Harvest Lessons

UVFTS Community-curriculum (17)Teach students about healthy eating, local food, and natural history with standards-based, hands-on lessons around seasonal foods for grades K-4. Lessons can be used by teachers, or  volunteers (parents, community members, teachers, and high school students). The program has been very successful in Barnard, Pomfret, Hartland, Windsor, Fairlee and West Fairlee, receiving praise from teachers and the volunteers, and inspiring excitement and learning in students.

For more information on trainings, lessons, and programs contact our staff at uvfts@VitalCommunities.org.

Harvest Lessons Program Manual

Harvest Lessons Program Manual

Lessons To Use Again and Again

Lessons To Use Again and Again

Apples

Apples

Dry Beans

Dry Beans

Beets & Rutabagas

Beets & Rutabaga

Berries

Berries

Broccoli & Cauliflower

Broccoli & Cauliflower

Herbs

Herbs

Kale

Kale

Mixed Greens

Mixed Greens

Winter Squash

Winter Squash

Tomatoes

Tomatoes

Cabbage

Cabbage

Parsnips

Parsnips

Eggs

Exploring Eggs Lesson Plan
Egg Diagrams
MyPlate Coloring Sheet
Eggs Measurement Worksheet
Eggs Background Information
Eggs Take-Home (Recipes)

Zucchini Challenge

Zucchini Challenge Lesson Plan
Cards for Game
Zucchini Challenge Take Home
Plant Journal Materials
Plant Growth Chart
Tomato Planet Activity
Soil Recipe Activity

Whole Grains

Whole Grains Lesson Plan
Match the Grains Activity Sheet
Diagram of a Wheat Kernel
Whole Grains Take-Home (Recipes)

What Local foods Can We Eat in March?

Eating Locally in March Lesson Plan
Magic Pink Dip Recipe Full Page
Magic Pink Bean Dip Recipe Half Page
Eat Locally Coloring Sheet
Background Information on Local versus Industrial Food

Seedy Mystery Snack

Seedy Mystery Snack Lesson Plan
Little Sprout Activity
Seedy Mystery Snack Recipe
Seedy Mystery Snack Recipe Half Page
Photo Clues for Mystery Snack

Harvest of the Month

Learn More

harvest of the monthThis is month is Parsnips, here is some info for you and recipes, etc.

Find Open Local Businesses and Farms. Search the Vital Communities Guide.

What's Happening

Visit Our Food & Farm Blog

Want more information?

Photo Gallery

Calendar

January 2021

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31

Vital Communities Program News

"Put Your Money Where Your Life Is": Reclaiming Our Local Economy

"Put Your Money Where Your Life Is": Reclaiming Our Local Economy Event series focuses on local investment as a tool for rebuilding our region's economy "When the pandemic recedes, we all will be called upon to take extraordinary ...more

Local Investment Inspiration & Resources

An "investment" always concerns the outlay of some asset today (time, money, effort, etc.) in hopes of a greater payoff in the future than what was originally put in. Where you choose to invest your ...more

Neighbors Helping Neighbors Save Energy

This week marks the close of Vital Communities and volunteers’ 2020 Vermont Energy Savings project in seven towns in the Vermont side of the Upper Valley. Vital Communities partnered with Sustainable Woodstock (serving Woodstock, Hartland, ...more

Valley Quest Volunteer Monitors Needed

Do you enjoy being outdoors? Do you enjoy bringing others outdoors and making their experience something special? Then you are a good candidate for monitoring one or more of our 160+ Valley Quests throughout the Upper ...more

Localvore Passport Webinar

Learn how Localvore Passport can help your business connect with customers at an informational webinar, Tuesday, January 12 or Wednesday, January 13! (Attend either event. The same information will be presented twice; Zoom link below). Vermont-based Localvore is ...more

2020 Volunteers of the Year: The Upper Valley’s Mutual Aid Groups

When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in the Upper Valley, it brought an ever-lengthening list of questions and concerns. Would supplies of food and other essentials hold out? Where would those suddenly without income get help? ...more

Calling for Civil, Inclusive Communication & Interaction: Thoughts on January 6

As an organization that brings people together, bridging boundaries and engaging our whole community to create positive change, we were shocked and saddened by the images that came to us from Washington, DC, on Wednesday. ...more

That's Snow Excuse!

