September CARE Team Events
DuSable Campus Garden (click on a date to sign up)
Saturdays, September 1 8
Our garden’s going to sleep . . . . help us prepare it for winter and recognize the completion of our first ever we-did-it-ourselves garden.
Across the street from the DuSable Campus
4935 S Wabash (city lot)
10-2pm
Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden (click on a date to sign up)
Sundays, September 2 9
With all we've learned about lead, we're inviting neighbors to learn about its effects. Join us as we take people through the garden and show them how to safeguard their own homes.
Imagine Englewood if . . . .
1854 W Garfield
3-6pm
REST Olympics
Wednesday, September 12th
The first of a series: The men of REST Shelter have shown themselves to be mentally and physically agile. We're therefore bringing a series of competitions that require risk, teamwork and coordination. We can't tell you the games, but we can tell you that you're on a team.
REST Men’s Shelter
941 W Lawrence
8-9:30pm
I'll volunteer for this event.
I'd like to lead this event.
Ginormous Beach Clean-Up at 79th
Saturday, September 15th
“Ginormous” is actually a word, according to Merriam-Webster. And they’re right about everything. Did you pretend to work all summer? Enjoy a beautiful, isolated beach while making it a little cleaner. Beaches all over the city will be getting the same treatment.
79th Street and Lake Michigan
10-1pm
I'll volunteer for this event.
I'd like to lead this event.
At 6 O’Clock We Eat. Artwork at Dignity Diner
Tuesday, September 18th
The exhibit's next month! Join us as we work alongside DD patrons to select works and discuss how the event will go. Patrons may also create last-minute artwork.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:30-8:30pm
I'll volunteer for this event.
I'd like to lead this event.
*If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try www.mapquest.com. For public transportation, try www.yourcta.com. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
- SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION -
COMING SOONER THAN SOON
At 6 O’Clock We Eat.
October 12-14, 2007
A collaborative effort of CareTeam & Dignity Diner, “At 6 O’Clock We Eat.” is a multimedia art exhibit in which homeless artists document their unique perspectives on identity, order, the creative process, and Chicago life in tenuous, unstable, and often dangerous environments. Artists include Kokomo Joe, Tiffany Leonard, Billy Bob James and Hank Freeman.
Green Lantern Art Gallery
1511 N Milwaukee Ave, 2nd Floor
Opening: Friday, 10/12, 6-9pm
Oral History Listening Sessions: Saturday, 10/13 & Sunday, 10/14 at 1pm
Closing: Sunday, 10/14 at 3pm
August 28, 2007
August 04, 2007
CareTeam Volunteer Opportunities for August
DuSable Campus Garden (click on a date to sign up)
We’ve essentially finished planting our garden and are left with maintaining it. Next we’ll paint the ugly metal posts that border the front, take a tour of Soul Vegetarian Restaurant to learn about healthy eating, and take a cooking class at Kendall College . Do you like to paint? Try out restaurants? Encourage youth to treat themselves well?
Saturdays, August 4 11 18 25
Across the street from the DuSable Campus
4935 S Wabash (city lot)
10-2pm
Volunteer Leader: Jeff Min
Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden (click on a date to sign up)
After a recent delivery of mulch fell into our garden, we realized that a) we have too much mulch, and b) since the garden’s about finished, the youth are ready to educate their neighbors about protecting themselves against lead (ex: plant a garden). If you need mulch or would like to help some young folks create posters about lead poisoning, join us. Don’t know about lead poisoning? We’ll explain it to you.
Sundays, August 5 12 19 26
Imagine Englewood if . . . .
1854 W Garfield
3-6pm
Volunteer Leader: Jermont Montgomery
PICNIC (click on a date to sign up)
You may find yourself sitting in an over-air conditioned office, wearing a sweater as added insult. Leave that office immediately and plop yourself down next to us volunteers and some of Chicago ’s homeless. We eat donated lunches from Trader Joe’s while discussing topics ranging from Top 5 Favorite Fruits to social service availability in Chicago .
Mondays, August 6 13 20 27
Millennium Park, northeast corner of Monroe & Michigan (look for our picnic blanket and bags of food)
12:30-2pm
Volunteer Leaders: Jeff Min & Moshe Zvi Marvit
SPECIAL Support Team M3 Runners
A program of MGRF, Team M3 pairs high school students with Chicagoland adults to train together as a group to run the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon (Oct 7th) and the Chicago Distance Classic (Aug 12th). Before the CDC, Team M3 needs help registering runners and handing out packets. Come out and learn about Team M3 and how exactly a group of teenagers and adults train together for a marathon. Maybe next year you’ll run, too.
Saturday, August 11th
Hilton Chicago, North West Hall
720 S Michigan Ave
Anytime between 9am-6pm
I'll volunteer for this.
At 6 O’Clock We Eat. Artwork at Dignity Diner
The next 2 themes for painting: How I see myself, and How others see me. How many pieces of artwork do we plan to show? As many as you’ll help DD patrons create.
Tuesday, August 21st
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:30-8:30pm
Volunteer Leader: Sarah Casey
I'll volunteer for this.
*If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try http://www.mapquest.com/. For public transportation, try http://www.yourcta.com/. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
- SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION -
Presenting
At 6 O’Clock We Eat.
October 12-14, 2007
A collaborative effort of CareTeam & Dignity Diner, “At 6 O’Clock We Eat.” is a multimedia art exhibit in which homeless artists document their unique perspectives on identity, order, the creative process, and Chicago life in tenuous, unstable, and often dangerous environments. Artists include Kokomo Joe, Tiffany Leonard, Billy Bob James and Hank Freeman.
Green Lantern Art Gallery
1511 N Milwaukee Ave, 2nd Floor
Opening: Friday, 10/12, 6-9pm
Oral History Listening Sessions: Saturday, 10/13 & Sunday, 10/14 at 1pm
Closing: Sunday, 10/14 at 3pm
DuSable Campus Garden (click on a date to sign up)
We’ve essentially finished planting our garden and are left with maintaining it. Next we’ll paint the ugly metal posts that border the front, take a tour of Soul Vegetarian Restaurant to learn about healthy eating, and take a cooking class at Kendall College . Do you like to paint? Try out restaurants? Encourage youth to treat themselves well?
Saturdays, August 4 11 18 25
Across the street from the DuSable Campus
4935 S Wabash (city lot)
10-2pm
Volunteer Leader: Jeff Min
Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden (click on a date to sign up)
After a recent delivery of mulch fell into our garden, we realized that a) we have too much mulch, and b) since the garden’s about finished, the youth are ready to educate their neighbors about protecting themselves against lead (ex: plant a garden). If you need mulch or would like to help some young folks create posters about lead poisoning, join us. Don’t know about lead poisoning? We’ll explain it to you.
Sundays, August 5 12 19 26
Imagine Englewood if . . . .
1854 W Garfield
3-6pm
Volunteer Leader: Jermont Montgomery
PICNIC (click on a date to sign up)
You may find yourself sitting in an over-air conditioned office, wearing a sweater as added insult. Leave that office immediately and plop yourself down next to us volunteers and some of Chicago ’s homeless. We eat donated lunches from Trader Joe’s while discussing topics ranging from Top 5 Favorite Fruits to social service availability in Chicago .
Mondays, August 6 13 20 27
Millennium Park, northeast corner of Monroe & Michigan (look for our picnic blanket and bags of food)
12:30-2pm
Volunteer Leaders: Jeff Min & Moshe Zvi Marvit
SPECIAL Support Team M3 Runners
A program of MGRF, Team M3 pairs high school students with Chicagoland adults to train together as a group to run the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon (Oct 7th) and the Chicago Distance Classic (Aug 12th). Before the CDC, Team M3 needs help registering runners and handing out packets. Come out and learn about Team M3 and how exactly a group of teenagers and adults train together for a marathon. Maybe next year you’ll run, too.
Saturday, August 11th
Hilton Chicago, North West Hall
720 S Michigan Ave
Anytime between 9am-6pm
I'll volunteer for this.
At 6 O’Clock We Eat. Artwork at Dignity Diner
The next 2 themes for painting: How I see myself, and How others see me. How many pieces of artwork do we plan to show? As many as you’ll help DD patrons create.
Tuesday, August 21st
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:30-8:30pm
Volunteer Leader: Sarah Casey
I'll volunteer for this.
*If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try http://www.mapquest.com/. For public transportation, try http://www.yourcta.com/. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
- SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION -
Presenting
At 6 O’Clock We Eat.
October 12-14, 2007
A collaborative effort of CareTeam & Dignity Diner, “At 6 O’Clock We Eat.” is a multimedia art exhibit in which homeless artists document their unique perspectives on identity, order, the creative process, and Chicago life in tenuous, unstable, and often dangerous environments. Artists include Kokomo Joe, Tiffany Leonard, Billy Bob James and Hank Freeman.
Green Lantern Art Gallery
1511 N Milwaukee Ave, 2nd Floor
Opening: Friday, 10/12, 6-9pm
Oral History Listening Sessions: Saturday, 10/13 & Sunday, 10/14 at 1pm
Closing: Sunday, 10/14 at 3pm
May 30, 2007
June CARE Team Volunteer Events
To continue from last month, we’ve got a lot of gardening to do. Both our DuSable Campus Garden and Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden involve high school students and empty lots of land. We’ve started weeding at the EYAL Garden and discovered we have excellent soil (provided the lead test comes back negative). So if you enjoy gardening or just want to stop by and see the chaos (high school students + dirt), mosey on over. You can click any of the dates below the respective gardens:
DuSable Campus Garden
4934 S Wabash
10-2pm
June 2nd, June 9th, June 16th, June 23rd, June 30th
I want to lead one of these dates.
Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden
1854 W Garfield (press the “Imagine Englewood if” doorbell)
2:30-5pm
June 3rd, June 10th, June 17th, June 24th
I want to lead one of these dates.
Tuesday, June 12th
This is Me. Who are You? Art Projects
We have a date for our “This is Me. Who are You?” art exhibit: It’s October 13th & 14th at the Green Lantern in Wicker Park !! More details forthcoming. Till then, come sit next to Dignity Diner patrons and spark their artistic sides (while you work on something yourself). This is a relaxed, creative atmosphere. But not really relaxed. More like hectic.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:30-8:30pm
I'll volunteer for this.
