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!

On South Whidbey Island,  the Good Cheer Food Bank is working on a food revolution. This involves back-to-basics healthy, low-cost cooking. Good Cheer has been steadily ramping up its efforts to provide fresh and nutritious food.

This strategy has evolved by focusing on the right purchases for the Food Bank, and the by creation of  an on-site garden.

We have established teaching programs on cooking fresh, healthy, unprocessed food in convenient, affordable ways.

Since relocating the Food Bank to the more spacious facility in Bayview in October 2007, Good Cheer has not only been able to increase the volume of food available to neighbors in need, but has made a concerted effort in improving the quality of food with an emphasis on fresh, local and less processed foods.

The Good Cheer Food Bank is like a grocery store. A grocery store with a points system.

The Points System at Good Cheer provides a one-person household with a base of 70 points to spend per month at the Food Bank,  with an additional 10 points per person if the household is larger. The clients also receives an additional 3 points by providing their own bags.

The Food Bank encourages clients to select the most nutritious food by assigning fresh vegetables, fruits, beans, rice and other raw staples with lower points. Many times this summer and fall our clients could pick up fresh garden vegetables for no points, that really encourages healthful eating.

The Gleeful Gleaners have been a real asset to the food bank. The group looks for worm-free fruit from non-sprayed trees, and gladly accepts donated harvested fruit to go along with what the volunteers pick. They actually scout the neighborhoods and knock on doors in support of their program. Having fresh fruits with low to no points is terrific and another great example of community support.

Clients will rapidly run out of points selecting highly processed foods at 5 or 10 points instead of fresh vegetables and fruit for 1 point, or a ten pound sack of potatoes for 3 points versus a small box of instant mashed potatoes for 3 points. A can of baked beans is 3 points, whereas a five lb. bag of beans is only 1 point. Sometimes, through the help of volunteers, we will have surplus items and that will lower the point pricing.

What we’re trying to do is to show the benefits to healthy food selections and how much further the basics can go in feeding a family, so that few refined foods and sweets (mainly donated items) are selected only on an occasional basis.

We are determined to make a positive difference in the lives of our clients!

Good Cheer!

The Good Cheer Food Bank is unique, it is supported to a large degree through our community thrift stores in Langley and Clinton.

Thrifting and thrifter are terms that are being used to describe those who shop (sometimes exclusively) at thrift or second-hand stores, flea markets, garage sales and charity shops.

You may ask though, why bother thrifting?

Thrift stores are easy on your wallet and actually help lessen the strain on the environment.

There is a lot of truth in the notion that one person’s junk might be another’s treasure. In these frugal times, thrifting makes economic and environmental sense. Purchasing reusable items at a thrift store prolongs a products life and keeps it out our landfills.

Organic is more than buying from our local farmers……………

Organic can be buying local and creating an environment within the community that sustains its charities and non-profits. Local business and community support has helped Good Cheer and the HELP Network on South Whidbey Island to a degree that is unimaginable.

Thrifting is fun!

It is a time when you can use your sharp eye and uncany knack of finding that one-of-a-kind bargain. That great pair of blue jeans or maybe the sunglass frame that you bought for a dollar and you find out, on the internet, that it orginally sold for $100!

It appears as though modern-day thrifting has come of age, thrifting, like the do-it-yourself mentality, is definitely the new chic.

In many cases the goods are in better condition than you might think. I’ve found once-worn sweaters and seen designer bags in our thrift stores. You’ll find things there that you can’t find anywhere else. Great finds are just sitting out there waiting for you, come on in and take a look around.

Have you ever been down to Double Bluff Beach?

Maybe this wet suit from the Langley Thrift Store might make it a more unique experience.

Supporting our thrift stores can be fun and it is a part of a program that is creating a hunger free community.

Good Cheer and Happy New Year!

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!

The peace and feeling of comfort that comes from having a good family and circle of friends is often taken for granted, however,  it is where most happiness begins.

There is comfort in family and friends and a love that we share on a daily basis. The Holiday Season is a time of peace and happiness and sharing gifts has become a way of expressing our love with family and friends. We all know the importance of giving and the feeling that comes from the experience. 

There is a wonderful program that we have at Good Cheer, it’s about a child’s chance to give. The program is for children of parents or caretakers who are clients of the food bank. Children between the ages of 4-15 will be presented with a $10 gift certificate for each parent or caretaker in their home.

There is a signup sheet at the Good Cheer Food Bank in Bayview.

The kids can go shopping at the Langley or Clinton Thrift Stores and The Rack in Clinton.

Langley Thrift Store Thursday, December 9th 5:30 p.m.until 7:30 p.m.

Clinton Thrift Store Two and The Rack Friday, December 10th 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.

Parents can drop their children off at the store where the kids will be met by volunteers who will help them  find the just right present! Parents need to stay away for awhile.

Volunteers will even help to wrap the gifts.

