Anniversary Cookbook has arrived.

The $19.95 cookbook is available at all Good Cheer Stores and some local re­tailers.

Proceeds help the Food Bank, so when you purchase it as a gift, you are giving a gift that gives twice!

For an additional $3 we will even mail it for you in early December to an address within the U.S.

The Good Cheer Cookbook is a unique collection of recipes. You’ll find recipes  from the original 1960′s Good Cheer Cookbook, as well as, new ones from our garden volunteers. The cookbook has a soft cover and is 168 pages.  Local foods such as clams, crab and salmon are featured in the ‘old recipes’ section complete with the originators’ handwritten recipes. The original cookbook was entitled ‘Whidbey Island Recipe Specialties’ and was created as a fundraiser to support Good Cheer’s fledgling food bank.

Keep Good Cheer on Your Mind over the Holidays!

Wouldn’t it be nice to have an easy way to access the Good Cheer Food Bank blog?

To many of us, the internet is where we get our information about what’s happening in the world and Google gives us answers to just about anything that we can think of.  There is so much information on the internet and we can only read so much.

You can check your favorite blogs (Good Cheer Food Bank) and your favorite news to see if there is anything new, however, if you have a number of resources, that process can take time.

This is a RSS Icon and it stands for Really Simple Syndication which in itself sounds very complicated. This tool can help you manage the resources that you use on the internet.

You can establish a single website, a home, for reading all your favorites. Here is a video that explains the process.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvKFP67GwSY

Pretty simple, here are the steps and a link to getting started.

1. You need a home for reading your favorites and there are a number of readers available to you and they are free. You can take a tour of the Google reader by clicking here. You will need to sign up for a reader.

2. When you set up a connection between your reader and your favorite blogsites/websites it is called subscribing. You will see a RSS logo on the Good Cheer blog on the left hand side. If you click on the logo it will give you a choice of readers that you can send it to.

You can read more about the food bank and it’s thrift stores by clicking on the Facebook logo on the blog (upper left).

I hope that you found this information useful, I know it’s tech stuff but it can work for you!

On the Holiday News Front:

The Langley Main Street Association  will be sponsoring, Deck the Doors, a fun and competitive decorating event in downtown Langley. The event will add to the beauty of Langley during the Holiday season and it will benefit Good Cheer. You will be hearing more about this event on the blog, our Facebook page and the Chamber of Commerce. You’ll be able to view a number of the displays right here on the blog!

Plum Pudding Pennies and Good Cheer!

The Quintessa on Whidbey Island is celebrating the season of giving with a Good Cheer Special! Your stay at The Quintessa, in November, will be half-off the regular rate and your entire accommodation fee will be donated to the Good Cheer Food Bank. Yes, you can just write your check out to Good Cheer. You’ll need to book your stay in the month of October to qualify for the Good Cheer Special.

A standard 3 night minimum stay is required – customary cleaning, deposits, insurance & hospitality tax applicable.) The standard booking commissions paid to professional travel agents & Realtors of 10% will be waived in this arrangement.

As Carrie Fong and Tessa Huey, the owners of The Quintessa, explained “That time of year will soon be upon us again when we give and give thanks in November during Thanksgiving!”

The Quintessa Cottage

Their story of giving is as unique and inspiring as is their connection to the food bank. Their daughter Holly is a senior at South Whidbey High School where she belongs to many community service clubs. She is co-president of S-Club a high school version of  the Soroptimist International of South Whidbey Island, the vice-president of Key Club, and has been a member of the National Honor Society for the last three years. Holly regularly volunteers at the Good Cheer Food Bank and Thrift Store, Hearts and Hammer of South Whidbey Island, Habitat for Humanity, the Seattle Compass Center, and works with many other local community service organizations.

Main Living Room The Quintessa  (Photo credit  Stadler Studio Photography)

Holly was recognized for her volunteer work by the Soroptimists of South Whidbey and presented the Violet Richardson award, a $500 scholarship award to be used for her college education. This award was a matching award where Holly chose to donate another $500 to the Good Cheer Food Bank. As I told Holly, $500 in cash is closer to $3500 with our use of coupons. Wow!