I want to lead this event.
Monday, June 18th
Oral History at the Nathalie Salmon House
One of Chicago 's few intergenerational houses, the Nathalie Salmon House is inviting us to interview residents on some of their life experiences. Think of yourself as a Barbara Walters, only without the makeup.
Nathalie Salmon House
7320 N Sheridan
6-8pm
I'll volunteer for this.
I want to lead this event.
Wednesday, June 20th
Operation HOPE training
If you missed it last month, here's another chance: Learn to teach youth to become financially literate. What does this mean? You'll learn to explain to youth what money is, how to create a budget, what a bank account is, etc. Hey – we’re all about acquiring new skills.
United Way Building
560 W Lake
6-7:30pm
I'll volunteer for this.
I want to lead this event.
*If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try www.mapquest.com. For public transportation, try www.yourcta.com. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
To continue from last month, we’ve got a lot of gardening to do. Both our DuSable Campus Garden and Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden involve high school students and empty lots of land. We’ve started weeding at the EYAL Garden and discovered we have excellent soil (provided the lead test comes back negative). So if you enjoy gardening or just want to stop by and see the chaos (high school students + dirt), mosey on over. You can click any of the dates below the respective gardens:
DuSable Campus Garden
4934 S Wabash
10-2pm
June 2nd, June 9th, June 16th, June 23rd, June 30th
I want to lead one of these dates.
Englewood Youth Against Lead Garden
1854 W Garfield (press the “Imagine Englewood if” doorbell)
2:30-5pm
June 3rd, June 10th, June 17th, June 24th
I want to lead one of these dates.
Tuesday, June 12th
This is Me. Who are You? Art Projects
We have a date for our “This is Me. Who are You?” art exhibit: It’s October 13th & 14th at the Green Lantern in Wicker Park !! More details forthcoming. Till then, come sit next to Dignity Diner patrons and spark their artistic sides (while you work on something yourself). This is a relaxed, creative atmosphere. But not really relaxed. More like hectic.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:30-8:30pm
I'll volunteer for this.
I want to lead this event.
Monday, June 18th
Oral History at the Nathalie Salmon House
One of Chicago 's few intergenerational houses, the Nathalie Salmon House is inviting us to interview residents on some of their life experiences. Think of yourself as a Barbara Walters, only without the makeup.
Nathalie Salmon House
7320 N Sheridan
6-8pm
I'll volunteer for this.
I want to lead this event.
Wednesday, June 20th
Operation HOPE training
If you missed it last month, here's another chance: Learn to teach youth to become financially literate. What does this mean? You'll learn to explain to youth what money is, how to create a budget, what a bank account is, etc. Hey – we’re all about acquiring new skills.
United Way Building
560 W Lake
6-7:30pm
I'll volunteer for this.
I want to lead this event.
*If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try www.mapquest.com. For public transportation, try www.yourcta.com. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
April 29, 2007
May Care Team Events
From May till September, CareTeam will be working with youth in Englewood and Bronzeville to produce vegetable and flower gardens. Regardless of your experience, if you’d like to help plant, prune, water, mulch, accidentally kill (and possibly resurrect) the various vegetables, flowers and trees we’re about to plant, please email us at careteam@mgrf.org. Each site has a different schedule: Until school’s out, our Englewood garden will meet on Sundays at 2:30pm, and our Bronzeville garden will meet on Saturdays at 10am. Want more details? Just email us.
If you like, be a Volunteer & Event Leader and lead other volunteers through the event. It’s easy schmeasy.
Saturday, May 5th
Urban Art Retreat Mural
Phase one of UAR mural and neighborhood beautification project: We’re surveying neighbors on what they’d like to see as the subject of the UAR mural in North Lawndale; inviting them to participate in painting the mural; and finding out what other beautification projects they’d like to start. After the surveys are taken, volunteers will have a chance to make some art of their own at the UAR studio. Artists and non-artists are welcome.
Urban Art Retreat
1957 S Spaulding Ave
11-1pm
Wednesday, May 9th
REST Men’s Shelter Trivia
After a one-man riot threatened to prematurely end our trivia game last time, the men of REST Shelter told us to soldier on and finish the game, which we did. Team Chi Town won again and promised trivia dominance forever. Will you come out? You’ll join a team and aid its members to victory.
REST Shelter
941 W Lawrence
8-9:30pm
Tuesday, May 15th
Dignity Diner Artwork
We must have produced 30-something pieces of work last time, and we only want more. Our upcoming summer art exhibit is themed, “This is Me. Who are You?” Come out and encourage the patrons to create works of self-expression using paint, clay, pencils, charcoal – anything they get their hands on. For this next session, we want patrons to use only their 3 most favorite colors in their work.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey Ave
6:30-8:30pm
Saturday, May 19th
Rainbow Beach Cleanup (technically we’ll be at 79th)
After careful scientific sampling of Lake Michigan , our E. coli sample came up negative. We did, however, find a piece of luggage with underwear and a bathing suit. We also found a den of garter snakes. All this while doing a superb job of cleaning up the lakefront. We filled up 5 large garbage bins! Bring your Frisbee or volleyball, ok?
79th and Lake Michigan
10-1pm
Sunday, May 20th
Oral History on Lower Wacker, Part I
Ever see someone living on the street and wonder where your lives diverged? (At birth? At 12?) Ever wonder how they got there? We’re offering you the chance to sit down and talk with people from Chicago ’s large(ly) ignored population. We’ve asked some of the men and women who live on Lower Wacker Drive to sit down with us and share their stories. Someone from StoryCorps is helping to develop the questions, and she’ll train us from 10-11am. Later in the summer, we’ll display the stories at our art exhibit.
Initial meetup place: Starbuck’s @ 202 N Michigan Ave
10-1pm
Wednesday, May 23rd
Community Lenses
Some of Living Room Café’s guests live in the neighborhood and have taken us on walking tours. This time we’re taking cameras. Community mapping is a great way for us volunteers to understand where people are coming from (literally and figuratively) with visual cues to remind us. It also encourages us to collectively develop community improvement projects for the future . . . .
Living Room Café
806 E 64th St
4-6pm
Sunday, May 27th
Oral History on Lower Wacker, Part II
Reverse the roles: Now we get to be interviewed.
Initial meetup place: Starbucks @ 202 N Michigan Ave
11-1pm
*NOTE: If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try www.mapquest.com. For public transportation, try www.yourcta.com. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
From May till September, CareTeam will be working with youth in Englewood and Bronzeville to produce vegetable and flower gardens. Regardless of your experience, if you’d like to help plant, prune, water, mulch, accidentally kill (and possibly resurrect) the various vegetables, flowers and trees we’re about to plant, please email us at careteam@mgrf.org. Each site has a different schedule: Until school’s out, our Englewood garden will meet on Sundays at 2:30pm, and our Bronzeville garden will meet on Saturdays at 10am. Want more details? Just email us.
If you like, be a Volunteer & Event Leader and lead other volunteers through the event. It’s easy schmeasy.
Saturday, May 5th
Urban Art Retreat Mural
Phase one of UAR mural and neighborhood beautification project: We’re surveying neighbors on what they’d like to see as the subject of the UAR mural in North Lawndale; inviting them to participate in painting the mural; and finding out what other beautification projects they’d like to start. After the surveys are taken, volunteers will have a chance to make some art of their own at the UAR studio. Artists and non-artists are welcome.
Urban Art Retreat
1957 S Spaulding Ave
11-1pm
Wednesday, May 9th
REST Men’s Shelter Trivia
After a one-man riot threatened to prematurely end our trivia game last time, the men of REST Shelter told us to soldier on and finish the game, which we did. Team Chi Town won again and promised trivia dominance forever. Will you come out? You’ll join a team and aid its members to victory.
REST Shelter
941 W Lawrence
8-9:30pm
Tuesday, May 15th
Dignity Diner Artwork
We must have produced 30-something pieces of work last time, and we only want more. Our upcoming summer art exhibit is themed, “This is Me. Who are You?” Come out and encourage the patrons to create works of self-expression using paint, clay, pencils, charcoal – anything they get their hands on. For this next session, we want patrons to use only their 3 most favorite colors in their work.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey Ave
6:30-8:30pm
Saturday, May 19th
Rainbow Beach Cleanup (technically we’ll be at 79th)
After careful scientific sampling of Lake Michigan , our E. coli sample came up negative. We did, however, find a piece of luggage with underwear and a bathing suit. We also found a den of garter snakes. All this while doing a superb job of cleaning up the lakefront. We filled up 5 large garbage bins! Bring your Frisbee or volleyball, ok?
79th and Lake Michigan
10-1pm
Sunday, May 20th
Oral History on Lower Wacker, Part I
Ever see someone living on the street and wonder where your lives diverged? (At birth? At 12?) Ever wonder how they got there? We’re offering you the chance to sit down and talk with people from Chicago ’s large(ly) ignored population. We’ve asked some of the men and women who live on Lower Wacker Drive to sit down with us and share their stories. Someone from StoryCorps is helping to develop the questions, and she’ll train us from 10-11am. Later in the summer, we’ll display the stories at our art exhibit.
Initial meetup place: Starbuck’s @ 202 N Michigan Ave
10-1pm
Wednesday, May 23rd
Community Lenses
Some of Living Room Café’s guests live in the neighborhood and have taken us on walking tours. This time we’re taking cameras. Community mapping is a great way for us volunteers to understand where people are coming from (literally and figuratively) with visual cues to remind us. It also encourages us to collectively develop community improvement projects for the future . . . .
Living Room Café
806 E 64th St
4-6pm
Sunday, May 27th
Oral History on Lower Wacker, Part II
Reverse the roles: Now we get to be interviewed.
Initial meetup place: Starbucks @ 202 N Michigan Ave
11-1pm
*NOTE: If you need driving directions to any of these events, please try www.mapquest.com. For public transportation, try www.yourcta.com. If you need a ride, please let us know by selecting “Need Transportation” when you sign up.
March 23, 2007
CARE Team April Events
Below are volunteer opportunities being sponsored by the CARE Team for the month of April. You can register for each of these events through the Team's website: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/.
... get out there and make a difference in your world!