This is a program that doesn’t get much public attention since it is something that is done in-house for our clients. I wanted to remind you of the many ways that, we together, are bringing light into the lives of others!

I guess you could call this “Spreading Good Cheer.”

The Good Cheer Food Bank is only as good as the community that it is part of.  It is from this community that we find volunteers, charitable givers and businesses that have put their hearts into making Good Cheer the success that it is.

Below are photos of some of the organizations and people that make this community work. You can read the post that was written by just clicking on your photo of choice. I’m sure that we have missed someone but you all know that you are in our hearts and minds.

Fixing Homes…………………                                                        Thanksgiving on Wheels………………

Food Drives on South Whidbey Island…………………………………

Nourishing our young people………………….                           Supporting our Volunteers………………….

Island wide food drive…………………..                                         Affordable Housing…………………….

Grocery store partner……………………                                         Helping our children grow……………..

Harvest celebrations……………………                                         Fresh Fruit from our neighbors…………………..

Matching community donations……………                               Support through arts and crafts……………………..

Volunteers asking for help……………….                                      Businesses supporting raffles………………….

Providing community service…………………                               Supporting the best for women…………….

Gathering places and youth programs……………………          Sharing homes…………….

Local talent………………                                                                    Helping with medical expenses…………………..

Valued business partners…………………                                      Promoting student success……………..

Click on the photo above and you can read a wonderful poem about never quitting.  Good Cheer, like all of you who help,   is here to enable people and families. It is up the the individual to succeed in life.

“Don’t Quit.”

Together we all bring good cheer!

The theme of this year’s Harvest Party & Music Fest is “Cultivating Community”. If you click on the above poster you can view a slide show of last years event. This is the second annual Harvest Party and Music Fest and it will take place this weekend on Saturday September 11th at the Bayview site.

Good Cheer believes in stressing the importance of understanding and strengthening our connection with food. We encourage healthy food choices and earth friendly cultivating techniques and the word is getting out! Organic farming is growing in response to the demand and that is a good thing for the community and the world.

Hunger in America touches more people than you can possibly imagine; hunger can be so close to home. It’s not easy to admit that you are in need. I did a post awhile back that had a short video on Hunger in America. Perhaps this is a good time to bring it forward once again. I can imagine that many of our clients at the food bank would like to convey their appreciation for helping them in their time of need.

Without your support we would find it difficult to be your steward in the fight against hunger in the community.

Thank you for being there. Just click on the thank you below to view the video.

Before I talk about the Harvest Festival it is important to give thanks to the community support that we recently received through Whidbey Island Bank’s Community Challenge in August.  The total funds received, when added to the $5,000 matching grant from Whidbey Island Bank, plus an additional $5,000 match from an anonymous donor, will allow us to keep the Food Bank shelves stocked for the next three months!

Food is an ongoing need, though, so we are mindful that our upcoming holiday appeal is what will keep us going through the lean winter months of January through March. Let’s hope that the economy improves to the point that our record-number of clients begins to decline.

The Harvest Party and Music Fest is a time to celebrate the harvest; a time for the people in the community to gather and celebrate life! You’ll find garden workshops, local music, great food, a cook-off competition, raffles for the garden shed from Bob Bowling Rustics and the garden quilt created by the Trinity Lutheran Church Quilters. You can click on the links to find out more if you haven’t had a chance to read the past posts.

The Harvest Party and Music Fest is having a scarecrow contest and you’ll all have a chance to vote for the winner. Bunny was voted the top scarecrow in the staff scarecrow contest!

These types of events are special for the kids. Children can take part in Garden Bingo and win gift certificates, try their skill at a penny toss for glassware and crystal, and enjoy a crafts and reading tent with a garden story-time at 1 p.m. sponsored by the Sno-Isle Libraries.

Free Community Gardening Workshops:

9:00 a.m to 10:30 a.m.:  Top Tips for Fall Planting (by Cary Peterson)

1:00 to 2:00 p.m.:  Composting How-To Class

2:00 to 3 p.m.:  How to Build & Maintain a Worm Bin (by JaNoah Spratt)

Local musicians (organized by Julie Pigott and emceed by South Whidbey’s “conductor of fun” Jim Freeman) will play sets between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

Drawings will be held at 3 p.m. for the greenhouse/garden shed built and donated by Bob Bowling, and the garden quilt donated by the Trinity Lutheran Quilters. (Raffle tickets are available at all Good Cheer Thrift Stores and the Bayview site, with proceeds to benefit the garden).

Cooking teams from three local nonprofits will choose ingredients from the garden and the food bank (plus a surprise ingredient), then in a competition resembling “Iron Chef” and “Chopped!” create two out of three choices of an appetizer, an entree, and a dessert to be judged by the public for a dollar a vote. Cooking starts at 11 a.m. with judging beginning at noon.

This year’s festival artwork, created by local artist Kathy Marshall, will be auctioned off at noon.

