Trail of Treats 2022 on the Hardwick Common

Did you know the story of the Hardwick Fair-y Village?

The Fairies were aware of the Hardwick Fair because it is the oldest Fair in the U.S.A. They wanted so very much to come to the Famous Hardwick Fair that they asked their human friends to build them a village so that they could visit. They enlisted the help of Peter Schmid, the Architect, and the patrons of the Paige Memorial Library to do the work.

Architect Schmid lined the Where River bed with stone, created the bridge, and landscaped the hill. Patrons worked at the library and at home to construct very special buildings for the Fairies using natural objects and colorful and shiny things to please the Fairies.

The Hardwick Fair-y Village’s Cinematographer, John Czabaj, captured the Hardwick Fair-y Village and Ambrosia on film for your enjoyment: https://www.facebook.com/paigelibraryhardwickma/videos/362541725584369https://www.facebook.com/paigelibraryhardwickma/videos/362541725584369

The Fair is over for 2021 but you can leave a message in the Hollow Log Mail Box at the entrance to the Paige Library. Address it to the Hardwick Fair-ies or to Ambrosia and wait for a response.

May the magic of the Fair-ies always be with you!

Here’s What You Need to Know About the Juneteenth Flag

By Duncan Nielsen

The red, white, and blue Juneteenth flag commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S., which came over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

On June 19th, 1865, General Gordon Granger of the Union Army dispatched this order in Galveston, Texas: “The people of Texas are informed that in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.” This announcement came more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation—but until the surrender of General Robert E. Lee two months before, there hadn’t been Union troops in Texas to enforce it.

Juneteenth—a portmanteau of “June” and “nineteenth”— will commemorate the end of slavery in the U.S., and some will raise the official banner: a red, white, and blue emblem that “gives all Americans the opportunity to recognize American freedom and African-American history,” according to the National Juneteenth Celebration Foundation. The flag was first hoisted in 2000 at the Roxbury Heritage State Park in Boston, Massachusetts, by the foundation’s founder Ben Haith, who also created its design.

The flag by Ben Haith, later refined by Lisa Jeanne Graf, features “a star of Texas bursting with new freedom throughout the land, over a new horizon,” says the celebration’s foundation. Its red, white, and blue colors echo the American flag.

Juneteenth is now a federal holiday to honor Black heritage, and to make space for continued education, celebration, and connection.

Story and Toys Play Group

Computer Users’ Workshop 

A makerspace is a room that contains tools and components, allowing people to enter with an idea and leave with a project. The best part is that makerspaces are communal. The goal is to work together to learn, collaborate, and share.

Participating in creative activities has been shown to improve our cognitive skills and create a confident and optimistic attitude.

As part of the Friend of the Paige Memorial Library Cookie Walk, Heidi Jeldres donated this lovely hand made doll and the Christmas book to raise money for Jo’s Jackets and the Police Department’s toy drive at the Second Annual Christmas on the Common.

Good news for climate and the rural economy

HARDWICK, MA – Ridge Shinn has a hopeful message for area residents. At a presentation on the evening of Tuesday, October 15, he will explain how a new approach to grazing livestock can reduce climate change while boosting the rural economy of the region. Shinn has launched a successful business of aggregating 100% grass-fed beef cattle from Northeast farms and marketing the meat to stores, restaurants, and institutions. Currently Shinn’s business, Big Picture Beef, is supplying the Big Y 70-store chain in Massachusetts and Connecticut. The Petersham Country Store also carries Big Picture Beef. One of a dozen institutions buying Big Picture Beef is Smith College in Northampton, MA.

“This is Northeast beef for Northeast consumers,” says Shinn. He explains, “Here we have good soil and abundant rainfall. By working with farmers in this region, we can provide our urban centers with beef that is both healthy and local.  We can also pay farmers more than they get by selling their cattle in the commodity market,” says Shinn.

So how will grass-fed beef production reduce climate change?  Shinn points to current studies that show how well-managed grazing allows the carbon that grass takes from the atmosphere to be stored deep beneath the ground, where it contributes to healthy fertile farmland. Also, grass is natural food for cattle, so 100% grass-fed cattle don’t have the digestive problems that contribute to methane emissions from cattle burps. 

Farmers selling cattle to Big Picture Beef must follow a protocol designed to ensure that the beef will be healthy and that raising the cattle will benefit the farmland and the environment. All Big Picture Beef meat is traceable to Northeast farms, including farms in Massachusetts.

“By fattening cattle here – instead of on Western feedlots, we save food miles, revive the rural economy, and eliminate all the problems associated with corn-fed, feedlot beef, says Shinn.

Ari Pugliese, the proprietor of the Petersham Country Store, says, “How lucky we are to have a locally sourced product that is great tasting and good for the planet.”

Book Signing and Talk by Agape Community co-founders   

Learn about your neighbors www.agapecommunity.org    

June 11  at 6 pm
Willie Crosby of Fungi Ally
“The mushroom Man”
to teach us all about mushrooms

Mr. Crosby is a recent recipient of the Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation’s Local Farmers Award. Congratulations Fungi Ally!    https://fungially.com/

Willie Crosby of Fungi Ally, a mushroom farm in Hadley MA that grows shiitake, oyster, and lions mane mushrooms using agricultural waste products like straw and sawdust. Their mission is to reveal the power of mushrooms so more people can benefit from working with fungi. They are committed to developing sustainable growing practices that improve the health of their customers, community, and environment.

Through workshops they enable participants to confidently work with and understand the fungal kingdom and how to work with mushrooms in the fields of cultivation, foraging, and medicine.

Why Fungi?  Mushrooms are a great local food source that can be grown year round on agricultural by-products. Their role in ecosystems to transform waste into life is vital to the health of the planet. We believe that by working with mushrooms we can improve our own health while transforming waste into life affirming food and soil.

Learn More About Mushrooms at the Paige on June 11