GET TRAINED! Here’s your opportunity to empower other Chicagoans. We’re partnering with Operation HOPE to train CareTeam volunteers in basic financial education to educate youths 9-18 years old in Chicago ’s underserved communities. You don’t need a banking background. Topics covered include (I) Basics of Banking and Financial Services, (II) Checking & Savings Accounts, (III) The Power of Credit and (IV) Basic Investments. After training, we’ll be able to offer basic financial education to youth all over the city.
Wednesday, April 25th
United Way Building
560 W Lake St, 5th Flr
6-7:30pm
Wednesday, April 4th (Part I) and 18th (Part II)
Black & White Photography
Guests of Living Room Café have expressed interested in black & white photography. CareTeam will provide the cameras so that we can pair up with guests to take photos that explain more of who they are. On April 18th we’ll come back to create displays of the guests.
Living Room Cafe
806 E 64th St
4-6pm
Sunday, April 15th
Buckthorn Burn
Buckthorn is evil, and evil things must burn. Pyromaniacs, please sit this one out.
Dam #1 Woods
Wheeling
10-1pm
*Meet at CareTeam Central at 9am to carpool.
Tuesday, April 17th
Paint, Draw, Sculpt & Sketch
Dignity Diner
Official Announcement: Dignity Diner and CareTeam will be putting on an art exhibit in late summer. Patrons’ works will be on display, and our job is to encourage patrons to explore their identity through art. So from now on, we’ll be working on art projects with patrons and use paint, pencils, clay, charcoal and photography. The theme: “Who Am I? Who are You?”
925 W Diversey
6-8pm
Saturday, April 21st
Earth Day Beach Cleanup
According to the world, winter is over. We’ll help Chicago prepare for the upcoming beach season by getting rid of the trash and crud that has accumulated over winter. Garbage be gone.
Rainbow Beach
3111 E 77th St
10-1pm
Thursday, April 26th
Your(self) Portraits
Logan Square Neighborhood Boys & Girls Club
We’re extending the identity concept to a younger crowd – 10-16 year olds, to be precise. Using Plexiglas, drawing paper, pencils and paint, we’re creating self-portraits and then letting the youth draw their interpretations of us after they interview us. This project is about assumptions we make about each other, and we want to encourage these youth to be better than that.
3228 W Palmer Ave
6-8pm
Sunday, April 29th
Paint My Room
Low-income seniors can turn to H.O.M.E. to provide free-of-charge interior painting. If you’ve ever woken up on a Sunday morning and thought, “I want to paint someone’s living room,” this is your day. In addition to providing an otherwise expensive service to seniors, you’ll likely hear some interesting stories.
H.O.M.E.
5414B W Roosevelt Rd
10-2pm
Below are volunteer opportunities being sponsored by the CARE Team for the month of April. You can register for each of these events through the Team's website: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/.
... get out there and make a difference in your world!
GET TRAINED! Here’s your opportunity to empower other Chicagoans. We’re partnering with Operation HOPE to train CareTeam volunteers in basic financial education to educate youths 9-18 years old in Chicago ’s underserved communities. You don’t need a banking background. Topics covered include (I) Basics of Banking and Financial Services, (II) Checking & Savings Accounts, (III) The Power of Credit and (IV) Basic Investments. After training, we’ll be able to offer basic financial education to youth all over the city.
Wednesday, April 25th
United Way Building
560 W Lake St, 5th Flr
6-7:30pm
Wednesday, April 4th (Part I) and 18th (Part II)
Black & White Photography
Guests of Living Room Café have expressed interested in black & white photography. CareTeam will provide the cameras so that we can pair up with guests to take photos that explain more of who they are. On April 18th we’ll come back to create displays of the guests.
Living Room Cafe
806 E 64th St
4-6pm
Sunday, April 15th
Buckthorn Burn
Buckthorn is evil, and evil things must burn. Pyromaniacs, please sit this one out.
Dam #1 Woods
Wheeling
10-1pm
*Meet at CareTeam Central at 9am to carpool.
Tuesday, April 17th
Paint, Draw, Sculpt & Sketch
Dignity Diner
Official Announcement: Dignity Diner and CareTeam will be putting on an art exhibit in late summer. Patrons’ works will be on display, and our job is to encourage patrons to explore their identity through art. So from now on, we’ll be working on art projects with patrons and use paint, pencils, clay, charcoal and photography. The theme: “Who Am I? Who are You?”
925 W Diversey
6-8pm
Saturday, April 21st
Earth Day Beach Cleanup
According to the world, winter is over. We’ll help Chicago prepare for the upcoming beach season by getting rid of the trash and crud that has accumulated over winter. Garbage be gone.
Rainbow Beach
3111 E 77th St
10-1pm
Thursday, April 26th
Your(self) Portraits
Logan Square Neighborhood Boys & Girls Club
We’re extending the identity concept to a younger crowd – 10-16 year olds, to be precise. Using Plexiglas, drawing paper, pencils and paint, we’re creating self-portraits and then letting the youth draw their interpretations of us after they interview us. This project is about assumptions we make about each other, and we want to encourage these youth to be better than that.
3228 W Palmer Ave
6-8pm
Sunday, April 29th
Paint My Room
Low-income seniors can turn to H.O.M.E. to provide free-of-charge interior painting. If you’ve ever woken up on a Sunday morning and thought, “I want to paint someone’s living room,” this is your day. In addition to providing an otherwise expensive service to seniors, you’ll likely hear some interesting stories.
H.O.M.E.
5414B W Roosevelt Rd
10-2pm
February 26, 2007
Hey Everyone,
... mark your calendars! Below are CareTeam Volunteer Opportunities for the month of March. Note: the links are not active. ;( However you can visit the CareTeam's website (http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/) and click on the "events" link.
In solidarity,
Justina
Monday, March 5th
NEW Board games at Humboldt Park Social Services
While folks come in and eat a warm dinner, we’re taking the opportunity to get to know them. A few board games will help break the ice. Our mission: To chat it up and find out what people like to do. Then we’ll come back and do exactly that.
United Methodist Church
2122 N Mozart, basement
4:30-6:30pm
Sunday, March 11th
YOU LOVE IT Bow Saws & Loppers 2
So many of you claimed interest in using bow saws and loppers to destroy buckthorn (I didn’t see that one coming) that we thought we’d do it again. Hope for warmer weather and wear clothes you don’t care about. Check out where we'll be. (Click on #40).
Dam #1 Woods in Wheeling
Meet at CareTeam Central at 9am and we’ll carpool.
10-1pm
Wednesday, March 14th
Poetry Slam at Living Room Café
Some poetry-phobes’ fears disappeared last time after we took turns reading poems about love. The idea came up to create our own funny, sad and happy poetry, so let’s do it. You may not know how to write poetry, but who cares? You’ll be partnered up with an LRC guest and eased into the process.
Living Room Café
806 E 64th St
6:30-8pm
Tuesday, March 20th
Artwork at Dignity Diner
We’re working side by side with patrons to create artwork that will be displayed in Dignity Diner & CareTeam’s spring art show. Using different mediums – pencils, paint and clay – you and a patron may just create a piece that will later be compared to that of Picasso or Monet. If you like to write, we also have opportunities for writing poetry and recording patrons’ stories.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:00-7:30pm
Thursday, March 22nd
Beading at Marah’s
Talk to the ladies of Marah’s while making anything you like with beads. According to everyone, you can bead a bazillion things while mowing the lawn, writing your thesis and creating world peace. It’s just that simple.
Deborah’s Place
1456 W Oakdale
5-7:30pm
Saturday, March 24th
NEW Games with Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly
We’re introducing ourselves to the many seniors involved with LB, assisting them to their tables and helping with lunch. Afterwards we’ll play some interactive community-building games.
Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly
355 N Ashland , in the large party room
12-3pm
Wednesday, March 28th
Team Trivia at REST Men’s Shelter
The teams have been solidified. Whose team will you join? Team Chi-Town clinched first place last time, while Team One lost due to some intra-group division. Take your knowledge of Chicago history, sports, politics and art and join a team.
REST Men’s Shelter
941 W Lawrence
8-9:30pm
Thursday, March 29th
NEW Oral History at the Indo-American Center
IAC members have offered their time for our oral history project. Conduct an interview with an elder about South Asian culture, and where it meets (and diverges from) American culture; about language, food and fashion; and about those life experiences that happen no matter where you live. Be open, because afterwards, they get to interview you.
Indo-American Center
6328 N California
3-5:30pm
... mark your calendars! Below are CareTeam Volunteer Opportunities for the month of March. Note: the links are not active. ;( However you can visit the CareTeam's website (http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/) and click on the "events" link.
In solidarity,
Justina
Monday, March 5th
NEW Board games at Humboldt Park Social Services
While folks come in and eat a warm dinner, we’re taking the opportunity to get to know them. A few board games will help break the ice. Our mission: To chat it up and find out what people like to do. Then we’ll come back and do exactly that.
United Methodist Church
2122 N Mozart, basement
4:30-6:30pm
Sunday, March 11th
YOU LOVE IT Bow Saws & Loppers 2
So many of you claimed interest in using bow saws and loppers to destroy buckthorn (I didn’t see that one coming) that we thought we’d do it again. Hope for warmer weather and wear clothes you don’t care about. Check out where we'll be. (Click on #40).
Dam #1 Woods in Wheeling
Meet at CareTeam Central at 9am and we’ll carpool.
10-1pm
Wednesday, March 14th
Poetry Slam at Living Room Café
Some poetry-phobes’ fears disappeared last time after we took turns reading poems about love. The idea came up to create our own funny, sad and happy poetry, so let’s do it. You may not know how to write poetry, but who cares? You’ll be partnered up with an LRC guest and eased into the process.
Living Room Café
806 E 64th St
6:30-8pm
Tuesday, March 20th
Artwork at Dignity Diner
We’re working side by side with patrons to create artwork that will be displayed in Dignity Diner & CareTeam’s spring art show. Using different mediums – pencils, paint and clay – you and a patron may just create a piece that will later be compared to that of Picasso or Monet. If you like to write, we also have opportunities for writing poetry and recording patrons’ stories.
Holy Covenant United Methodist Church
925 W Diversey
6:00-7:30pm
Thursday, March 22nd
Beading at Marah’s
Talk to the ladies of Marah’s while making anything you like with beads. According to everyone, you can bead a bazillion things while mowing the lawn, writing your thesis and creating world peace. It’s just that simple.
