|
Store Closed Thursday, November 14, for Renovation Wrap-Up
The store will be closed all day next Thursday, November 14, for some final renovation tasks by contractors and a resetting of the store's layout, and your assistance is needed. Our staff will be putting in long hours, and  we'll also need a few volunteers on three evenings.
On Monday, November 11, at about 7:00 p.m., we'll need two or three strong people to help move some coolers and set up shelving. This may take about two hours. Then on Wednesday, November 13, again at about 7:00 p.m., we'll need six volunteers to help empty shelves into totes and stack them in the café to get us ready for Thursday. This might take three to four hours. Finally, on Thursday the 14th at about 5:30 to 6:00 p.m., we could use six volunteers to show up as a "safety net" to help with what we may have not completed during the day. It's possible we could go well into the evening to make sure we open with a smile on Friday morning.
If you can help at any of these times, please contact Shirley Todd, our volunteer coordinator, at volunteer@oldcreamery.coop.
Thank you for helping our Co-op be the best it can be!
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
|
 Creamery-Baked Pies for Thanksgiving! And Streusel, Too!
They're a Hilltown tradition: Creamery-baked pies for the Thanksgiving holiday. You can order yours now and check "pies" off your holiday to-do list. Order today! The ordering deadline is the end of the business day (7:30 p.m.) on Monday, November 25. Please place your order with the cashier.
The pies, made with an all-butter crust, come in two sizes: small (6-inch) for $12.99 and medium (8-inch) for $14.99. Your Apple, Apple Cranberry, Blueberry, Cherry, Chocolate Walnut, Pecan, or Pumpkin pies will be ready after 2 p.m. on Wednesday, November 27 (unless you specify otherwise). And don't forget to order some Streusel, made with butter and organic shortening!
You can also order your turkey at the Creamery Co-op (see below). And don't forget to round out your Thanksgiving shopping at the Creamery with its great selection of wines, beers, cheeses, fresh produce, seafood, candles, fine chocolates, and other delights. Please remember, the Old Creamery will be closed Thanksgiving Day.
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
It's Turkey Time at the Creamery Co-op!
You still have time to pre-order your Diemand Farm turkey! Orders must be in by Sunday, November 17. The cost is $3.79 per pound. Your turkey will then be available for pickup anytime on Wednesday, November 27.
These delicious Diemand Farm free-range, fresh turkeys are available from 12 to 27+ pounds. They're raised in Wendell, Massachusetts, as they have been for the past 25 years, and they're free of hormones and antibiotics. Diemand Farm has been a local family farm since 1936. Signup sheets are at the register. Just ask the cashier.
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
Hilltown Artisans Guild Holiday Show and Sale Just a Week Away! Hundreds of handsome, homemade items appropriate for gift-giving, all created by the area's finest artists and craftspeople, will be offered at the annual Hilltown Artisans Guild Holiday Show and Sale on Saturday and Sunday, November 16 and 17. It all takes place at the Worthington Town Hall on Route 112 in Worthington! Refreshments will be served to bolster your holiday-shopping stamina. For more information call 413-238-4418; on the days of the show, call 413-238-0173. |
|
___________________________________________________________
|
Cheese of the Week
This week the Creamery Co-op has a wonderful cheese to sample on Saturday: Danby, made at  Consider Bardwell Farm in West Pawlet, Vermont. Consider Stebbins Bardwell was a farmer who started Vermont's first cheesemaking cooperative in 1864. With its herd of Oberhasli goats grazing on 300 acres of pesticide- and fertilizer-free rolling hills, Consider Bardwell Farm is still making cheese. Danby is an extra-aged raw goat's milk cheese modeled after Italian hard cheeses like Romano and Piave. It holds its own beautifully when cooked or grated, and it's equally suited to your cheeseboard.We think you'll enjoy Danby; it's a dandy! Stop in this Saturday for a taste, and remember, we'll take 10% off the regular price all day. Thanks and hope to see you soon! |
|
___________________________________________________________
|
Ever Wonder What the Co-op Board Does? You're Invited to Find Out!
Here are some quick insights for you as a member-owner and an invitation to attend a Co-op board of directors meeting.
1. Member-owners are welcome to attend board meetings, and a time is set aside at the beginning of each regular meeting for questions and suggestions from member-owners. You are invited.
2. Or feel free to email or write to the board: board@oldcreamery.coop or PO Box 11, Cummington, MA 01026. Letters and emails to the board are indeed read, considered, discussed, and responded to.