(Photo credit  Stadler Studio Photography)

This is where this giving thing gets interesting……not sure that many of us would choose to take this path. Once you read this you will know that you are in good hands at The Quintessa!

Carrie and Tessa are raising three children and it is very apparent that their family has had a big impact on their lives. The family has members in California and Hawaii; they are close-knit and believe in giving. Every Christmas instead of giving presents to each member of the family they do community service. They draw family names and send a letter telling of their family’s experience in helping their community. In December of 2008, that community service was done at the Good Cheer Food Bank……

(Photo credit  Stadler Studio Photography)

Let’s get the word out! This remarkably easy-to-find home is less than 35 miles from the Seattle, Washington and just 5 minutes away from the Clinton ferry.

Spacious & elegant, this multi-level home with over 12,000 sq. ft. features 9 bedrooms along with a separate garden cottage.

Breathtaking views of Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains complete your experience!

The Quintessa is located within minutes to many attractions including a nine-hole golf course straight out of the Scottish Highlands, a variety of beaches, and an abundance of local artists’ studios.  Take a drive to nearby Langley ~ The Village by the Sea, featuring a vintage movie house, live music and theater, eclectic boutiques, art galleries, antique shops, bookstores, and fabulous food!

Please let your friends know about this unique property which is able to accommodate up to 32 guests comfortably. Perfectly suited for intimate weddings, family reunions and corporate retreats, the Quintessa onSouth Whidbey is the place to make your memories for Thanksgiving with your out-of-town family and friends!

Call Tessa or Carrie at 425-263-1700 or email thequintessa@gmail.com

Good Cheer!

It would be nice if we could put a positive spin on the U.S. economy; however, it seems to be deteriorating once again. Some are saying that we may see a double dip recession and we can only hope that things will improve. What is important is to recognize is that this community is working hard everyday to fight hunger and we are positively impacting peoples lives!

The U.S. poverty rate remains among the highest in the developed world. Among 34 countries tracked by the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, only Chile, Israel and Mexico have higher rates of poverty.

The Good Cheer Points System Grocery.

This rate would be even higher if it weren’t for a number of government programs. The Census estimated that the extension of unemployment benefits enacted in 2009 helped 3.2 million Americans remain above the poverty line which is defined as an annual income of $22,314 for a family of four. Last year, Social Security helped some 20.3 million seniors and disabled working-age adults avoid falling into of poverty.

 Good Cheer’s Milk Fund program is providing milk to our clients.

Millions of  households are collecting food stamps to stretch household budgets far enough to keep food on the table. Since the recession began in 2007, the number of households receiving food stamps has nearly doubled to 21.4 million.

Graham Kerr at the Harvest Party at the Good Cheer Garden.

There was an article today in the Seattle Times about a survey put together by Got Green.  They surveyed 212 women about their ability to access the “green economy”.  The survey revealed that women are definitely aware of the importance of going green and how it can affect the lives of their families.

The survey found that the conventional solution of teaching women to cook healthier food, for example, is falling short.

Good Cheer Cooking Classes.

The surveyors asked women to prioritize public transportation; a healthy energy-efficient home; green jobs; and access to healthy foods.

By a 2-to-1 margin, the women said their top priority was healthy food.

Healthy food from the Good Cheer Garden and Gleeful Gleaners.  Good Cheer has a collaborative relationship with the Langley Middle School Garden, the Whidbey Institute Garden and the Greenbank Farm and that makes it a community effort!

Most of the women surveyed said the the high cost of fresh and organic fruit and vegetables made feeding their family a healthier diet too hard.

Do you see a trend here?

We should all be proud of what the food bank and the community is doing!

Donate to Good Cheer, every dollar counts! 

Photo courtesy of SJ Photography

The Good Cheer Thrift stores will be open on the 4^th of July so plan on stopping by. We have a lot of changes taking place with all the new construction, giving us the ability to highlight certain departments and make your shopping easier.