Deborah’s Place
1456 W Oakdale
5-7:30pm
Saturday, March 24th
NEW Games with Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly
We’re introducing ourselves to the many seniors involved with LB, assisting them to their tables and helping with lunch. Afterwards we’ll play some interactive community-building games.
Little Brothers - Friends of the Elderly
355 N Ashland , in the large party room
12-3pm
Wednesday, March 28th
Team Trivia at REST Men’s Shelter
The teams have been solidified. Whose team will you join? Team Chi-Town clinched first place last time, while Team One lost due to some intra-group division. Take your knowledge of Chicago history, sports, politics and art and join a team.
REST Men’s Shelter
941 W Lawrence
8-9:30pm
Thursday, March 29th
NEW Oral History at the Indo-American Center
IAC members have offered their time for our oral history project. Conduct an interview with an elder about South Asian culture, and where it meets (and diverges from) American culture; about language, food and fashion; and about those life experiences that happen no matter where you live. Be open, because afterwards, they get to interview you.
Indo-American Center
6328 N California
3-5:30pm
February 09, 2007
February 02, 2007
... Dem' Chicago Blues!
Hey Everyone:
Here's a great opportunity to enjoy great music and assist a worthy cause!
In solidarity,
Justina
16th Annual Hopefest
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Please join us at the Park West for an evening of great music while supporting the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.
Featuring performances by:
NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS
& CATFISH HAVEN
& FUNKADESI
To purchase tickets or more info please cut and paste on the link below:
http://www.chicagohomeless.org/IndexNew.asp
As well as incredible music, the event also features a live and silent auction of unique prizes including:
a helmet signed by the entire CHICAGO BEARS
a guitar signed by the legendary BB KING
a record album signed by the Queen of Soul, ARETHA FRANKLIN
plus GETAWAY PACKAGES, SPORTS TICKETS and MUCH MORE!
Hey Everyone:
Here's a great opportunity to enjoy great music and assist a worthy cause!
In solidarity,
Justina
16th Annual Hopefest
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Please join us at the Park West for an evening of great music while supporting the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.
Featuring performances by:
NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS
& CATFISH HAVEN
& FUNKADESI
To purchase tickets or more info please cut and paste on the link below:
http://www.chicagohomeless.org/IndexNew.asp
As well as incredible music, the event also features a live and silent auction of unique prizes including:
a helmet signed by the entire CHICAGO BEARS
a guitar signed by the legendary BB KING
a record album signed by the Queen of Soul, ARETHA FRANKLIN
plus GETAWAY PACKAGES, SPORTS TICKETS and MUCH MORE!
January 31, 2007
Volunteers Needed for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Episode
Contacts:
Langston Moore, (601) 573-9467
Ron Chapman, (601) 668-8147
Elizabeth Stephens, (601) 940-2368
Volunteers Needed for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Episode
ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition makes first appearance in Metro
BRANDON, MS- Excitement becomes intense as Extreme Makeover: Home Edition sends the Jones family to Florida for some much needed R&R. Today also marks the start of construction. Thanks to the generosity of Warren Excavation, workers begin the extensive amount of dirt work needed to put the new home on a firm foundation. After the demolition and dirt work, hundreds of volunteers will be needed to assist with construction of the home.
As in all Extreme Makeover: Home Edition builds, volunteers play a crucial role in the building process by assisting with painting and general cleanup tasks. Those interested in volunteering should check in at the volunteer check-in tent located in Brandon’s Shiloh Park. Volunteers must be 18-years or older and must wear closed-toed shoes to the site. Once volunteers check in, they will be given an Extreme Makeover: Home Edition blue t-shirt to keep as a memento of the project and a hard hat for safety. Shuttles will take volunteers from Shiloh Park to the build site.
The general public is encouraged to come watch the progress of the makeover as well as to volunteer. Check in and parking for spectators are located in Brandon’s Shiloh Park, and the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office will be handling traffic and crowd control during the build.
Though many local companies have donated supplies and equipment, donations are still needed. If you are interested in donating snack items and drinks for workers and volunteers, donating money to the family, or volunteering your time, please call the appropriate numbers below. Up-to-date information will be available at www.shoemakerhomes.com.
To volunteer on the build: 601-566-2016
To make food or monetary donations: 601-566-2017
To offer subcontractor services: 601-566-2018
Directions to Shiloh Park:
Driving I-20 east: Take the downtown Brandon exit 56 and proceed east on MS Hwy 80 (right). Drive 1.2 miles through Brandon’s town square to Louis Wilson Blvd. (old Hwy 18) and turn right. Continue 0.4 miles to Shiloh road and turn left. Drive another 0.6 miles, and Shiloh Park will be on your right.
Driving I-20 west: Take the Brandon exit #59 and proceed south on MS Hwy 80 (left). Drive 1.25 miles to Shiloh Parkway and turn left. Continue 0.4 miles to Shiloh Road. The main entrance to Shiloh Park will be in front of you.
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has won back-to-back Emmy Awards as the Best Reality Program (non-competitive) and will enter its 4th season on ABC. The program is produced by Endemol USA, a division of Endemol Holding. David Goldberg is the president of Endemol USA.
Executive producer is Denise Cramsey.
Contacts:
Langston Moore, (601) 573-9467
Ron Chapman, (601) 668-8147
Elizabeth Stephens, (601) 940-2368
Volunteers Needed for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Episode
ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition makes first appearance in Metro
BRANDON, MS- Excitement becomes intense as Extreme Makeover: Home Edition sends the Jones family to Florida for some much needed R&R. Today also marks the start of construction. Thanks to the generosity of Warren Excavation, workers begin the extensive amount of dirt work needed to put the new home on a firm foundation. After the demolition and dirt work, hundreds of volunteers will be needed to assist with construction of the home.
As in all Extreme Makeover: Home Edition builds, volunteers play a crucial role in the building process by assisting with painting and general cleanup tasks. Those interested in volunteering should check in at the volunteer check-in tent located in Brandon’s Shiloh Park. Volunteers must be 18-years or older and must wear closed-toed shoes to the site. Once volunteers check in, they will be given an Extreme Makeover: Home Edition blue t-shirt to keep as a memento of the project and a hard hat for safety. Shuttles will take volunteers from Shiloh Park to the build site.
The general public is encouraged to come watch the progress of the makeover as well as to volunteer. Check in and parking for spectators are located in Brandon’s Shiloh Park, and the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office will be handling traffic and crowd control during the build.
Though many local companies have donated supplies and equipment, donations are still needed. If you are interested in donating snack items and drinks for workers and volunteers, donating money to the family, or volunteering your time, please call the appropriate numbers below. Up-to-date information will be available at www.shoemakerhomes.com.
To volunteer on the build: 601-566-2016
To make food or monetary donations: 601-566-2017
To offer subcontractor services: 601-566-2018
Directions to Shiloh Park:
Driving I-20 east: Take the downtown Brandon exit 56 and proceed east on MS Hwy 80 (right). Drive 1.2 miles through Brandon’s town square to Louis Wilson Blvd. (old Hwy 18) and turn right. Continue 0.4 miles to Shiloh road and turn left. Drive another 0.6 miles, and Shiloh Park will be on your right.
Driving I-20 west: Take the Brandon exit #59 and proceed south on MS Hwy 80 (left). Drive 1.25 miles to Shiloh Parkway and turn left. Continue 0.4 miles to Shiloh Road. The main entrance to Shiloh Park will be in front of you.
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition has won back-to-back Emmy Awards as the Best Reality Program (non-competitive) and will enter its 4th season on ABC. The program is produced by Endemol USA, a division of Endemol Holding. David Goldberg is the president of Endemol USA.
Executive producer is Denise Cramsey.
December 29, 2006
With the beginning of a new year, opportunities abound. Through your skills, you have the potential to create windows of opportunities for others.
Down below are Care Team events for January 2007.
In solidarity,
J
« This is CareTeam January 2007 «
Monday, January 1st
Inspiration Café
4554 N Broadway (just South of Wilson)
Pick your service: Community Mapping or Cooking. Cooking you know about, but Community Mapping? Guests of IC will lead us around the neighborhood to point out the different aspects of Uptown: The good, the unique and all that needs to be improved. When we sit down together, we’ll create a community map of all that we saw, as well as what we’d like to see in the future. A mural? Community garden? Whatever we find out will become our next project.
Community Mapping, 4-5:30pm or
Cooking & Serving, 4:30-7pm
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=010107
Wednesday, January 10th
Living Room Café
806 E 64th St (just East of Cottage Grove)
Guests at LRC want to get in on a mini-(g)love: Passing out CarePacks of gloves, hats, socks, and food to people on the street who need them. Since most of us don’t know the LRC area, we’ll be paired up with guests to hand out CarePacks and start conversations with people we don’t know. If it sounds awkward, it’s because you haven’t tried it.
Mini-(g)love, 4-5:30pm or
Cooking & serving, 4:30-6:30pm
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=011007
Saturday, January 13th
Serve & Socialize, 21+
REST Shelter
941 W Lawrence (just East of Sheridan)
8-10pm; drinks afterwards
Last time we helped serve dinner, we met some other cool volunteers and guests. This time we’re hoping to talk more with the guests – via “Whadda YOU Know?,” a game we’ve completely made up. It’s essentially a mixture of Chicago trivia, Pictionary, and Charades. We’ll break into teams with the guests and see who wins. No mercy allowed.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=011307
Tuesday, January 16th
Dignity Idol
925 W Diversey (just East of Sheffield)
6:30-9pm
As PROMISED!!! Dignity Idol first debuted in August 2006 and established itself as the talent show for Chicago ’s working poor, homeless and volunteers who come around DD to cook and serve dinner. This is our time to showcase talents (and non-talents) to each other. We’re serious when we say this is not a serious thing: If you can sing (badly), play an instrument (barely) or dance, showcase your alternate self at this talent show for the People. Word of caution: Some folks have actual talents. If you’ve got stage fright, come and watch.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=011607
Tuesday, January 16th
Dignity Diner
925 W Diversey (just East of Sheffield)
4:30-6:30pm
If you'd like to come out and help cook dinner with us, you're more than welcome. Help with dinner. Stay for Dignity Idol.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=01160701
Sunday, January 21st
NEW Street Theatre
Meeting location info forthcoming; visit www.careteam.mgrf.org for updates.