3. The board meets regularly once a month at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of the month, upstairs at the Creamery.
4. The Co-op's by-laws provide for nine members with three-year staggered terms; currently we are six members and we need more. The board can fill vacancies by appointment between annual meetings. Any interest in joining us?
5. What do we do? The board sets general policies for the Old Creamery Co-op and hires the General Manager, but does not make any decisions about store operations or staffing; the General Manager does that. A Finance Committee, a Member Outreach Committee, and a Volunteer Coordinator report regularly to the board. Other working groups are created as necessary.
6. For the winter 2013-2014, the board's priorities are hiring a new General Manager, improving communications with the member-owners, and ensuring that we are on target for our loan obligations to Florence Savings Bank. (Whoopee, the renovation project is largely finished!) Time to come on board!
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
Don't Forget: Church Auction Is This Saturday! The West Cummington Congregational Church will hold its twelfth annual auction and dinner on Saturday, November 9, at the Parish House at 27 West Main Street, West Cummington. Proceeds of the auction support all the programs and activities of this country church, which is renowned for its music, warmth, and welcoming spirit. Past auctions have provided great deals as well as lots of fun and laughter.
Registration for the auction will begin at 4:30 p.m., and dinner will be served at 5:40. The auction will begin at 7 p.m. Preregister for bidding by calling Darlene at 413-634-8098. |
|
___________________________________________________________
|
ON SALE! NOW!
The Old Creamery Co-op has many new items on sale! See the list by clicking HERE. We add sale items every week and leave those products on sale for two or more weeks depending on our ability to purchase at discounts that we can pass on to you.
Look for the brightly colored shelf tags that indicate when the sale price expires. Enjoy the savings!
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
|
The best LOCAL fruits and vegetables are at the Co-op. Fresh in the store from:
Kitchen Garden Farm
Butternut Squash
Kohlrabi
Beets: Golden and Chioggia
Broccoli
Spicy Mixed Greens
Napa Cabbage
Baby Bok Choy
Tender Sweet Cabbage
Romaine Lettuce
Sweet Peppers
Tuscan Kale
Bright Lights Chard
Shallots
Sweet Potatoes
Fydenkevez Farm
Delicata Squash
Paddy Flat Farm
Sweet Dumpling Squash
Watermelon
Husk Cherries
Scott Farm (Ashfield, Mass.)
Apples:
Spencer
Macoun
Jonagold
Matsu
Buttercup Squash
Butternut Squash
Blue Hubbard Squash
Scott Farm (Dummerston, Vermont) Apples
Roxbury Russet Baldwin
Northern Spy
Bromely's Seedling
Caville Blanc
Knobbed Russet
Belle de Boskoop
Lady Apple
Esopus Spaitzenburg
Cox's Orange Pippen
Holiday Brook Farm
Sunshine Squash
Bunch Beets
Potatoes: Purple Sun and Bintje
See all of our local farms HERE.
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
Stay in Touch! We Love to Hear from You! For questions about Co-op membership, product requests, or suggestions or other feedback, please send a note to info@oldcreamery.coop. We'll make sure your note is sent to the appropriate person and that you get a prompt response. If you'd like to contact the Co-op's board of directors, simply send your email to board@oldcreamery.coop. Emails sent to this address are received only by the board. To reach Karen Doherty, the Co-op's general manager, send an email to gm@oldcreamery.coop. Emails sent to this address are received only by Karen. If you're thinking of becoming a valued volunteer of the Co-op, you can reach Shirley Todd, volunteer coordinator, at volunteer@oldcreamery.coop. There are many opportunities for volunteers. Emails sent to this address go directly to Shirley. |
|
___________________________________________________________
|
|
Help us spread the word! Encourage your friends to sign on to receive the Creamery's weekly email newsletter. Better yet, encourage them to become member-owners of the Co-op. You can forward this email to your friends and relatives (for best results, use the "Forward email" link in the white space at the bottom of this page). Rest assured, we won't clog their inboxes and we will respect their privacy. We will not disclose your or their email addresses to anyone else. You can unsubscribe at any time. Thank you for your interest, commitment, and support.
|
|
___________________________________________________________
|
|
Your continued patronage supports the ongoing success of our community-owned, values-based cooperative. Thank you for supporting the Old Creamery Co-op as a member-owner, as a shopper, as a friend. We value every contribution to the success of the Old Creamery Co-op.
|
|