You can view a complete schedule of events and musicians by clicking here.

Thank you to our Festival Sponsors!

Major Sponsors: Island Athletic Club • Nichols Bros. Boat Builders • Porter-Whidbey Insurance • The Star Store • Whidbey Marketplace and News •

Additional Sponsors: Music for the Eyes

Have a Happy Harvest Festival!

Good Cheer!

Wondering what the word “Choochokam” means? Choochokam is a Hopi word which roughly translates as “a Gathering of Stars.” Our “stars,” a diverse group of several hundred local artists, inspired by the early organizers to create what we now know as The Choochokam Festival of the Arts.

The Festival, which began as a dream, has been a reality for the past 35 years! This years event was a wonderful mix of art and music; the weather was just perfect.  The Choochokam Arts Festival has become a stage for our community artists and one can see that it is a true reflection of the richness and depth of talent found on the island.

On a warm sunny day what better than a root beer float!

Kay Stanley (pictured on the left) is a member of the board for the Good Cheer Food Bank. She headed the committee that put together this effort to raise money for our organization.

Kay organized 20 volunteers with shifts that included 3 volunteers per shift.

Good Cheer was spread through-out the weekend Food Bank fundraiser.

Total income from the event was $1090.55.

Another step in creating a hunger-free community.

Good Cheer!

Good Cheer is raffling off a custom built garden shed/greenhouse. The garden shed is on display in front of the Good Cheer Food Bank in Bayview. The proceeds from the raffle will be used to support the Good Cheer Garden. Last year the garden produced more than 5,800 pounds of produce for the Food Bank; a lot of good eats!

The shed was built and donated by Bob Bowling Rustics right here on Whidbey Island. Hanson’s Building Supply stepped in and helped to move the structure to Good Cheer just last week.

Bob Bowling Rustics creates a wide variety of unique structures that will enhance your yard and garden. Made from reclaimed and recycled materials, these functional art pieces are designed to invoke whimsy and a sense of playfulness to your outdoor living spaces.

Bob builds one of a kind playhouses, chicken coops, greenhouses, tool sheds, outhouses and garden chapels that are made to order. He will even incorporate your own treasured pieces into the design!

Tickets for the  for the 5 by 8 foot structure, valued at $6,500, are $5 apiece or five for $20 and are being sold at all Good Cheer Thrift Stores, the Food Bank office, and at Bob Bowling’s booth at the Bayview Farmer’s market. Tickets should be available at all the sites mentioned by the 4th of July weekend.  The drawing will be held at Good Cheer’s Harvest Party & Music Fest on Saturday, September 11 at 3 p.m. Winners need not be present to win.

If you don’t have a place for the garden shed; it would fit in nicely at the Good Cheer Garden:-) We can mark the piece with a copper nameplate for all to see!

The partnership of small businesses and non-profits or charities is not a new to Good Cheer; we have been blessed with strong business support from our community.

There are a number of reasons why businesses support  charities and non-profit endeavors in our community.

There is the opportunity to give back.  It allows the business to share and pass on some of its good fortune and success.

Being part of a community is vital for small business. In the days of the mega stores and the internet, it can be difficult to sustain a small business. One way to ensure that a business thrives in the community is to help build a thriving community.

When a business donates money, time, products or services; that enterprise gets instant recognition from the community.  People are more apt to support businesses they feel are part of their world. There is also the opportunity to support causes that the business believes in.

The opportunity to be involved in the local community is a great business strategy for many reasons. As you get to know others and work with others for a cause that you believe in, you will have fun and, you’ll become a part of the group. You will be involved and that can help you with marketing your business in many ways. You will know the needs of the community and be able to find ways to meet them.

All in all, supporting a charity or non-profit group can help a business grow, but most of all, it can be a great way to give back to your community and help support causes that need your help.

Our thanks goes out to Bob Bowling and the other businesses in our community that continue to support The Good Cheer Food Bank.

Good Cheer!

I wanted to show you some photos of the Good Cheer Garden. This is the time of year when we are able to bring fresh and healthy vegetables into the food bank.

Cary Peterson, Good Cheer Garden Coordinator, picking fresh broccoli in the garden.

Americorp volunteer Molly Zeigler; this is fresh!

Straight from our garden to You:)

Summer Squash

Chard and Bright Lights Chard

Kale

Lettuce

Leeks, Lettuce and Summer Squash

Broccoli and Chard

Peas

Beets

Two varieties of Kale

Peas on the Vine

Chard

Strawberries

What else is growing in the garden?

Basil, Beans, Blueberries, Bok Choi, Carrots, Cauliflower, Chives, Collards, Cilantro, Cucumbers, Herbs, Onions, Parsley, Parsnips, Pears, Plums, Pumpkins, Radishes, Respberries, Spinach, Tomatoes, Tulips and Zucchini!

Good Cheer or perhaps I should say Good Eats!