10-1pm
People on the streets are not likely to be going to the theatre. That’s why we’re bringing it to them. At 10am we’ll meet up at Columbia College . For one hour we’ll brainstorm basic skit ideas and run through them. At 11am we’ll hit the streets and perform our half-improvised skits to people who could maybe use a little more comedy and a little less drama.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=012107
Sunday, January 28th
(g)love
Meeting location info forthcoming; visit www.careteam.mgrf.org for updates.
10-3pm
If you haven’t been out for (g)love, here’s your chance. On December 17th, 25 of us distributed about 200 CarePacks with gloves, hats, socks, granola bars, soup and crackers. Thanks to all the volunteers who took to trekking the city for over an hour. And, due to your observations, we’ll be playing around with CarePack contents. Meet up with us in the Loop for this next (g)love – exact location to be announced after the holidays – and help pass out a little comfort.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=012807
Please note: Opportunities to be a Volunteer & Event Leader will be sent in a separate email. Feel free to email us with any questions.
Down below are Care Team events for January 2007.
In solidarity,
J
« This is CareTeam January 2007 «
Monday, January 1st
Inspiration Café
4554 N Broadway (just South of Wilson)
Pick your service: Community Mapping or Cooking. Cooking you know about, but Community Mapping? Guests of IC will lead us around the neighborhood to point out the different aspects of Uptown: The good, the unique and all that needs to be improved. When we sit down together, we’ll create a community map of all that we saw, as well as what we’d like to see in the future. A mural? Community garden? Whatever we find out will become our next project.
Community Mapping, 4-5:30pm or
Cooking & Serving, 4:30-7pm
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=010107
Wednesday, January 10th
Living Room Café
806 E 64th St (just East of Cottage Grove)
Guests at LRC want to get in on a mini-(g)love: Passing out CarePacks of gloves, hats, socks, and food to people on the street who need them. Since most of us don’t know the LRC area, we’ll be paired up with guests to hand out CarePacks and start conversations with people we don’t know. If it sounds awkward, it’s because you haven’t tried it.
Mini-(g)love, 4-5:30pm or
Cooking & serving, 4:30-6:30pm
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=011007
Saturday, January 13th
Serve & Socialize, 21+
REST Shelter
941 W Lawrence (just East of Sheridan)
8-10pm; drinks afterwards
Last time we helped serve dinner, we met some other cool volunteers and guests. This time we’re hoping to talk more with the guests – via “Whadda YOU Know?,” a game we’ve completely made up. It’s essentially a mixture of Chicago trivia, Pictionary, and Charades. We’ll break into teams with the guests and see who wins. No mercy allowed.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=011307
Tuesday, January 16th
Dignity Idol
925 W Diversey (just East of Sheffield)
6:30-9pm
As PROMISED!!! Dignity Idol first debuted in August 2006 and established itself as the talent show for Chicago ’s working poor, homeless and volunteers who come around DD to cook and serve dinner. This is our time to showcase talents (and non-talents) to each other. We’re serious when we say this is not a serious thing: If you can sing (badly), play an instrument (barely) or dance
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=011607
Tuesday, January 16th
Dignity Diner
925 W Diversey (just East of Sheffield)
4:30-6:30pm
If you'd like to come out and help cook dinner with us, you're more than welcome. Help with dinner. Stay for Dignity Idol.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=01160701
Sunday, January 21st
NEW Street Theatre
Meeting location info forthcoming; visit www.careteam.mgrf.org for updates.
10-1pm
People on the streets are not likely to be going to the theatre. That’s why we’re bringing it to them. At 10am we’ll meet up at Columbia College . For one hour we’ll brainstorm basic skit ideas and run through them. At 11am we’ll hit the streets and perform our half-improvised skits to people who could maybe use a little more comedy and a little less drama.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=012107
Sunday, January 28th
(g)love
Meeting location info forthcoming; visit www.careteam.mgrf.org for updates.
10-3pm
If you haven’t been out for (g)love, here’s your chance. On December 17th, 25 of us distributed about 200 CarePacks with gloves, hats, socks, granola bars, soup and crackers. Thanks to all the volunteers who took to trekking the city for over an hour. And, due to your observations, we’ll be playing around with CarePack contents. Meet up with us in the Loop for this next (g)love – exact location to be announced after the holidays – and help pass out a little comfort.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=012807
Please note: Opportunities to be a Volunteer & Event Leader will be sent in a separate email. Feel free to email us with any questions.
December 13, 2006
P,
Thank you for being you!
J
A Parable of Heaven and Hell
There once was a devoted priest who wished to see both heaven and hell, and God gave way to his pleading.
The priest found himself before a door which bore no name. He trembled as he saw it open before him into a large room where all was prepared for a feast. There was a table, and at its centre a great dish of steaming food. The smell and the aroma inflamed the appetite.
Diners sat around the table with great spoons in their hands, yet they were shrieking with hunger in that terrible place. They tried to feed themselves, and gave up, cursing God, for the spoons that God had provided were so long that they could not reach their faces and get the food to their tongues. So they starved, while their dish of plenty lay amongst them. The priest knew their screams were the cries of hell, and as this understanding came, the door closed before him.
He shut his eyes in prayer and begged God to take him away from that terrible place. When he opened them again, he despaired, for the same door stood before him, the door that bore no name. Again it opened, and it gave onto the same room. Nothing had changed, and he was about to cry in horror. There was the table, and at its centre the steaming dish, and around it were the same people, and in their hands the same spoons.
Yet the shrieking had gone, and the cries and the curses had changed to blessings; and nothing had changed, yet everything. For with the same long spoons they reached to each other's mouths and fed one another, and they gave thanks to God.
And as the priest heard the blessings, the door closed. He fell to his knees, and he too blessed God who had shown him the nature of heaven and hell, and the chasm - a hair's breadth wide - that divides them.
Author unknown
There once was a devoted priest who wished to see both heaven and hell, and God gave way to his pleading.
The priest found himself before a door which bore no name. He trembled as he saw it open before him into a large room where all was prepared for a feast. There was a table, and at its centre a great dish of steaming food. The smell and the aroma inflamed the appetite.
Diners sat around the table with great spoons in their hands, yet they were shrieking with hunger in that terrible place. They tried to feed themselves, and gave up, cursing God, for the spoons that God had provided were so long that they could not reach their faces and get the food to their tongues. So they starved, while their dish of plenty lay amongst them. The priest knew their screams were the cries of hell, and as this understanding came, the door closed before him.
He shut his eyes in prayer and begged God to take him away from that terrible place. When he opened them again, he despaired, for the same door stood before him, the door that bore no name. Again it opened, and it gave onto the same room. Nothing had changed, and he was about to cry in horror. There was the table, and at its centre the steaming dish, and around it were the same people, and in their hands the same spoons.
Yet the shrieking had gone, and the cries and the curses had changed to blessings; and nothing had changed, yet everything. For with the same long spoons they reached to each other's mouths and fed one another, and they gave thanks to God.
And as the priest heard the blessings, the door closed. He fell to his knees, and he too blessed God who had shown him the nature of heaven and hell, and the chasm - a hair's breadth wide - that divides them.
Author unknown
November 30, 2006
Hey Everyone:
I hope all is well with all of you.
If you happen to live in the Chicagoland area, please consider volunteering alongside the CARE Team. (Don't make me give you my you-should-get-off-your-pity-partying-bootie-and-volunteer schpeel!) Prior to moving to Mississippi, I was a CARE Team member and loved every second of it! I deeply miss all of you guys!!! Anyway, down below is a listing of several events the CARE Team will sponsor for December. I will also post all future events on this blog.
In cooperation,
Justina
P.S.: You can electronically sign up for any of these volunteer opportunities by cutting and pasting the URL of your interest! Once I figure out how to create a direct link ... don't hold your breath on that one!!
NEW: Serve & Socialize (21+, please)
Saturday, December 9th
REST Shelter
941 W Lawrence (b/n Sheridan and Lake Shore Dr )
8pm until Exhaustion sets in
From 8 to 10pm we’re volunteering at REST Shelter, serving dinner to homeless patrons who drop by. Or just sit and talk or start a card game with people. Afterwards, we’re heading to a local venue to hang out and get some conversation going. This is for all of you who’re looking to meet people who like to volunteer. Or pretend to.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=120906
Living Room Café
Wednesday, December 13th
806 E 64th St (just East of Cottage Grove)
4-6:30pm
Who needs ornaments? Before the usual dinner-making, a little Christmas gaudiness is in order. We bring the supplies, you bring the gaudiness. We’re making Christmas ornaments!
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=121306
BACK AGAIN: G(L)ove
Sunday, December 17th
CareTeam Central
6348 N Milwaukee (just West of Cicero)
10-2pm
After organizing ourselves at CareTeam Central, we’ll split into groups, walking different Chicago neighborhoods to hand out Care Packs (warm weather gear, food & toiletries) directly to individuals in need. Dress warmly! Party afterwards.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=121706
Uhlich Children’s Advantage Network Holiday Party
Tuesday, December 19th
217 N Jefferson St, 2nd Flr (just North of Lake)
4-7pm
UCAN’s having a party for all its kids and we’re invited! Assist with party set up, distribute food and gifts, and help clean up.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=121906
Marah’s
Thursday, December 28th
1456 W Oakdale (b/n Ashland and Southport )
4:30-7:30pm
A little bird told us about this game called Bingo. We’re playing it after dinner. With prizes. Don’t be intimidated – come out, cook some dinner with us and play some Bingo.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=122806
*NEWSFLASH* Become a Volunteer & Event Leader!
Ever volunteered somewhere and thought, “I could lead this event”? That’s because you probably could. And now you can.
CareTeam’s offering you the chance to lead a volunteer event that you choose and can help design. Can’t think of a particular event you’d like to lead? Choose from the list below and contact us!
Ronald McDonald House
Tuesday, December 5th
5736 S Drexel (um, between 57th and 58th)
4-7pm
Guide a group of volunteers through cooking a meal for families of sick children who stay at Ronald McDonald House. (We provide the food.)
Lead this event: Email jessica@mgrf.org
NEW: Deborah’s Place
Friday, December 8th
2822 W Jackson (b/n Francisco and California )
1-3pm
Guide a group of volunteers through sorting gifts for the women of Deborah’s Place and help them learn about what Deborah’s Place actually does.
