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Beautiful November to Build a Barn... the goal is to finish siding and button it up before the snow flies! 
November 20th, 2015
  

It's hard to believe we're in the 11th month of 2015.  Even though it finally turned cold Thursday, on Tuesday, we saw 60 degrees and honey bees in the flowers above!  Mild weather has been very helpful as far as working on the exterior of the barn, planting garlic & cover crops, as well as being able to complete the harvest of all our potatoes, carrots, cabbage, beets, parsnips and other root crops this week and next. 

We're thankful that we still have 45 items available to our area co-ops, CSA members and markets, from arugula to winter squash!

If you would like to shop ala carte, we are now offering weekly Build Your Own Box of Farm-Fresh Goodness options, which includes local pastured chicken from Cook's Family Farm and whitefish and Lake Char filets from the straits of Mackinaw while supplies last.  We need 2 days notice before pick-up or delivery.

We also offer Winter Storage Shares.  If you'd like to save money by buying in bulk, we have a wide-range of root crops, potatoes, onions and winter squash available for you!  We need 2 days notice before pick-up or delivery.

Click here for our pick-up and delivery schedule, which includes two weekly farm markets to both Boyne City (9-1:00 @ the library) and Traverse City (10-2:00 at the Commons) farm markets on Saturdays.

**Last chance to order a Cook Family Farm's fresh pastured Thanksgiving turkey!  Pick-up here at our special Tuesday evening Thanksgiving Farm Market, 4:30-6:00. Just reply to this email with desired pounds. Cost is $3.94/lb.  
If you are closer to Gaylord, Boyne, Petoskey or Charlevoix, email them directly at: cookfamilyfarm@hotmail.com  Same price.
Learn How To Create Your Own Gorgeous Wreath!
  1. It's EASY, PEASY.  Even the most un-crafty person excels at this, I'm not kidding. You will be a star. 
  2. Plus, this are way prettier than the mass produced wire bound wreaths. Birch bark? Sumac? Bee-U-tee-full.
  3. Our base is a re-usable grapevine wreath, which you may use year after year. So now you are also an eco-star.
  4. Complimentary tea & cookies!
Where: Our cozy farm-home
When: Thursday, December 3rd, 1:30 OR
Thursday, December 10th, 5:30 
Cost: $30

By RSVP only so I know how much to wild-harvest! Class size limited so our home feels cozy versus crazy.
Simply reply to this email. :-)

Want one of these gorgeous wreaths, but don't want to make it? I take special orders as well! 
Cost depends on what you want. Reply to this email.

Feeling especially thankful for all of our local support. We actually get to 
live our passion to grow stunningly good food... and employ a wonderful group of hard-working individuals from our community, contribute thousands of pounds of nutritious, organic vegetables to area food pantries, give CSA shares to individual families, train future farmers, educate school groups, and keep over 130 acres of farm land in organic certification! 
Redhead with a carrot
Bella's class and piggies
Mrs. Thompson's Class
Picking Carrots
There's no way we could do any of this with out you, our local farm community. We are beyond grateful. God bless you and your family, as you enjoy the sweet goodness of living foods that nourish, mind, body and soul. ~ Andrea 
Sage

 I took this photo of sage in our garden last week.  Besides being hardy, fuzzy and aromatic, it's a star in our annual Thanksgiving feast!  Here's a link to a wonderful stuffing recipe from Epicurious.
This week's garden shares have more than enough for the 2 Tb.s fresh sage it calls for. :-)

red_wine_salad.jpg YOU'RE INVITED!

To our Farm-to-Table Dinner & Barn-Raiser!

Where? At the picturesque Tapawingo in Ellsworth, MI.

When? Saturday, December 5th, 6:00 PM

What? A delicious & leisurely four-course meal featuring our organic vegetables and a double entree w/ our pastured pork & Ken's Fish N Tales Lake Char from the Straits of Mackinaw! All by gifted caterers Ginny Gregg McCallum of A Matter of Taste

Vegetarian or Vegan? No-worries!  We accommodate vegans, vegetarians and people with food allergies.

Complimentary glass of house wine or Short's Brewery beer with all adult meals.

Cost? Only $38.00 per plate.  Half the proceeds go towards helping us finish the interior needs of our new barn.

RSVP pre-purchase tickets by calling A Matter of Taste at 231-459-8015.

CTCT-20151020_155055

I drop mad beets
Ryan working on the barn.  He's the designer, contractor and builder when he can be!  We also have two super carpenters at work on it:
Mark 

And Richard

If it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be where we are so far... 

Front of barn with porch skeleton

It's a good thing our CSA member's gave us this book about farming.  It'll come in handy to help us pay off the 7 year loan on this barn!  It was written in 1932 and most of it apply's to today except for that part about almost every farm having a (one) phone "now a days."

Learn More Here!
Gratefulness
Help Us Share The Harvest!
Follow Us 
HelpHelp Us Share The Harvest!
Week 12's share
(Update: Good Samaritan's Food Pantry as well as two area individual families have been sponsored so far, beyond what Ryan and I are already doing!) Every season, Ryan and I make it a priority to share what we grow, and we've seen the need in northwest Michigan grow each year with us.  Each week during the growing season, we donate a wide variety of our organic vegetables to four area food pantries, including Good Samaritan Family Services in Ellsworth, which serves over 700 families each month! We also give CSA shares to individual local families, all totaling several thousand pounds of produce each year.  

If you'd like to help us expand our reach, you can partner with us by donating any amount to go towards our "Sharing The Harvest Fund".  You may designate whether you want to add more to our food pantry donations or you can sponsor an individual family with a CSA share.  Each new 18-22 week CSA family is given a free From Asparagus to Zucchini - A Guide To Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce Cookbook, invited to our CSA potlucks, tours and events, as well as sent helpful email newsletters with recipes and storage tips, just like all of our new CSA members!  Ready to commit, have questions or know a family who'd appreciate fresh, nutritious, local produce through our Sharing The Harvest program?  Email us.  

Our thanks for reading what's going on here. We are a small family farm that relies 100% on local people like you.  We really can't express our gratitude enough.  THANK YOU.  We especially thank all our Fall & Winter Shoppers, whether it's through pre-orders or by coming to market or by finding our produce at Grain Train and Oryana.  Your choices matter.  Please pass the idea along to any person you may think would be interested in our family's farm, as committed community support is the back bone of our family farm.  

 

Sincerely,
  
Ryan & Andrea
5691 N M-88 (1 mile east of US 31 at Eastport)
Central Lake, MI  49622
(231) 350-6420
(231) 599-2020 
  
We're passionate about living soil, thriving plants, healthy people! 


Providence Farm | 231-350-6420 | [email protected] | http://providenceorganicfarm.com
5691 N M-88
Central Lake, MI 49622