Dinner

So, this dinner I went to tonight was something called Eat for Equity, http://www.good.is/posts/eat-for-equity-a-monthly-dinner-party-fuels-community-giving, all the food, venue, kitchen are donated as well as the labor to set up, do the dishes, and cook. People donate $15-20 (suggested) to attend, and all of the money raised goes to a non-profit. Tonight's dinner was at the Picardo P-Patch in NE Seattle, the food was vegetarian, and the non-profit was City Fruit, http://cityfruit.org/about/ a group I have volunteered with in the past. Basically, volunteers go out an pick fruit off of people's trees and donate it to food banks or other programs, it's a way to take fruit that might otherwise fall on the ground and be wasted, and get it to people who do not have access to fresh produce. They also teach classes on tree care, as well as help tend to the orchards on city land. They don't pick anything off of the ground nor from sprayed trees. I think I started volunteering in the second year; this is the first year that I haven't picked any trees.

At a previous dinner a rancher donated meat and someone else donated a keg of beer. There was a delicious kale pesto tonight (by far my favorite part of the meal, it was there as a spread for bread.) I passed on the main part of the meal as it had potatoes as an ingredient. City Fruit brought a cider press and made cider. It was supposed to rain today, and we lucked out and it didn't. It was a gorgeous setting for a night dinner. The stars were out and the moon was rising as I left. I walked out with a couple of other guests (the p-patch is in a hollow) as I wanted company going out and I had a flashlight. I imagine it got light enough once the moon rose higher. This is the first one I have attended. This chapter will be one year old in November. Eat for Equity began in Boston as a response after Hurricane Katrina, and has been popping up across the country since then. It works with the idea, that maybe we can all do a little bit and added up together it makes a greater difference. I'm excited about it as I care alot about issues of poverty, nutrition, and food security/insecurity. Not sure how I got on the mailing list, but am glad I was finally able to attend one. And that's my PSA for the year.