Lead this event: Email jessica@mgrf.org
NEW: Chicago Women’s AIDS Project
Saturday, December 16th
514 E 50th Place (just East of Vincennes)
9-12 noon
Guide a group of volunteers through making a small breakfast spread and encourage them to listen to the stories of how the women live with HIV. (We provide the food.)
Lead this event: Email jessica@mgrf.org
I hope all is well with all of you.
If you happen to live in the Chicagoland area, please consider volunteering alongside the CARE Team. (Don't make me give you my you-should-get-off-your-pity-partying-bootie-and-volunteer schpeel!) Prior to moving to Mississippi, I was a CARE Team member and loved every second of it! I deeply miss all of you guys!!! Anyway, down below is a listing of several events the CARE Team will sponsor for December. I will also post all future events on this blog.
In cooperation,
Justina
P.S.: You can electronically sign up for any of these volunteer opportunities by cutting and pasting the URL of your interest! Once I figure out how to create a direct link ... don't hold your breath on that one!!
NEW: Serve & Socialize (21+, please)
Saturday, December 9th
REST Shelter
941 W Lawrence (b/n Sheridan and Lake Shore Dr )
8pm until Exhaustion sets in
From 8 to 10pm we’re volunteering at REST Shelter, serving dinner to homeless patrons who drop by. Or just sit and talk or start a card game with people. Afterwards, we’re heading to a local venue to hang out and get some conversation going. This is for all of you who’re looking to meet people who like to volunteer. Or pretend to.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=120906
Living Room Café
Wednesday, December 13th
806 E 64th St (just East of Cottage Grove)
4-6:30pm
Who needs ornaments? Before the usual dinner-making, a little Christmas gaudiness is in order. We bring the supplies, you bring the gaudiness. We’re making Christmas ornaments!
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=121306
BACK AGAIN: G(L)ove
Sunday, December 17th
CareTeam Central
6348 N Milwaukee (just West of Cicero)
10-2pm
After organizing ourselves at CareTeam Central, we’ll split into groups, walking different Chicago neighborhoods to hand out Care Packs (warm weather gear, food & toiletries) directly to individuals in need. Dress warmly! Party afterwards.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=121706
Uhlich Children’s Advantage Network Holiday Party
Tuesday, December 19th
217 N Jefferson St, 2nd Flr (just North of Lake)
4-7pm
UCAN’s having a party for all its kids and we’re invited! Assist with party set up, distribute food and gifts, and help clean up.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=121906
Marah’s
Thursday, December 28th
1456 W Oakdale (b/n Ashland and Southport )
4:30-7:30pm
A little bird told us about this game called Bingo. We’re playing it after dinner. With prizes. Don’t be intimidated – come out, cook some dinner with us and play some Bingo.
Sign up: http://www.careteam.mgrf.org/events/events.asp?eventcode=122806
*NEWSFLASH* Become a Volunteer & Event Leader!
Ever volunteered somewhere and thought, “I could lead this event”? That’s because you probably could. And now you can.
CareTeam’s offering you the chance to lead a volunteer event that you choose and can help design. Can’t think of a particular event you’d like to lead? Choose from the list below and contact us!
Ronald McDonald House
Tuesday, December 5th
5736 S Drexel (um, between 57th and 58th)
4-7pm
Guide a group of volunteers through cooking a meal for families of sick children who stay at Ronald McDonald House. (We provide the food.)
Lead this event: Email jessica@mgrf.org
NEW: Deborah’s Place
Friday, December 8th
2822 W Jackson (b/n Francisco and California )
1-3pm
Guide a group of volunteers through sorting gifts for the women of Deborah’s Place and help them learn about what Deborah’s Place actually does.
Lead this event: Email jessica@mgrf.org
NEW: Chicago Women’s AIDS Project
Saturday, December 16th
514 E 50th Place (just East of Vincennes)
9-12 noon
Guide a group of volunteers through making a small breakfast spread and encourage them to listen to the stories of how the women live with HIV. (We provide the food.)
Lead this event: Email jessica@mgrf.org
November 07, 2006
Are You a "Dee Dee Dee"?
The following video link is a clip of "Dee Dee Dee" from Carlos Mencia's Mind of Mencia on Comedy Central. It's bound to be offensive to some -- click at your own risk!
Carlos Mencia Dee Dee Dee Song (Greatest Song Ever)
Add to My Profile | More Videos
The following video link is a clip of "Dee Dee Dee" from Carlos Mencia's Mind of Mencia on Comedy Central. It's bound to be offensive to some -- click at your own risk!
Carlos Mencia Dee Dee Dee Song (Greatest Song Ever)
Add to My Profile | More Videos
October 30, 2006
Hey Everyone:
If you happen to be in Chicago this month, I highly recommend you go to the Jeff Buckley Tribute Event. You'll be able to find more information below. If by chance I don't get to go, let me know how it all went down.
Peace,
Justina
Uncommon Ground JB Tribute
*******************************************
9TH ANNUAL JEFF BUCKLEY TRIBUTE EVENT
UNCOMMON GROUND - CHICAGO
BY CONSTANCE DILLON
*******************************************
The Uncommon Ground coffee house in Chicago will hold their 9th annual Jeff Buckley tribute Wednesday, Nov. 15 and Thursday, Nov, 16. Jeff's solo performance there one snowy February night in 1994 was called "the best concert of the year" by Chicago Tribune writer Greg Kot. Artists from all over the world have been similarly inspired Jeff and many have been drawn to this event to share that spark with others.
One of the premier Buckley birthday events, Uncommon Ground's two-night celebration of Jeff and his legacy has the support of Jeff' mother, Mary Guibert. Those performing at the event this year were chosen from musicians who submitted material to the Sonicbids Web site. All proceeds will benefit Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music Scholarship Fund which allows musicians of all ages to attend classes they might not otherwise be able to afford. Nov. 17, 2006, marks the 40th anniversary of Jeff's birth.
Here is the 9th Annual Jeff Buckley Tribute Concert Line-Up:
Erin McKeown (special featured artist)
Dorothy Scott (special featured artist)
Claudia Macori
Old Dog Music
Cynthia Lin
Julie Montgomery
Leeni
Mike Mangione
Company of Thieves
Laura Scarborough
Ivari
Mike Borgia
Spencer Michaud
April Smith
Peter Maine
Catherine Harrison
Uncommon Ground
3800 n. clark street
Chicago, IL
venue phone: (773) 929-3680
If you happen to be in Chicago this month, I highly recommend you go to the Jeff Buckley Tribute Event. You'll be able to find more information below. If by chance I don't get to go, let me know how it all went down.
Peace,
Justina
Uncommon Ground JB Tribute
*******************************************
9TH ANNUAL JEFF BUCKLEY TRIBUTE EVENT
UNCOMMON GROUND - CHICAGO
BY CONSTANCE DILLON
*******************************************
The Uncommon Ground coffee house in Chicago will hold their 9th annual Jeff Buckley tribute Wednesday, Nov. 15 and Thursday, Nov, 16. Jeff's solo performance there one snowy February night in 1994 was called "the best concert of the year" by Chicago Tribune writer Greg Kot. Artists from all over the world have been similarly inspired Jeff and many have been drawn to this event to share that spark with others.
One of the premier Buckley birthday events, Uncommon Ground's two-night celebration of Jeff and his legacy has the support of Jeff' mother, Mary Guibert. Those performing at the event this year were chosen from musicians who submitted material to the Sonicbids Web site. All proceeds will benefit Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music Scholarship Fund which allows musicians of all ages to attend classes they might not otherwise be able to afford. Nov. 17, 2006, marks the 40th anniversary of Jeff's birth.
Here is the 9th Annual Jeff Buckley Tribute Concert Line-Up:
Erin McKeown (special featured artist)
Dorothy Scott (special featured artist)
Claudia Macori
Old Dog Music
Cynthia Lin
Julie Montgomery
Leeni
Mike Mangione
Company of Thieves
Laura Scarborough
Ivari
Mike Borgia
Spencer Michaud
April Smith
Peter Maine
Catherine Harrison
Uncommon Ground
3800 n. clark street
Chicago, IL
venue phone: (773) 929-3680
October 26, 2006
Globeerization?
The following article was sent to me via a friend.
Salut!
Justina
The Perils of Globeerization
Chris O'Brien October 24, 2006
Editor: John Feffer, IRC
Foreign Policy In Focus
http://www.fpif.org/
The world's cup runneth over with living beer traditions. But this vast repository of cultural brewing capital is under attack by global corporations. The top five brewing companies, all of which are American- or European-owned, control 41% of the world market. Perversely, economists and politicians calculate the conquest by industrial breweries as economic growth while the value of small-scale traditional brewing goes uncounted. Much will be lost if this global “beerodiversity” is lost to the forces of corporate-led homogenization.
The globalization of beer not only destroys the social, spiritual, and health-related benefits of small-scale home beer production. It also undercuts the vital role that home brewing plays in sustainable development throughout the world. For 10,000 years, brewing has been conducted at home, primarily by women, who were entrusted with safeguarding traditions that strengthen social bonds and build community identity. As an important component of diet, beer was distributed by female household heads according to the values of the community, which moderated consumption to socially acceptable levels. As an inherently small-scale and local endeavor, brewing also has had a low impact on environmental resources, relying on renewable energy sources and requiring little or no packaging or shipping.
African Traditions
Despite the seemingly inexorable march of the global corporate beer industry, many African brewing traditions persist in the hands of rural women who brew at home. Throughout Africa, most brewing and drinking still occurs in the home, among family, and within the boundaries of community standards. Four times more homebrew than commercial-industrial brews is sold in Africa, which doesn't even include the great volumes of homebrewed beer consumed outside the cash economy. Women across sub-Saharan Africa use native grains like sorghum, millet, and teff, to brew drinks like rammoora, farsi, changaa, tella, and countless other uniquely African beer styles, often using homegrown and hand-malted brewing grains and handpicked herbs and spices.
This brewing provides a degree of economic empowerment to millions of African women. A study conducted in Uganda and Kenya found that 80% of the women included in the survey brewed beer, and about half of them had brewed beer for sale at some point in their lives. According to the survey, very few men brewed, and virtually none of them ever brewed beer for sale. Yet, men were found to account for a majority of the consumption. In this way, home-brewing beer accords women a degree of social and economic influence, helping to maintain a peaceful balance of power between the genders, providing women with a source of income and respect within the household.
