Good Cheer Harvest Party and Music Fest 2010

Sep 082010
 
 September 8, 2010  Posted by Kathy McLaughlin 1 Response »

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!

Good Cheer Garden Shed/Greenhouse Raffle

Jul 022010
 
 July 2, 2010  Posted by Kathy McLaughlin 4 Responses »

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!