Facing Drought Together

by Kit Stoltz, Bill O'Brien, Victoria Loorz, and Ulrich Brugger

Editor's note: Coalition executive director, Deborah Pendrey, has accepted an invitation to sit on a panel as part of a full afternoon of discourse on saving water and staying in community. The event takes place at The Ojai Retreat on Sunday, March 9, 1:30 to 5 p.m. Reservations are required. Let us not be fooled back into complacency with the recent fabulous (but not nearly enough) rain event. A new way of life and course must be set - read on.

According to meteorological records kept by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, California has been in a drought for the last thirty months, and the last two months have been the driest since the 19th century. That was when Mark Twain supposedly remarked that "Everyone talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it."!

Here in Ojai, where we are entirely dependent on local sources for all our water, everyone is talking about the drought. Four of us from the Ojai Valley, all concerned citizens from very different backgrounds, think that we need to talk frankly about the drought, not just for the sake of ourselves, our own properties, gardens, orchards, trees, lands, and wildlife, but also for the sake of our community.

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Welcome Joanie Blaxter
to OVGC Board

The Coalition is pleased to announce its newest addition to the Board of Directors, Joanie Blaxter. Many of you know Joanie from Rainbow Bridge where she has worked since 2010 as a vitamin specialist. Collectively she has over 35 years in the natural foods and products industry in various positions of sales and/or education.

After raising her daughter solo in a small town in Vermont, Joanie moved to Ojai in 2009. She enjoys the year-round growing season and local farmers market, a snow-free driveway and the chickens in her neighbor's yard.

When asked why she joined the Coalition Board, Joanie replied, "I am always looking for how I can best be a positive change agent for my community. The Green Coalition is a strong, well-respected presence in town. The guiding principles of the organization dovetail very nicely with those of the Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) of which I'm the local chapter leader. The primary difference is that the focus of the OVGC is more specifically environmental while those of WAPF are more nutritionally oriented. However the interface is about how to have a sustainable, healthy world."

Joanie's credentials and activism include:

• Ventura chapter leader, Weston A. Price Foundation
• Ventura County Ag Futures Alliance Member, January 2011-October 2012
• Author of the weekly nutrition newsletter Follow Your Gut
• Certified Mediator and trained Group Facilitator
• Permaculture Design Certificate with a focus in International Sustainability

Thank you for your contribution to our community and the world, Joanie. We look forward to advancing a green, sustainable and resilient Ojai Valley with you.

Another Successful
Seed and Plant Exchange
With Our New Co-host
Food for Thought

Over the course of Saturday afternoon, February 22nd about 100 people swapped and perused tables of seeds and starts, learned about beneficial insects, watched a live bee hive in action, and shared gardening and farming tips and tactics.

Thanks to all who came and all who shared. Mark your calendar for next year - always the last Saturday in February - see you on the 28th, 2015.

(1) David White shows off seeds collected and packaged by students. (2) Anahata Pomeroy welcomes all to the event. (3) Ron Whitehurst (right) of Rincon Vitova Insectaries explains beneficial bugs. (4) Sue and Cecil of Thunderbird Farms offer a beautiful array of starts for sale. (5) Ventura County Star covered the event, photo by Richard Quinn: from left, Lorne Marchant, his son Chase, Katie Metzger and Mia McCormick look at bees in a portable hive.