Photo by anasararojas via Creative Commons/Flickr.
Signups are open for this month’s edition of El Centro de la Raza’s tamale-making class from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, February 23. A master tamalera will teach the traditional preparation of pork tamales, handmade with cultural ingredients including pork lard.
The $75/person class fee includes the recipe and one dozen uncooked tamales. Cooking supplies and ingredients will be provided, but you should bring your own apron. All fees go to support El Centro’s Senior Nutrition and Wellness program.
Photo by anasararojas via Creative Commons/Flickr.
This weekend the taste of tamales returns to El Centro de la Raza with a tamale-making class from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 26. A master tamalera will teach the traditional preparation of pork tamales, handmade with cultural ingredients including pork lard.
The $75/person class fee includes the recipe and one dozen uncooked tamales. Cooking supplies and ingredients will be provided, but you should bring your own apron. All fees go to support El Centro’s Senior Nutrition and Wellness program.
Photo by Amanda Slater via Creative Commons/Flickr.Demand for canning instruction has led the folks at Canning Connections to add monthly beginner sessions on the first Tuesday of each month in 2013.
These beginner sessions cover the basics of safe food preservation using the waterbath method of canning. The sessions are held at the Garden House (2336 15th Ave. S.) from 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Cost is $15, payable the night of the class. The class is suitable for beginners or those wishing a refresher or update of safe canning practices.
All supplies and equipment are provided; just bring your apron and enthusiasm!
The Dai Bai Zan Cho Bo Zen Temple at 1733 S. Horton Street (Chobo-Ji) will host a lecture and several classes over the next few weeks for Beacon Hill neighbors and friends who have an interest in Zen Buddhism.
The first event is this Saturday, January 12, from 9-10:30 a.m. Zen priest Rev. Kojun Hull will give a talk on Zen Master Dogen and his teachings. She is a Zen teacher from the Great Vow Monastery in Clatskanie, Oregon. Donations are welcome; they will be used to cover Reverend Kojun’s transportion costs and the rest will go to the monastery.
Chobo-Ji is also the site of a series of classes over the next few weeks, open to all interested neighbors. Classes in the Introduction to Zen series will run each Tuesday through February 5 from 7:30-8:30 p.m. The series will be followed by a Sunday retreat on February 10 from 5-11:30 a.m.
The class schedule:
Tuesday, Jan 15: Zazen: seated meditation
Tuesday, Jan 22: Meditation in Action: chanting, bowing, walking, working
Tuesday, Jan 29: Zen Meals: preparing and eating food mindfully
Tuesday, Feb 5: Roots of Rinzai Zen: koans and the Zen Master with Rev. Genjo Marinello Osho
Sunday, Feb 10: 5-11:30 a.m. Half-day Zen retreat, or sesshin
Neighbors are welcome to attend all or part of the series. There is a suggested donation of $20 for the Tuesday night series, and $40 for the series including the half-day retreat. For further information, contact Muken Rick Proctor at 206-817-4410.
Rev. Kojun Hull, Director of Training, Great Vow Monastery. Photo courtesy of Chobo-Ji.
Marmalade photo by Lenore M. Edman, www.evilmadscientist.com, via Flickr/Creative Commons.
Interested in food preservation? Canning Connections is a group who meet monthly on North Beacon Hill to can and preserve different foods. (Most recently, they made cranberry mustard and cranberry conserve.) This year Canning Connections is offering holiday gift certificates for $15. Certificates can be used at the January 22 beginner/refresher session, covering required equipment and the latest techniques for safe canning. The January session is suitable for those who have never tried preserving, as well as those who just need a refresher.
All sessions are held at the Garden House, 2336 15th Ave. S. Everything you need is supplied except your apron! For more information about sessions or certificates, contact Canning Connections at gaspari5@msn.com.
This morning, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn will visit Beacon Hill’s Dearborn Park Elementary (2820 S. Orcas St) to honor its staff with a Super School award as part of the Fuel Up First with Breakfast Challenge. The Challenge is a joint initiative of Dorn, the Washington State Dairy Council, Share Our Strength, and Children’s Alliance.
In the Fuel Up First with Breakfast Challenge, all of Washington’s schools were challenged to change their breakfast programs to increase school breakfast participation by 50% during the 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 school years. Schools that have made the greatest improvements will be awarded cash prizes.
