karlacook

From the first spade of soil turned nearly a decade ago, we have worked as a community, sweaty shoulder to sweaty shoulder, deepening and broadening the reach of Princeton School Gardens Cooperative programs to improve all children’s self-reliance, health and appreciation of the natural world through garden- and food-based education.

Now we can all do even more – while making everyday purchases around town.

Here’s how it works: Local businesses partner with Heartland Payment Systems, a Princeton-based company, to offer the OnePrinceton card, similar to a debit card. When you sign up for a free OnePrinceton membership (click here for information and to sign up), you link your membership to your own bank account. Then, you use the OnePrinceton card to buy goods and services, as you would a debit card.

The benefit comes next: OnePrinceton members choose a local nonprofit to receive a donation of 1 percent of the total pre-tax purchase from the member merchant, who in turn pays a smaller fee for this kind of transaction processing than he/she would for a credit card transaction.

One percent here, 1 percent there, and pretty soon, we have the funds for a class field trip, a school-wide tasting, a scholarship for a teacher, or for a chef to teach cooking classes at an after-school program.

Delicious, right?

Please consider signing up for a free membership with OnePrinceton.
And please do choose the Princeton School Gardens Cooperative as your beneficiary.

We thought we were riding high when Amy Mayer detailed her work with teachers, students and volunteers at Littlebrook Elementary to create the second annual garden celebration in honor of Food Day on October 24. Then, we learned from Stu Orefice, executive director of campus dining at Princeton University, that he was serving up butternut squash at all dining service venues on that day, too.

It made perfect sense to build on both. So we made a few calls to chefs, restaurateurs and food-based businesses who partner with us, and voila! We used Food Day to build community around good food and the the national event which is now in its second year.

Chef Rob Harbison, at PU, is working with Stu, ensuring that students from Frist Campus Center to Mathey College Dining Hall and all points in between will be served this delicious autumnal vegetable that is packed with Vitamin A and rich in Vitamin C, potassium and fiber.

Cindy Hill, dining services director for Princeton Public Schools, is serving up butternut squash at all four elementary schools, and students at John Witherspoon Middle School and Princeton High School will be treated to squash from New Jersey’s M. Dottavio Farm. (cindy_hill@monet.prs.k12.nj.us).

Wildflour Cafe, in Lawrenceville, will celebrate Food Day – and squash season – with a gluten free flatbread pizzette topped with roasted butternut squash, roasted garlic, and goat cheese, said Marilyn Besner, restaurant owner. (marbesner@hotmail.com)

Look for other participants either selling or serving butternut squash in the Get Squashed: Food Day 2013 campaign by the display of this poster (and speak up when you go there, in appreciation!).

Among them:

John Marshall and Main Street Bistro; Christopher Albrecht at Eno Terra; Raoul and Carlo Momo of Terra Momo Bread Company, Teresa Caffe and Mediterra; Jack Morrison of Witherspoon Grill, Nassau Street Seafood, Blue Point Grill; Josh Thomsen of Agricola; Lori Rabon of Nassau Inn; Alex Levine of Whole Earth Center; Aishling Stevens of Americana Diner; Steve Carney of McCaffrey’s; and Gab Carbone of the bent spoon.

We scooped Bent Spoon’s Princeton School Gardens chocolate-rosemary ice cream as dessert for the Corner House/Princeton University’s Community Dinner under the stars that coincided with the second annual Food Day nationwide. The event drew about 300 people, most of whom were given white T-shirts to help carry out a white theme.