Reconnect & Strengthen Your Roots!

While the first frosts signal the end of the growing season, the colder temperatures make root vegetables sweeter. This is because the plants, sensing the cold, send more starch to their root systems in preparation for the winter ahead. Much like the plants we cultivate, at Growing Hope we see the winter as the time to strengthen our root system, build up our resources, and reconnect with others. This is especially relevant in the holiday season, when many of us spend much-needed time reconnecting with family and friends.
Thanks to our new Dinner Party Kits, you can strengthen your roots and get resources for ours at the same time! (Click on the picture for a closer look.) We provide for free all the supplies you need to create a potluck or dinner party for your family and friends--you supply the food, we supply creative invitations, placecards, and napkin rings. In the invitation, you ask your guests to please consider donating to Growing Hope the amount that they would have spent going out to dinner. It benefits everyone involved, encouraging you to spend quality time with the important people in your life while raising money together for a good cause. Stop by our offices to pick up your kit today!

Word of 2007

Hi all! As we wrap up the year, we want to make sure we give a great big thank-you and a shout-out on our blog to everyone who's helped us and worked with us this year. You are too numerous and important to be thanked in such as short space, but you know who you are!

Next up, I wanted to note that the word of 2007 as defined by the Oxford American Dictionary is (drumroll, please) ... "Locavore". Us folks at GH are always big on eating locally, but it's nice to be recognized! Last year's word was "carbon-neutral" so perhaps it's the start of a wonderful trend?

For more information on how to practice "locavory" (continuing the word-coining theme), visit any of these websites, or the links on the right side of our blog's page.

The Eat Local Challenge has posts from regional locavores and links to many related resources;
Edible WOW (Wayne, Oakland, Washtenaw) is a new local magazine all about eating locally;
The Sustainable Table's front page has a finder where you type in your zipcode and it helps you find local food producers;
Eat Local Food is a Michigan-based marketing company for local food producers with great links to Michigan food resources.

I hope this is a good start to get you exploring and dreaming though the ground is frosty outside. As always, please comment with any of your own links that you find helpful and/or interesting!