During today’s event, parents and students will have breakfast with Superintendent Dorn at 9:30 a.m., followed by a ceremony at 10 a.m. in which Dorn will present the Super School award to Principal Angela Sheffey Bogan and the students of Dearborn Park. Dorn will also announce additional winners of the contest.
The Cleveland High School Eagles PTSA is sponsoring financial classes (open to anyone in South Seattle) and parent conversation groups (open to anyone with children). All classes are free.
The next class is Tuesday, October 30, from 6-8:30 p.m. at the Cleveland High School lunchroom, 5511 15th Ave. S. The presentation, “Building Credit,” is taught by staff from Boeing Employee Credit Union, and will help attendees understand credit reports and what can and can’t be done to correct errors on a credit report.
The PTSA is also looking for volunteers to lead groups of speakers of Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and Somali. Volunteers should also be reasonably fluent in English. The first classes will be in English only, but in the future, the plan is to train translaters in the course material so they can lead classes in these languages.
If you would like to volunteer, or just have questions, please contact Angela Mealing at eaglesmama@ymail.com.
Quinces photographed by Franca Piccione, via Creative Commons/Flickr.This month’s Canning Connections workshop at North Beacon Hill’s Garden House on Tuesday, October 23, will feature a fruit that may be unfamiliar to some: quince. According to the Canning Connections folks, “A fruit prized in many cultures, quince is a relative of apples and pears (and roses). When cooked it turns a lovely shade of pink. It can be put up as jam, jelly, added to applesauce, preserved as slices in syrup and made into quince paste or “cheeseâ€. Persian and Moroccan cooks use quince in aromatic stews. It is a fruit that can be hard to find in stores and markets.”
All neighbors are welcome to drop by Tuesday’s workshop between 7:30-8:30 p.m. to sample previous canning efforts, pick up recipe sheets, and buy organic quince for $3 per pound.
Canning Connections comes to the Garden House, 2336 15th Ave. S., on the fourth Tuesday of each month. For more information, see the website.
Photo by Lexie Flickinger via Creative Commons/Flickr.
Several teachers at Beacon Hill schools are using the DonorsChoose.org online charity website to appeal for donations from the community for supplies needed in their classrooms.
“iPads are transforming education at the primary grades! Children being able to connect with math, writing, and reading just through the touch of their hands is incredible! Sadly, my district’s budget has not kept up with advances in technology (i.e. iPads) – our computers are 10+ years old and slow.
“…This year 3 primary grade classrooms at our school have been using iPads every day. It has been eye-opening to observe how this incredible technology has transformed the way children are learning – it’s a whole new ball game! I want my students to be able to hit a home run with their learning – an iPad and protective cover will engage my ‘team’ and increase their academic achievement to Major League levels! Won’t you step up to the plate and help us be in a league of our own?”
The amount remaining is $940 for a 64G New iPad with cover, sales taxes, fees, and an optional $148 donation to help support DonorsChoose.org.
Over at Beacon Hill International School, BHIS Art Specialist Mary Howard Logel is requesting donations for art supplies: watercolor paints, brushes, permanent black markers, watercolor paper, and a portable drying rack. The project totals $835, with $333 remaining to raise. An anonymous donor is matching donations to the project.
Logel says:
“This project will provide painting materials for a whole year for my students as well as a drying rack that will be used for many years to come. Art increases student confidence, motivation, and critical thinking skills while allowing them to express their learning in diverse ways.”
At Van Asselt Elementary School, Laila Henderson’s fifth grade class needs two Dell netbooks. She explains:
“Students in this low-socioeconomic area come to my 5th grade class with limited typing and research skills. With the proper resources such as these laptops, they will engage in hands-on projects in reading, writing, math, science, and social studies.”
High school teachers are also in need of supplies. At Franklin High School, Melissa Anne Povey is raising funds for 31 science books, including Women in Science, The Joy of Chemistry, The Physics of Baseball, and more.
The homework help program has two sessions per day, Monday through Thursday, from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (7th grade – 12th grade) and 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. (2nd grade – 6th grade). The tutoring program has two sessions per week on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m..
For more information on these volunteer positions, contact the Volunteer Coordinator at srvvolunteer@positivelace.org or at 206-436-1893.