Here is Aljean Muncey in the new sewing and linen department at the Langley Store, so well organized what a great job! Aljean has been a volunteer for the last six years and has made the sewing and crafts department her area of focus.

Bill Tulloch built the shelves for the linen department and crafts center right to Aljean specifications. Aljean says “I’m very excited about the remodel of the store and have enjoyed hearing everybody’s reactions to the changes!”

The new shelving gives us more room for product and the new space makes everything easy to find.

Whether it’s linens, clothing, shoes or a nice summer outfit you can find something special at the Langley thrift store or the Good Cheer Clothing Rack in Clinton. Remember this Tuedsay is Bag Day, whatever clothing fits in a bag only costs $6.

Come on in a visit our stores!  Our merchandise changes daily, so come often and take a look at what’s new

Last year I wrote a wonderful story about Mira Slovak who used to drive the Miss Wahoo hydroplane. It is a story of freedom and has been getting quite a few views due to the 4th of July. Just click on the hydroplane and it will take you to the post..

Have Good Cheer and a Happy 4th!

Healthy choices are individual choices. Decisions can be based on learned experience or common sense, we all could cultivate the common sense thing a bit more. I think it is important to have an inquiring mind, you can’t just trust.

It is no secret that processed foods contain a high amount of sodium and calories that we just don’t really need. Spices like salt have been used for centuries to enhance the taste of our foods, fast and processed food has become the American lifestyle.

The Slow Food movement, which is spreading throughout the USA, began in Italy in the late 1980′s to provide an alternative influence to the encroachment of fast food in European eating habits and life style. Sound familiar? The mission was to show people that updated pre-industrial food production methods and manufacturing are a viable, healthful and a preferable alternative to current food manufacturing and agribusiness practices. Think processed foods.

Some Cultural Milestones to Consider

Most of us understand the concept of healthy food choices and sadly it is something that we have to work on. People are eating too much processed food and serving sizes are going through the roof!

A one ounce slice of American cheese has 406 mg of sodium-that’s over 20% of your daily recommended daily sodium intake. Chicken noodle soup is a childhood staple, but with 1107mg of sodium for one cup, it should only be eaten as a special treat and never with a grilled cheese sandwich. Chocolate pudding isn’t salty, or is it? One half cup serving of pudding has 470 mg of sodium. A fast food fish sandwich has 882 mg, but even that isn’t as much as the 1498 mg of sodium in just one cup of tomato sauce.

Make you think a little?

Today’s prepackaged foods are all over salted and can cause blood pressure problems in children. Snacks like potato chips, fast foods, soft drinks are laced with tons of sodium or salt.  In the natural state even vegetables contain natural salt therefore there is no need to add more salt.  Even a fresh tomato from your garden has sodium already in the tomato yet people add more salt.  The sodium surprise is that foods from the ground already have salt content.

By increasing your own awareness on products that contain high salt you will be protecting your family from diseases that will surely cost more money in the long run for your family.

Cutting salt can help you stay hydrated and give you more energy if you have high blood pressure, but all people need sodium in order to maintain a healthy fluid balance. Before cutting your sodium intake, make sure you check with your doctor.

Compare…..

Good Choice

The size of the serving on the food package influences the number of calories and all the nutrient amounts listed on the top part of the label. Pay attention to the serving size, especially how many servings there are in the food package. Then ask yourself, “How many servings am I consuming”?

May surprise, it has me!

Let’s remember the benefits of organic farming and slow food. The concept supports the small farmer, local artisans and looks to restore cultural food traditions bringing more health into your family’s life.

We have it right here at the Good Cheer Garden and with your donations we can buy foods that a healthier for our clients.

Good Cheer!

We can make healthy choices and the importance of doing should not be understated. For example, about 65 million American adults or nearly 1 in 3 have high blood pressure. My guess is that number will go much higher with obesity continuing to work its way into the American culture.

The Mayo Clinic website had some good information on the topic of sodium intact and  I wanted to share it with you.

There are a number of factors that can push blood pressure up according to the Mayo Clinic.

