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Bolton Local - News

 

 Bolton Local: A grassroots group of people from Bolton, Massachusetts, whose mission is to build a strong, self-reliant community culture made up of people committed to living sustainably on the planet, in a way that inspires, builds friendships, and offers a hopeful vision for the future.
 
 Please join us!  
Click to join BoltonLocal on Yahoo!    

President’s Message 2012

Many of us are already in 2012 garden-planning mode, but we left 2011 behind only four short weeks ago! As Bolton Local enters its fourth year, this is a good time to stop and reflect on where we’ve been and start thinking about what lies ahead, beyond our gardens.

Last year Bolton Local brought to the community a number of different programs designed to educate and inform about large issues that could impact our lives, and to inspire discussion about pathways to action. Our monthly Bolton Local nights at the library offered not only food for thought, but also refreshments and an opportunity to meet and chat with other like-minded people. We’d like to thank the library for partnering with us to make these monthly programs possible.

Our programs at the library included:

  • A presentation on peak oil by Harvard Local’s Bill Blackwell.
  • The film “Power of Community,” about how people in Cuba worked together to overcome the hardships brought on by the Soviet Union cutting the country off from oil imports in the 1990s.
  • The PBS documentary “Growing Greener Schools”—how schools across the country are working to promote and educate about sustainability.
  • The movie “In Transition,” about communities all over the world that have turned their focus to living more sustainably, in the face of an impending peak in worldwide oil production.
  • A presentation by Transition Town trainer Tina Clarke.
  • The documentary “No Impact Man,” about writer and environmentalist Colin Beavan, who vows to make as little environmental impact as possible for one year.
  • A presentation led by Bolton Local gardeners, “Composing, Plain and Simple.”
  • A talk about the potentially harmful chemicals in our environment—and in our own homes.
  • A screening of the movie “Tapped,” which examines the role of the bottled water industry and its effects on our health, climate change, pollution, and our reliance on oil.
  • A talk by Dave Nolton of Nashoba Analytical on what’s in our water—at home, in public, and in bottles at the store. We were able to subsequently arrange a group discount on home water testing.
  • A presentation on emergency preparedness in Bolton and in our own homes.

Our Community Garden continues to be a great success, with gardeners learning and helping each other along the way. We started off 2011 just as we started 2012 this month—with a “garden chat” and plans for a group seed order with Fedco Seeds. As the Community Garden and gardens around town came to fruition last year, we arranged for excess produce to be donated to the Hudson Food Pantry and to the monthly WHEAT Community Services food drop-off in Bolton.

When we organized the “Coop Scoop” chicken chat and a tour of Bolton chicken coops last summer, we discovered there is a large community of chicken-lovers out there! Some were just getting started and looking for ideas; others were “old hands” at it, there to offer advice and support.

Besides our monthly programs, we also helped promote the yearly Town Cleanup championed by Mary Boyd, and organized the second annual Townwide Yard Sale, which by all accounts was a huge success—and a lot of fun!

Speaking of fun, we also enjoyed a summer get-together at my house, where we visited with each other, enjoyed delicious potluck dishes, and also did a little work—brainstorming about things we could be doing better. We capped off the year with a delightful holiday party at the home of Bolton Local Vice President Laura Kischitz. No work this time—just visiting, sampling more great food, and getting to know one another a little better.

So what’s in store for 2012?

We’ve already been busy with programming. In mid-January we sponsored the internationally-acclaimed Awakening the Dreamer Symposium, which was attended by close to 30 people—some from as far away as Lexington, Arlington, and Needham. Our first movie screening of the year was “Hooked on Growth”—a real conversation-starter! Up ahead we have a bread-making workshop on Feb. 11, and the movie “Food Matters,” on March 15, to be followed by a discussion led by Bolton nutritionist Beth Colon.

Beyond that, we plan to continue with our successes:

  • The Townwide Yard Sale
  • The Community Garden, and the donation of excess produce to those in need
  • More “Coop Scoop” chats
  • Enhanced monthly programming that will not only educate about global/regional issues, but will also focus more on pathways to action

We also plan to embark on new and exciting ventures designed to support local businesses and to help people understand what this Bolton community of ours is all about. We plan on:

  • A “Buy Local” campaign, complete with a directory of local businesses
  • A cable TV talk show, looking at and talking about Bolton’s past, present, and future—and the challenges and opportunities before us.

