April 4, 2012
Issue No. 49
april header  
The Abundance Foundation's Briar Chapel 5k, Fungi & Photovoltaic workshops, & help Send-A-Kid-to-Camp!
O' Abundant Ones, 

Yesterday, Farmer Doug and his crew at Piedmont Biofarm got to chomp into the first bright red strawberries of this season. Strawberries in early April!?

With all the warm weather and long rains we've had in the past couple weeks, most vegetables around here have been able to keep extra productive hours. And you know what that means... Farmers' Markets are opening up this week and the next everywhere from Chatham County to the triangle, and beyond! Know your farmers this season, and you'll know your food.

Read on for more exciting spring events... 
Our Briar Chapel 5k is at 9am on April 21st! We need volunteers! Email us if you're interested in helping out at the race! 

We have a "Fungi 101" Workshop and an "Introduction to off-grid & grid-tied Photovoltaics" Workshop coming up fast! Register to reserve your spot before they fill up!   

As always, if you would like to volunteer with us, or have any great ideas we could help with, please contact us! We always appreciate your feedback and support.

Check out our list of upcoming events and activities!
Training for our  

 

On April 21stBriar Chapel will be hosting a 5k race and kids' run to benefit The Abundance Foundation.
Advance race registration is $20 (First 200 registrants receive a cool local recycled TS Designs t-shirt, sponsor goodie bag + a Fullsteam beer ticket to redeem at the afternoon's event). The first race will start at 9am, with race day registration ($25) beginning at 8am. 
Music by Justin Johnson!
 Justin Johnson
Special Thanks to our Sponsors who support local food, renewable energy & community!
briar chapel
lynn
kimley
Bradshaw & Robinson, LLP
LovingHeartCollection.com
Chatham Audio
Sanford Construction 
Refreshments: Whole Foods of Chapel Hill
 Race Prizes: TWIG Great Outdoor Provisions
Support from Fleet Feet of Carrboro
Chatham County Parks & Rec
*Pre-race stretching by Galloway Ridge
*Post-race massages by Carey Reynolds & Scotty Young.

*Dogs and strollers are welcome!

 

  

*Want to learn about sponsoring the race?
 Please review the attached PDF for details on sponsorship possibilities & contact us.
******************************************
Briar Chapel Earth Day  
Briar Chapel Community Park; April 21, 3-5pm
  • exhibitions from local businesses & organizations
  • Demos from local artists & holistic health practitioners
  • Mountain bike freestyle tricks by TORC
  • Local food and drink artisans
  • Bubbles, hooping, and face painting 
  • Live bands all afternoon
  • Chatham County's first ever food truck rodeo!!
The event is free, and the more you support the food & beer trucks, the more you support us! 
Bring your hungry friends and family!

 

From 6-8pm, some short films from Briar Chapel's sustainability PSA contest will be shown and then there will be a screening of Wall-E on the lawn! 
Guaranteed fun for all ages!

 

 

We're in the running! 

  

Great news! The Abundance Foundation is one of 30 causes that has been selected for the voting phase (May 1-June 30) of the Cultivate The Give contest to win up to a $50,000 grant to fund our Local Food & Renewable Energy Summer Camp! 

  

The money would help provide full scholarships to youth from at-risk, low-income households, as well as compensation for camp counselors and workshop instructors. The grantor is a philanthropic vineyard in California called Cultivate Wines who give away 10% of their profits each quarter. 

 

*Voting beings May 1 and ends June 30! 

 

You may vote EACH DAY.

TO VOTE: Create a login or sign in with Facebook and you can then vote once per day.

 

Feel passionately about our cause? Be our champion by clicking the buttons to share it with friends via Facebook, Twitter, or email.

 

The cause with the most votes wins $50,000.

The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th runners up receive $10,000.

 

Click here to vote!  

 

 

Chatham County Chef Challenge!
First Day: April 19th!
Visit your local Chatham County school cafeteria & dine on: 
 

Meatloaf with White Bean and Spinach Cheese Sauce and Salsa

~

LOCAL Sweet Potatoes with roasted garlic, chili and lime 

~

Margarita Pasta Salad

~

Peach Parfait with Granola

 

Created by Chef Colin Bedford of Fearrington and his team from Siler City, Virginia, Cross, Silk Hope, Jordan Matthews/SAGE schools.   

special thanks to all the partners!

chef






More info, click here!
Our goal is to bring sustainability to central North Carolina quickly, innovatively and while enjoying the journey.

fiddleheads and box turtles, 

Tami, Camille, and Jenny,
The Abundance Foundation 
220 Lorax Lane #5 Pittsboro, NC 27312
919-533-5181  
Building our local foodshed, modeling renewable energy and inspiring community. 
 