Eating too much salt

Drinking too much alcohol

Not getting enough potassium in your diet

Not doing enough physical activity

Taking certain medicines

Having long-lasting stress

Smoking

I don’t think that many of us are taking the time to find out how much salt is going into our systems. We may think that we’re eating less sodium, just a pinch of table salt on your baked potato and a dash on your scrambled eggs. But a pinch here and a dash there can quickly add up to unhealthy levels of sodium. Consider that just one teaspoon of table salt has 2,325 milligrams (mg) of sodium.

Your body needs some sodium to function properly because it:

Helps maintain the right balance of fluids in your body

Helps transmit nerve impulses

Influences the contraction and relaxation of muscles

Your kidneys naturally balance the amount of sodium stored in your body for optimal health. When your sodium levels are low, your kidneys essentially hold on to the sodium. When sodium levels are high, your kidneys excrete the excess in urine.

But if for some reason your kidneys can’t eliminate enough sodium, the sodium starts to accumulate in your blood. Because sodium attracts and holds water, your blood volume increases. Increased blood volume makes your heart work harder to move more blood through your blood vessels, which increases pressure in your arteries. Some people’s bodies are more sensitive to the effects of sodium than are others. If you’re sodium sensitive, you retain sodium more easily, leading to fluid retention and increased blood pressure.

Sodium: How much do you need?

The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend limiting sodium to less than 2,300 mg a day — or 1,500 mg if you’re age 51 or older, or if you are black, or if you have high blood pressure, diabetes or chronic kidney disease.

Keep in mind that these are upper limits, and less is usually best, especially if you’re sensitive to the effects of sodium. If you aren’t sure how much sodium your diet should include, talk to your doctor.

The average American gets about 3,400 mg of sodium a day — more than recommended.

The Good Cheer Food Bank works hard to provide better choices to our clients and it’s  your donations that give us more flexibility in buying healthier foods.

Good Cheer Garden – very healthy

Part Two will deal with serving sizes, processed food and nutrition labels.

You can donate by clicking here and help us provide better choices!

Good Cheer!

Megan Parker and Damien – Megan was one of the youngest to perform at the talent show. Damien and her were united again after having performed in a performance of Oliver earlier this year.

The show was a great success with over $5000 being raised for the food bank.

JaNoah and Damien put on a great talent show with sterling reviews from all around town. JaNoah solicited the prizes for the raffle and Damien coordinated sales and the awarding of prizes, quite a team!

RJ Barker was honored for his volunteer commitment to Good Cheer. He was then very surprised by a job offer to work at Good Cheer for the summer as a paid staff person. RJ is always the epitome of the tireless worker/volunteer at Good Cheer. He has worked in the distribution, office, food bank and thrift stores.

Rep. Norma Smith and JaNoah Spratt preparing for their appearance.

The original Talent Show idea came from a conversation between Norma and JaNoah during a tour of the Food Bank. Norma was not able to be at last year’s event but was here this year to sing Broken Road and lead the audience in a round of Happy Birthday for JaNoah’s 11th birthday. JaNoah was also the recipient of the Island Youth Hero award which he received last month.

Aljean and Dean Muncey: Always ready to pop the corn and make the world smell better. Aljean and Dean gave the evening that movie theater scent that brought everyone to the concessions, Yummy.

Tiger Martial Arts is always entertaining with their disciplined routines. JaNoah”s sensai Wendy Barker is also RJ Barker’s mom. The Barker family is very supportive of Good Cheer.

Volunteers baked and sold a variety of treats from cheese and crackers to popcorn.

Viriginia Linsey and Janet Karamanyan wore their Good Cheer finds with pride. They displayed the purchase price so people could see what the saving are at the Good Cheer Thrift Stores.

A Great Night and We Thank You for Your Support!

Good Cheer!

Your Good Cheer Food Bank and Thrift Stores were presented with the Excellence in Community Resource Development award and $5,000 to continue expanding its mission, and to increase and better its capabilities to serve the hungry people in the Island County community.