Unfortunately, brewing traditions like these mostly go unnoticed and undervalued by scholars, economists, and policymakers. The little attention traditional drinks do attract tends to be negative. The development community typically regards traditional drinks as distasteful novelties at best and as destructive distractions at worst. Aid workers in Kenya, for example, have called for the prosecution of women who brew changaa, for reasons of public health and sanitation. Meanwhile, Kenya's main industrial brewing company has become part-owned by Diageo, the world's largest beer, wine, and spirits company, and SABMiller, the world's third largest brewing concern.
Africans, especially men, are fleeing the countryside in large numbers, seeking opportunity in cities. Those who find small success in the cash economy reach for a gleaming bottle of industrial beer as a low-cost symbol of their participation in the modern economy. Many more, though, find grinding poverty in Africa's megalopolises. Even the relatively inexpensive bottle of lager is out of reach for the many who resort to cheaper, highly potent modern versions of traditional drinks in desperate attempts to escape urban misery. Scenes of pre–Prohibition America and gin-soaked 18 th -century London are today being replayed in urbanizing Africa. Hard drinking is on the increase, while community and family disintegrate under the pressures of globalization.
Such scenes are found around the developing world. In South America, chicha, a traditional corn-based beer brewed by women, has become relatively scarce as industrial beers produced by global brewing companies fill the market created by the same urbanizing and modernization pressures felt in Africa. Traditional rice beers in Asia are only hanging on as western-owned brewing corporations move into the market. China in particular is at risk of losing its brewing traditions as foreign companies such as InBev buy up local breweries, temporarily making industrial beers cheaper and more attractive than traditional beers.
Regulations are necessary to prevent the predatory practices of corporate brewers and to preserve the role that indigenous brews play in sustainable development. Indeed, there is a long and noble tradition of just such regulatory practices that stretches back into the very origins of human society.
Effervescent Growth
The Sumerians, circa 4,000 BCE, established the world's first urban trading society by growing surpluses of barley and emmer wheat, which they fermented into copious supplies of beer for their own consumption as well as for trade with neighbors. Sumerians, and their successors the Babylonians, adopted policies to promote and regulate the beer trade, such as the Code of Hammurabi, which dealt specifically with matters regarding beer (and the agriculture that made it possible), fixing a fair price per unit, and setting daily rations for workers, civil servants, and religious ministers. It was a recipe for success. Sumer and Babylonia thrived for over three millennia.
Egypt followed suit, constructing a powerful civilization fueled largely by promoting the growth of brewing and trading beer. The pyramids were essentially vast beer storerooms, symbolizing Egypt's power over its neighbors, with whom they conducted large-scale trade in grains and beer. Brewing, and its regulation, eventually spread north into Europe where it became progressively more controlled and regulated by church and state.
In 1516, the city of Ingolstadt issued the Reinheitsgebot, or purity law, governing the production and sale of beer in the Duchy of Bavaria. The law effectively excluded foreign and small-scale domestic brewers by banning the ingredients customarily used in their beers. This law was finally repealed as the result of a 1987 European Court ruling, by which time it had become the world's longest-standing food regulation. During the intervening half millennium, Germany became the world's premier beer-producing country, in part because it had protected domestic brewers from foreign competitors.
Beer was similarly important to America's success. The Pilgrims, who quickly adapted to locally available brewing ingredients, eventually became heavily dependent on British beer imports because their population grew faster than their ability to produce adequate volumes of beer. This colonial economic dependence became a key lever in the war for independence. George Washington himself devised strategies for the brewing industry to help loose the yolk of Britain's economic enslavement.
Washington, whose penchant for English-brewed porter beer is well-documented, made the ultimate patriotic sacrifice when he supported the non–consumption agreement, a bill drafted by fellow patriot Samuel Adams (whose name now graces the labels of America's leading craft beer). The agreement encouraged the colonial population to abstain from imported goods such as ale and encouraged the consumption of American-brewed beer.
After the Revolution, brewers carried banners in victory parades proclaiming, “Home Brew'd Is Best.” Washington immediately set about crafting policies to stimulate local brewing, exclaiming: “We have already been too long subject to British Prejudices. I use no porter or cheese in my family, but that which is made in America …” In 1789, James Madison designed one of the first bills passed by the new House of Representatives to keep taxes low on beer production in order to trigger local brewing. Less than a hundred years later, in 1873, America could boast 4,131 commercial breweries, plus countless private home breweries.
The Return of T'ej
While both Europe and the United States currently support thousands of microbrews, their domestically spawned global beer corporations are destroying those same traditions in other countries by dumping low-cost product on the market and driving out local competitors. Fortunately, local and national brewers in the Third World are fighting back.
Consider the case of Ethiopian t'ej and tella. T'ej, Ethiopia's national drink, mixes fermented honey with a variety of herbs and sometimes fruits. Historically, t'ej drinking was reserved exclusively for royalty, but eventually it became a drink enjoyed by all on special occasions. Female household heads brewed t'ej for weddings, naming ceremonies, religious holidays, and other celebrations. Tella is for common drinking, brewed from locally grown grains and flavored with an indigenous plant called gesho, which has been shown to have medicinal benefits.
The brewing of tella is still widespread, especially in rural homes, where women earn a modest income from brewing as an occasional trade. In the city though, industrial beers have taken root. Although all five of the country's industrial breweries have been government-owned, the French brewing conglomerate BGI recently bought St. George Brewery in Addis Ababa. Although beer judges rate its product as by far the worst of Ethiopia's industrial beers, it has nonetheless quickly come to dominate the market due to inflated advertising budgets and artificially low prices.
The following article was sent to me via a friend.
Salut!
Justina
The Perils of Globeerization
Chris O'Brien October 24, 2006
Editor: John Feffer, IRC
Foreign Policy In Focus
http://www.fpif.org/
The world's cup runneth over with living beer traditions. But this vast repository of cultural brewing capital is under attack by global corporations. The top five brewing companies, all of which are American- or European-owned, control 41% of the world market. Perversely, economists and politicians calculate the conquest by industrial breweries as economic growth while the value of small-scale traditional brewing goes uncounted. Much will be lost if this global “beerodiversity” is lost to the forces of corporate-led homogenization.
The globalization of beer not only destroys the social, spiritual, and health-related benefits of small-scale home beer production. It also undercuts the vital role that home brewing plays in sustainable development throughout the world. For 10,000 years, brewing has been conducted at home, primarily by women, who were entrusted with safeguarding traditions that strengthen social bonds and build community identity. As an important component of diet, beer was distributed by female household heads according to the values of the community, which moderated consumption to socially acceptable levels. As an inherently small-scale and local endeavor, brewing also has had a low impact on environmental resources, relying on renewable energy sources and requiring little or no packaging or shipping.
African Traditions
Despite the seemingly inexorable march of the global corporate beer industry, many African brewing traditions persist in the hands of rural women who brew at home. Throughout Africa, most brewing and drinking still occurs in the home, among family, and within the boundaries of community standards. Four times more homebrew than commercial-industrial brews is sold in Africa, which doesn't even include the great volumes of homebrewed beer consumed outside the cash economy. Women across sub-Saharan Africa use native grains like sorghum, millet, and teff, to brew drinks like rammoora, farsi, changaa, tella, and countless other uniquely African beer styles, often using homegrown and hand-malted brewing grains and handpicked herbs and spices.
This brewing provides a degree of economic empowerment to millions of African women. A study conducted in Uganda and Kenya found that 80% of the women included in the survey brewed beer, and about half of them had brewed beer for sale at some point in their lives. According to the survey, very few men brewed, and virtually none of them ever brewed beer for sale. Yet, men were found to account for a majority of the consumption. In this way, home-brewing beer accords women a degree of social and economic influence, helping to maintain a peaceful balance of power between the genders, providing women with a source of income and respect within the household.
Unfortunately, brewing traditions like these mostly go unnoticed and undervalued by scholars, economists, and policymakers. The little attention traditional drinks do attract tends to be negative. The development community typically regards traditional drinks as distasteful novelties at best and as destructive distractions at worst. Aid workers in Kenya, for example, have called for the prosecution of women who brew changaa, for reasons of public health and sanitation. Meanwhile, Kenya's main industrial brewing company has become part-owned by Diageo, the world's largest beer, wine, and spirits company, and SABMiller, the world's third largest brewing concern.
Africans, especially men, are fleeing the countryside in large numbers, seeking opportunity in cities. Those who find small success in the cash economy reach for a gleaming bottle of industrial beer as a low-cost symbol of their participation in the modern economy. Many more, though, find grinding poverty in Africa's megalopolises. Even the relatively inexpensive bottle of lager is out of reach for the many who resort to cheaper, highly potent modern versions of traditional drinks in desperate attempts to escape urban misery. Scenes of pre–Prohibition America and gin-soaked 18 th -century London are today being replayed in urbanizing Africa. Hard drinking is on the increase, while community and family disintegrate under the pressures of globalization.
Such scenes are found around the developing world. In South America, chicha, a traditional corn-based beer brewed by women, has become relatively scarce as industrial beers produced by global brewing companies fill the market created by the same urbanizing and modernization pressures felt in Africa. Traditional rice beers in Asia are only hanging on as western-owned brewing corporations move into the market. China in particular is at risk of losing its brewing traditions as foreign companies such as InBev buy up local breweries, temporarily making industrial beers cheaper and more attractive than traditional beers.
Regulations are necessary to prevent the predatory practices of corporate brewers and to preserve the role that indigenous brews play in sustainable development. Indeed, there is a long and noble tradition of just such regulatory practices that stretches back into the very origins of human society.
Effervescent Growth
The Sumerians, circa 4,000 BCE, established the world's first urban trading society by growing surpluses of barley and emmer wheat, which they fermented into copious supplies of beer for their own consumption as well as for trade with neighbors. Sumerians, and their successors the Babylonians, adopted policies to promote and regulate the beer trade, such as the Code of Hammurabi, which dealt specifically with matters regarding beer (and the agriculture that made it possible), fixing a fair price per unit, and setting daily rations for workers, civil servants, and religious ministers. It was a recipe for success. Sumer and Babylonia thrived for over three millennia.