abundance logo
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
View our videos on YouTube 
workshops_logo

  

Saturday, Apr 14 ~ 

Fungi 101 - Bob Armantrout - in cooperation with Company Shops Market and held in Burlington! 

company shops

Sunday, April 15 - Do-it-yourself Cheese Making with Laurel Shulman SOLD OUT

 

Sunday, April 22 -  Advanced Cheese Making with Laurel Shulman

 

Saturday, Apr 21 ~ Easy Breads - Andrea Williams SOLD OUT  

 

Saturday & Sunday April 28 & 29 ~ Building small scale off-grid photovoltaic systems 

with Rebekah Hren 

 rebekah

Saturday, May 5 ~  Worm Bin Composting with Terri Gardner 

 

Sunday, May 6 ~ Soap Making Demonstration with Alan Russo *Save the date and stay tuned for more details

 

Saturday, May 12 ~  Permaculture Principles with Terri Gardner 

 

Saturday, May 19 ~ Oh Baby! Baby Food Making Workshop Andrea Williams

 

Saturday, May 26 ~ Sustainability Tour Guide Workshop with Lyle Estill *Includes a delicious sandwich from Angelina's Kitchen!

 

Saturday, June 9 ~ Seed Saving Magic with Doug Jones of Piedmont Biofarm
Save the date and stay tuned for details

 

Saturday, June 16 ~  Intensive Organic Gardening  - Bob Armantrout in Moncure

 

A big *Thank You* to our workshop sponsor, Whole Foods of Chapel Hill for donating the ingredients for our Cheesemaking and Bread Baking Workshops and another big *Thank You* to Larry's Beans for their ongoing support! 

 

Register for workshops here

Renewable Energy & Local Food Summer Camp  
Ages 10-15;  July 9th-13th(M-F)

   

green building

biodiesel

campsustainable agriculture 

local economy & finance 

seed saving

making snacks from local ingredients

medicinal herbs

composting

and more!

 

 Each day of camp includes at least 3-5 hands-on workshops from sustainability experts and inspired educators.

 

REGISTER HERE

Our Send-A-Kid-to-Camp Campaign
 

We've got some exciting news: We're teaming up with Groupon Grassroots, the philanthropic arm of Groupon, to fund a project that impacts our community!

*

We're aiming to create a scholarship fund to send at-risk youth from low income households to our week-long Youth Sustainability Summer Camp, July 9-13. Each day of camp includes at least 3-5 hands-on workshops from sustainability experts and inspired educators.

*

 Hands-on workshops include: green building, making biodiesel, sustainable agriculture, local economy & finance, seed saving, making snacks from whole foods, solar double-cropping, medicinal herbs, cooking with local foods, soil 

science, composting, and more!

 *

Since you are already essential to our success, we want you to be the first to know about our campaign.

  

It's important that we build momentum for our campaign-here's how you can help:

1. Subscribe to Groupon (http://www.groupon.com/subscriptions/new) in Charlotte before the campaign launch.
2. Visit the Groupon site on April 16-22, when the campaign launches.
3. Be the first to give by supporting Send-a-Kid-to-Camp and spread the word to friends and family, encouraging them to do the same.

*

We'll keep you in the loop and send another update once the campaign launches. Thank you for your support! 

    
Trail Build Day - May 5th!
*WE NEED VOLUNTEERS
 Trail Maintenance & Margaritas!
 
With generous community and volunteer support, The Abundance Foundation is going to build a 1-mile long Nature Interpretive Trail along the perimeter of the Eco-Industrial Park in Pittsboro to educate kids, families and ALL people on native trees, life-cycles and ecosystems specific to our Chatham County habitat. 
trail
The tour will be hands-on, all-ages, cell-phone free, and provide a wealth of environmental education specific to our region. The Nature Interpretive Trail will feature Black Walnut, Honey Locust, Elderberry, wetlands, reparian landscapes, herbs, wild-edibles, and highlight the important roles of specific plants, their medicinal properties, as well as species identification.

* We call on the help of any and all folks who would like to volunteer to help build this trail! The first workday is Saturday, May 5th, from 10am-4pm and margaritas (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) will be served afterward. Come join us outside on the trail!
 
Enjoy running? 
How about a pint of beer?
 Then join us for...
���PUB RUNS!!!
 EVERY MONDAY @ 6pm
89 Hillsboro St, downtown Pittsboro. 
All people + all experience levels welcome!
 Come for a nice 3 or 5 mile run and join us for food and beer at The City Tap afterward!
*Say you're with Pub Runs when ordering food + beverages
 A Portion of the profits from food
and beer sold go to benefit 
The Abundance Foundation. 

city tap

 

sixth sun benefit concert