The award recognizes strategies that raise awareness of hunger and develop resources from the community to fight it, such as effective fundraising, volunteer development, in-kind contributions, hunger education materials, and outreach activities.

The award presented by Food Lifeline is one of four 2011 Agency Excellence Awards. There are 300 agency members in Western Washington so being selected for this award is very special.

The grant application was started by our own board member, Robin Hertlein.  Robin had already written two other grant applications when she sent Kathy McLaughlin the following message.

“Here’s the volunteer one.   I’m running out of steam, so the last few answers are pretty short.   Feel free to add things that could help the case.”

Kathy added to what Robin had written and submitted and the rest is history. This story is all about our volunteers and the spirit of giving that is so prevalent in this organization and community.

Volunteers are the backbone of Good Cheer. They increased the num­ber of hours of donated services, and in point of fact, nearly rivaled the amount of volunteer hours donated at a regional food bank distributor.

Here is a brief look back at 2010.

The Award for excellence is just a reminder, to those connected to Good Cheer, that it is working and we are creating a hunger-free community!

Good Cheer!

Dug down deep in your purse or pocket and pulled out loose change, the only money you have until payday, and said to yourself “What can I do with $1.25?”  Then you see it: Macaroni and cheese on sale; four boxes for a $1. “Sure, it’s not the best,” you say to yourself, “but the kids like it, and we may be able to stretch it into multiple meals.”

Have you ever not eaten so your children could have more?

Have you ever skipped a meal so you could use that money to help pay your heating bill?

Have you ever gone to bed, unsure of how to feed your family tomorrow, and tossed half the night because of the anxiety?

South Whidbey Good Cheer has seen more than one economic crisis during our 48-year fight against hunger, but this recession just seems to last and last, pushing more people over the edge into needing help. News that the recession ended months ago makes little difference to those who still face the daily stress of struggling to provide for their families. Try telling the 772 families we are currently serving a month that the recession is over.

At a typical food bank, lines stretch outside the building as people wait to receive their weekly or monthly allotment. You are visually made aware of the need. Good Cheer is a little different: our parking lot is often full, and sometimes our waiting room, but because we are open six days a week, seven hours a day, it is rare to see lines outside our doors. The need, however, is just as real… and at times just as overwhelming.

With the support of our caring and giving community we have created a food bank with expanded hours… a food bank which provides clients with choice, with dignity, and with anonymity.

The Good Cheer team builds and supports programs and systems that are fair, responsive, and accountable to the families they serve. They have created programs that promote health while fighting hunger.

Good Cheer’s Food Bank point system is designed to charge more points for processed food and fewer points for healthy foods.

Good Cheer’s on-site garden produced 5,200 pounds of produce for the Food Bank this year, resulting in more than 7,500 bags of a wide variety of 1-point vegetable items.

Good Cheer Gleeful Gleaners harvested more than 1,900 pounds of apples, pears, plums and Asian pears.

In Good Cheer cooking classes, food bank clients learn from locally renowned chefs how to prepare meals using beets, bok choy, carrots, cucumbers, green onions, kale, leeks, mixed greens, parsley, pumpkins, radishes, spinach, tomatoes, and winter squash ––all items that were harvested from our on-site garden.

As a community we can all be proud of these accomplishments that are vali­dated by facts and statistics. It is much more difficult, however, to put into words what we as staff and volunteers experience daily as we do our work.

Children can be so real and to the point. A note was left on my desk by a child whose family uses the food bank.  “Thank you for being here for us. We would be very very down in money with out you. So we want to HELP you and we will work in the garden! THANKS!”

Touch your heart?

Here is a video that was created by Aly Dehay, a 15 year old student in  Advanced Art class, Coupeville HS. She created this video for an assignment and posted it on YouTube.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YP5mYOzOvCs

Good Cheer was founded because of those who would not stand idly by while their neighbors were in need. Throughout the years Good Cheer has been able to enrich and expand our services because of community support.

Thank you for your compassion. May you have a joyous holiday and a new year full of hope and happiness!

Good Cheer!