Issue link: http://hvparent.uberflip.com/i/804816
6 Hudson Valley Parent n April 2017 Publisher TERRIE GOLDSTEIN tgoldstein@excitingread.com Editor SARA DUNN sdunn@excitingread.com Executive Assistant to the Publisher BRITTANY L. MORGAN bmorgan@excitingread.com Media Advisors CHRISTY OLIVIER colivier@excitingread.com MATTHEW SILVERMAN msilverman@excitingread.com Community Liaison PAMELA PERRY pperry@excitingread.com Traf f ic Manager PAM SOSCIA psoscia@excitingread.com Layout & Design ENGLE PRINTING also publishers of MY TripPlanner.com family MY TripPlanner.com family Hudson Valley Parent is published monthly by: The Professional Image Marketing & Public Relations Inc. 174 South Street • Newburgh, NY 12550 Phone: 845-562-3606 • Fax: 845-562-3681 hvparent.com This publication is copyrighted by the publisher. Reproduction without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Hudson Valley Parent welcomes submissions, although we cannot accept responsibility for work submitted nor guarantee publication. T his winter, the Great Lakes did not freeze over. And since the inception of record- ing weather events and temperatures, this year was the first it didn't snow in the traditionally frigid city of Chicago during the months of January and February. What does any of that have to do with a thumbs- up promotion of buying a membership with one of our local community supported agriculture (CSA) farms? Well, a lot actually, for those of us in the majority who are heeding the warnings from the scientific commu- nity about mankind's contribution to climate change. That's because one of the huge benefits of joining a CSA - above and beyond the excellent health benefits of getting a daily dose of organically grown produce in your family's diet - is that the fruits and vegetables you are buying didn't have to arrive in your community from faraway via trucks, trains, and planes. Inevitably, if moms and dads want to maintain a steady diet of fresh fruits and veggies for their kids during the winter months, the produce families consume will have entailed a heavy dose of carbon emissions into our atmosphere, be- ing there's a good chance many were grown in South America or Asia. But in the warmer late spring, summer, and early fall months we all have the option of consuming seasonal produce that quite literally is almost grown in our own back- yards. And joining a CSA usually comes with the benefit of being welcomed by the farmers who grow the food and raise the chickens for fam- ilies to visit and explore where the food we eat comes from. It's a wonderful op- portunity for children to investigate, learn and un- derstand - one that many of us didn't have growing up. It's a very positive trend. In this issue, we share with you the efforts of local CSAs to extend that opportunity to learn. Some offer cooking classes. Others teach members how to can so mem- bers are able to prolong the benefits of the locally-produced summer crops through the colder months. Another local organization, Wild Earth in New Paltz, teaches commu- nity members about "edible land- scaping" - the practice of planting fruit-producing trees and bushes in your backyard that will be able to survive and thrive in the climate of the Hudson Valley. Now, how's that for a zero carbon footprint? On April 30, Hudson Valley Par- ent has organized a field trip to the Poughkeepsie Farm Project. We're inviting along 20 kids and parents to join us and learn more about what a CSA share can do for your family and for the world. To sign up to participate, please visit HVParent.com/farm-project-vip- event to fill out an entry form. For those of you who join a CSA, when that weekly basket arrives it will be another opportunity to share a lesson with your children on how eating healthy can come with the added benefit of helping the world. Eat locally, think globally SARA DUNN Editor's Journal