Our Yahoo discussion group is growing, and we continue to see new faces at our events. We hope more people will join us in pursuing our mission of building “a strong, self-reliant community culture made up of people committed to living sustainably on the planet in a way that inspires, builds friendships, and offers a hopeful vision for the future.”

Lynda King, president, Bolton Local

For information on upcoming events and programs, stay tuned to this website!


 
GROUP SEED ORDER TO SUPPORT THE BOLTON COMMUNITY GARDEN 
 

      


For a third year, the Bolton Community Garden is sponsoring a group seed purchase from Fedco Seeds.  Order on-line or by filling out an order form from the catalog. If you need a catalog, they are available on-line or by calling Lynn at 978-779-6225 or BoltonLocal@yahoo.com.

If you choose to place you order on-line, go to
http://www.fedcoseeds.com/groups.htm  The group order number is '99016' for the 'Bolton Community Garden'. You will still need to send a check to Lynn if you place your order on-line.

Share the savings with the Community Garden and subtract 10% from your total! Make you check payable to Bolton Local and send the seed order form and/or check to: Bolton Community Garden, c/o Lynn D., 313 Still River Rd., Bolton, MA 01740

Orders and checks must be received by February 11, 2012. Please include your email address and phone number on the order form and/or your check so that we can contact you to arrange pick-up when the seeds arrive.

 

Contact Teresa at 978-733-1045 or BoltonLocal@yahoo.com with questions.

Get more info about Fedco Seeds at http://www.fedcoseeds.com/seeds.htm

 

Also, check out NOFA Mass for Bulk Orders of garden supplies at great prices!  http://www.nofamass.org/programs/bulkorder/index.php

 

Saturday, Feb. 11: Whole Grain Bread Baking 101
Learn about grains and grinding your own, and make a loaf of bread to take home and bake in your own oven. Elizabeth Chen, local bread baker, will discuss wheat, other grains and their bread baking properties and will instruct us in how to make our own loaf from scratch. Come dressed to have fun grinding and kneading and bring a loaf pan to take home your creation. Everyone from singles to families are encouraged to attend. So that we can sure to have enough ingredients, please RSVP at 978-779-6225.  Public Safety Building from 10 to 12.
 
Thursday, March 15: Movie--Food Matters, with post-movie discussion led by nutritionist Beth Colon. At the library. Refreshments at 6:30 p.m.; movie at 7.

Talk About Bolton—on TV

Would you like to be part of Bolton’s first-ever cable TV talk show? Members of Bolton Local are working on plans to launch a weekly half-hour cable TV program that would explore Bolton’s past, present, and future through the eyes—and words—of those who live there. All are invited to an organizational meeting on Monday, Feb. 20, 7 p.m. at the Public Safety Building, to talk about ideas and plans for the first show, which is targeted for March.

Whatever your interests and passions, there’s a place for people of all ages and skill levels on this project. No experience? No problem! There are many opportunities to learn and help out. Want to learn how to operate a TV camera or edit videos? BATCO promises it’s easy and has people to help. If you’d like to help out behind the scenes, there are program topics to research and scripts to write. If you’re not camera shy, picture yourself as a program host! If you’re more interested in learning how a TV program like this is put together, start to finish—there is a professional TV producer already on the project to show you how. For those who do have experience—here’s an opportunity to share your ideas and expertise to help make this a high-quality program that will get people talking!

If you’re interested in participating in some fun that could make a difference in Bolton, you are invited to come to the meeting on Feb. 20 and join in helping to bring this special program to life.



 
 

 

Attachments (3)

  • 2011_Yard sale list.pdf - on May 7, 2011 6:30 PM by Lynn Dischler (version 1)
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  • 2011_Yard sale map.pdf - on May 7, 2011 6:31 PM by Lynn Dischler (version 1)
    1105k View Download
  • Coop Tour 2011 directions.doc - on Jun 1, 2011 7:29 PM by Lynn Dischler (version 1)
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