Egypt followed suit, constructing a powerful civilization fueled largely by promoting the growth of brewing and trading beer. The pyramids were essentially vast beer storerooms, symbolizing Egypt's power over its neighbors, with whom they conducted large-scale trade in grains and beer. Brewing, and its regulation, eventually spread north into Europe where it became progressively more controlled and regulated by church and state.
In 1516, the city of Ingolstadt issued the Reinheitsgebot, or purity law, governing the production and sale of beer in the Duchy of Bavaria. The law effectively excluded foreign and small-scale domestic brewers by banning the ingredients customarily used in their beers. This law was finally repealed as the result of a 1987 European Court ruling, by which time it had become the world's longest-standing food regulation. During the intervening half millennium, Germany became the world's premier beer-producing country, in part because it had protected domestic brewers from foreign competitors.
Beer was similarly important to America's success. The Pilgrims, who quickly adapted to locally available brewing ingredients, eventually became heavily dependent on British beer imports because their population grew faster than their ability to produce adequate volumes of beer. This colonial economic dependence became a key lever in the war for independence. George Washington himself devised strategies for the brewing industry to help loose the yolk of Britain's economic enslavement.
Washington, whose penchant for English-brewed porter beer is well-documented, made the ultimate patriotic sacrifice when he supported the non–consumption agreement, a bill drafted by fellow patriot Samuel Adams (whose name now graces the labels of America's leading craft beer). The agreement encouraged the colonial population to abstain from imported goods such as ale and encouraged the consumption of American-brewed beer.
After the Revolution, brewers carried banners in victory parades proclaiming, “Home Brew'd Is Best.” Washington immediately set about crafting policies to stimulate local brewing, exclaiming: “We have already been too long subject to British Prejudices. I use no porter or cheese in my family, but that which is made in America …” In 1789, James Madison designed one of the first bills passed by the new House of Representatives to keep taxes low on beer production in order to trigger local brewing. Less than a hundred years later, in 1873, America could boast 4,131 commercial breweries, plus countless private home breweries.
The Return of T'ej
While both Europe and the United States currently support thousands of microbrews, their domestically spawned global beer corporations are destroying those same traditions in other countries by dumping low-cost product on the market and driving out local competitors. Fortunately, local and national brewers in the Third World are fighting back.
Consider the case of Ethiopian t'ej and tella. T'ej, Ethiopia's national drink, mixes fermented honey with a variety of herbs and sometimes fruits. Historically, t'ej drinking was reserved exclusively for royalty, but eventually it became a drink enjoyed by all on special occasions. Female household heads brewed t'ej for weddings, naming ceremonies, religious holidays, and other celebrations. Tella is for common drinking, brewed from locally grown grains and flavored with an indigenous plant called gesho, which has been shown to have medicinal benefits.
The brewing of tella is still widespread, especially in rural homes, where women earn a modest income from brewing as an occasional trade. In the city though, industrial beers have taken root. Although all five of the country's industrial breweries have been government-owned, the French brewing conglomerate BGI recently bought St. George Brewery in Addis Ababa. Although beer judges rate its product as by far the worst of Ethiopia's industrial beers, it has nonetheless quickly come to dominate the market due to inflated advertising budgets and artificially low prices.
Partly as a result of this marketing, many urban Ethiopians have come to regard tella as hopelessly provincial. Urbanites differentiate themselves from their poor rural countrymen by choosing the bland foreign-owned, factory-made beer over the homemade stuff. The fate of t'ej has been even worse. T'ej is stronger than industrial beer and much cheaper than imported spirits, so it has slowly become the drink of choice for impoverished men—the same refugees from the country-side who seek economic opportunity in the city, but instead find unemployment, loneliness, and despair. Nowadays, t'ej is more often associated with excessive drinking sessions in debauched t'ej halls than with royal ceremony. Having lost much of its dignified luster, the quality of t'ej has also plummeted. Processed sugar often replaces honey as the source of fermentation, and chemical food colorings are used to approximate the yellow glow that comes when real honey is used.
This degradation of t'ej inspired Ato Dereje, a recently returned Ethiopian expatriate, to start a company called Tizeta T'ej. Dereje believes that it is possible for t'ej to retain what's left of its respectability and even to regain an esteemed place within Ethiopian culture. His approach is to maintain strict standards of 100% honey formulations and to give the beverage an attractive wine-like packaging, with labels indicating alcoholic strength so that customers can choose lower alcohol versions. Dereje holds that t'ej must exude a sophisticated image, appealing to mature customers that can still recall the days when the drink held a place of honor at high occasions.
His line of Tizeta T'ej is now marketed through grocery stores and restaurants around Addis Ababa, marking the first real attempt to bring t'ej into a modern economy where it can compete against expensive imported wines and liquors, while promoting a uniquely Ethiopian drinking custom. His efforts thus far have proven successful, and he is now looking forward to the day when, just like bottles of merlot, his t'ej is exported around the world to connoisseurs of excellent, regionally distinctive drinks. As a locally-owned business using locally-produced ingredients for a traditional drink, Tizeta T'ej serves as a model of how indigenous brewing traditions can serve as both cultural and economic capital.
Dereje's early success can be attributed at least in part to the fact that Ethiopia has been late to adopt policies that open its markets to foreign imports, ownership, and investments. Other African countries, which succumbed to the pressure of multilateral financing institutions and neoliberal trade policies, have not fared as well. Burkina Faso, where the locally brewed sorghum beer, rammoora, is forced to compete against a corporate monopoly created when the country's only industrial brewery was virtually given away to the same French company that now has a foothold in Ethiopia's brewing sector. Industrial beer can now be found in any corner shop in Ouagadougou, while rammoora brewers, lacking an infrastructure of support, are literally relegated to back alleys.
Brewing Solutions
As Herman Daly wrote in the September 2006 issue of Orion magazine, “Globalization serves not community among nations, but corporate individualism on a global scale.” So how might we protect local, traditional beers from “globeerization?” Daly contends we need “a new protectionism that protects us not from efficient competitors but from destructive, standards-lowering competition.” Emerging economies should utilize tariffs to counter-balance unfair advantages gained by countries that externalize social and environmental costs and rely on heavily subsidized agriculture and artificially low fossil-fuel energy costs.
This degradation of t'ej inspired Ato Dereje, a recently returned Ethiopian expatriate, to start a company called Tizeta T'ej. Dereje believes that it is possible for t'ej to retain what's left of its respectability and even to regain an esteemed place within Ethiopian culture. His approach is to maintain strict standards of 100% honey formulations and to give the beverage an attractive wine-like packaging, with labels indicating alcoholic strength so that customers can choose lower alcohol versions. Dereje holds that t'ej must exude a sophisticated image, appealing to mature customers that can still recall the days when the drink held a place of honor at high occasions.
His line of Tizeta T'ej is now marketed through grocery stores and restaurants around Addis Ababa, marking the first real attempt to bring t'ej into a modern economy where it can compete against expensive imported wines and liquors, while promoting a uniquely Ethiopian drinking custom. His efforts thus far have proven successful, and he is now looking forward to the day when, just like bottles of merlot, his t'ej is exported around the world to connoisseurs of excellent, regionally distinctive drinks. As a locally-owned business using locally-produced ingredients for a traditional drink, Tizeta T'ej serves as a model of how indigenous brewing traditions can serve as both cultural and economic capital.
Dereje's early success can be attributed at least in part to the fact that Ethiopia has been late to adopt policies that open its markets to foreign imports, ownership, and investments. Other African countries, which succumbed to the pressure of multilateral financing institutions and neoliberal trade policies, have not fared as well. Burkina Faso, where the locally brewed sorghum beer, rammoora, is forced to compete against a corporate monopoly created when the country's only industrial brewery was virtually given away to the same French company that now has a foothold in Ethiopia's brewing sector. Industrial beer can now be found in any corner shop in Ouagadougou, while rammoora brewers, lacking an infrastructure of support, are literally relegated to back alleys.
Brewing Solutions
As Herman Daly wrote in the September 2006 issue of Orion magazine, “Globalization serves not community among nations, but corporate individualism on a global scale.” So how might we protect local, traditional beers from “globeerization?” Daly contends we need “a new protectionism that protects us not from efficient competitors but from destructive, standards-lowering competition.” Emerging economies should utilize tariffs to counter-balance unfair advantages gained by countries that externalize social and environmental costs and rely on heavily subsidized agriculture and artificially low fossil-fuel energy costs.
Government-backed export investment and foreign credit, and huge agricultural subsidies, continue to help American and European multinational brewers enter and dominate developing markets. Industrial products compete for market share against traditional, indigenous beers that, when gone, will have taken important cultural capital with them. Domestic policies that favor small-scale, local production, just like the ones that now support the American craft-brewing renaissance, must be applied to foreign policy as well. Policies that burden small brewers with regulations must be reduced or removed, while tax incentives and public giveaways to industrial brewers are halted. Proven strategies can be used for promoting small business, such as low-interest loans and other community investments tools. Small-scale technology and structures must be prioritized in order to benefit the greatest number of domestic brewers, while subsidies favoring large-scale production and distribution should be eliminated.
What we stand to lose is more than just a tantalizing array of exotic beers. As is usually the case, women stand to suffer the most, since they will lose control over drinking when industrial products owned by foreign corporations replace their homebrews. If traditional drinks disappear around the world, the societies that produce them will lose a part of their identity as well as the intellectual property that can serve as a wellspring for future economic growth.
Chris O'Brien combines two favorite things: drinking beer and saving the world. He is author of the new book Fermenting Revolution: How to Drink Beer and Save the World, and serves as director of the Responsible Purchasing Network at the Center for a New American Dream.
What we stand to lose is more than just a tantalizing array of exotic beers. As is usually the case, women stand to suffer the most, since they will lose control over drinking when industrial products owned by foreign corporations replace their homebrews. If traditional drinks disappear around the world, the societies that produce them will lose a part of their identity as well as the intellectual property that can serve as a wellspring for future economic growth.
Chris O'Brien combines two favorite things: drinking beer and saving the world. He is author of the new book Fermenting Revolution: How to Drink Beer and Save the World, and serves as director of the Responsible Purchasing Network at the Center for a New American Dream.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)