Well, 2020 fundraising events can’t happen in-person, so they seem to be using their websites to bring people together creatively and safely this season.
Here are a few that you can sign on to that may even help you cook better during our sequestering.
A Sofa Soirée
Tubman is a nonprofit organization that provides shelter, housing, and mental health support for men, women, youth, and families. This year, the organization’s annual Starlight Soirée fundraising event, which also raises awareness and includes an auction, is available to anyone, with no cost to participate. Those who sign up can bid on super items right from home. Tune in on Saturday, May 2, at 7 p.m.
The food items for bidding include $100’s worth of breads from BreadSmith, dinners at Red Cow or W.A. Frost, and more. You’ll hear success stories of the many ways Tubman has changed lives, especially now.
For details, click here, call 612-767 6580, or email give@tubman.org
Learn How to Cook for Your Mother
You won’t want to miss Perspectives Mother’s Day Virtual Breakfast on Thursday, May 7, from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., for a special breakfast demonstration of a delicious egg dish by chef and co-owner Anna Christoforides, from Gardens of Salonica. You’ll also learn how Perspectives Family Center works in the community to help moms and kids. The event is free, so tell your friends to RSVP. Email kburnsgahagen@perspectives-family.org to RSVP.
To Market, To Market to Support the Farmers
Yes, it’s finally happening. A few of our outdoor farmers markets are about to open this weekend, May 2 and 3. We look forward to this life experience every year, and especially this year. However, there are many necessary and important new rules for shopping at all the farmers markets that hopefully everyone will obey.
You are expected to follow the safety rules of wearing masks, stay in the new lines that are monitoring the routes to the vendors, use the handwashing stations, and shop solo, not in groups, to speed up the process. Make a shopping list. Don’t mingle. Stay home if you feel sick or in contact with someone who is.
Many of the markets are now offering online pre-pay ordering on their websites, so Google your closest, favorite farmers market for rules, dates, times, and locations, and purchase local products from the people who grow and make it all available. Plus, be sure to follow all the new rules and regulations, as all Minnesota Nice people do.
Some local favorites opening this weekend are the Mill City Farmers Market (Saturday only), and the Minneapolis Farmers Market and St. Paul Farmers Market (both have satellite markets around the cities). Some of these markets are also looking for volunteers, so check all the details on their websites. More will be opening mid-May or the first week in June.
To volunteer, email martha@millcityfarmersmarket.org (Mill City Farmers Market) or maolee@mplsfarmersmarket.com (Minneapolis Farmers Market).
MN-Made Masks
Local apron creator Kate Meier started Craftmade aprons just a few years ago, when her three chef sons began complaining about their uncomfortable chef aprons. Her business took off like a rocket, and she and her great sewing staff have aproned up chefs locally and all over the country, as well as in Europe. When Meier heard that there was a current need for masks, she and her sewers immediately went to work and have created hundreds of masks for the culinary community and others. The cost is just $10 each for large or small, in good protective fabric. Part of the proceeds go to her charity called Black and Blue which helps chefs in need of support.
Though she usually designs couture gowns and wedding dresses under the designer name of Joynoelle, Joy Teiken is now making masks for the public in collaboration with Tracy Singleton, the owner of Birchwood Cafe in south Minneapolis. They are available for $20 each at Birchwood Cafe, Wednesday through Sunday, curbside pickup only, with 100% of the proceeds going to support the Food Group, a local emergency food bank. To order food, groceries, and masks, go to birchwoodcafe.com