Don't be deterred by wet, cold or snow.  Good times can be had when a-questing you go!  Be sure to search our website Valley Quest page selecting for Season and Year Round to see what ...more

Quest to Refresh Winners!

Congratulations to all the our participants in our Quest to Refresh Challenge!  28 teams took us up on the Challenge to get out and explore our Quests to beat the pandemic blues. Malcolm and Joseph Marchesi ...more

Love your bike ride, even in cold weather

We (Bethany and Mike from the Transportation team) are still riding our bikes these cold dark days, because it keeps us healthy and relieves anxiety! Your bike can offer fresh air, motion, and safe social ...more

One stop shop for VT green transportation news!

Some of our friends in Burlington have put together a super cool online resource called Vermont Goes Green for everything related to green transportation in Vermont — it's an events calendar and a clearinghouse for ...more

Why Bank Locally?

Where You Bank Makes a Difference! When you use a bank or credit union rooted in our community, you're making a conscious choice to support our local economy. Local First Champion member Mascoma Bank is a ...more

Fall 2020 Transit Updates!

Just in time for fall and back-to-school, there are some exciting transit updates from both sides of the river! Tri-Valley Transit (formerly Stagecoach) has a new midday route on the 89er South route. This route connects ...more

Weatherize Webinar, August 17

Weatherize Webinar with NHSaves Monday, August 17 at Noon Did Covid-19 stop your 2020 weatherization plans in their tracks? NOW is the right time to jump back on the weatherize band wagon. Lower energy bills and cozy ...more

Welcome 31 New Upper Valley Change-makers

Vital Communities celebrated the graduation of the Leadership Upper Valley Class of 2020 on Wednesday, June 10. This event marked the program’s 14th graduating class, as 31 local leaders completed the 10-month program with a ...more

Five Inspiring Stories

On March 18, Vital Communities held a webinar featuring five inspiring stories from energy committees across the Upper Valley. Stories included: Electric charging stations in Bethel An Upper Valley eBike lending library Energy saving window ...more

Stand in Your Circle of Strength and Lead

Ed. Note: On May 30, Vital Communities honored 12 community leaders who’ve added immeasurably to the vitality of the Upper Valley at its annual Heroes & Leaders Celebration. The following are the event’s keynote remarks ...more

Heroes & Leaders: Creating a Vital Upper Valley

Every spring, Leadership Upper Valley, a program of Vital Communities, hosts the annual Heroes & Leaders Celebration to recognize individuals who make significant contributions to the Upper Valley. In 2019, we are pleased to honor ...more

Greatest Hits

Lorem Ipsum

Lorem Ipsum

Lorem Ipsum

Staff

Becka Warren

Food & Farm Coordinator

Food & Farm

 802-291-9100 x112

Food & Farm

— Becka Warren, Food & Farm Coordinator

Part of Vital Communities' Food & Farm team since 2012, Becka fosters relationships that keep agriculture a daily part of community life in the Upper Valley. She works with current and future farmers, businesses, schools, and partners across Vermont and New Hampshire to build connections that support farm viability and keep our landscapes working. Becka lived in Seattle for many years, where she worked for the Washington State University Small Farms Program, Cascade Harvest Coalition, Seattle Tilth, and area vegetable farms. Becka is also a writer, founding and writing Ask Umbra at gristmagazine.com until 2009. She holds a BA from Brown University and lives in Hartland, Vermont, with her family.



Beth Roy

Food & Farm Manager

Valley Quest, Food & Farm

 802-291-9100 x105

Valley Quest, Food & Farm

— Beth Roy, Food & Farm Manager

Beth leads Vital Communities' Food & Farm team, including its Upper Valley Farm to School programming, and also oversees Valley Quest. Before joining Vital Communities, Beth worked in the environmental and place-based education fields for 17 years in various positions around New England including at the Vermont Institute of Natural Science and as the Director of Education at the Nature Museum in Grafton, Vt. She previously served on the boards of the Vermont Science Teacher Association and the Vermont State-Wide Environmental Education Programs, a coalition of dozens of individuals and organizations promoting sustainability and environmental education in Vermont. Beth is a New Hampshire native and lives in Hartland, Vt., with her husband and two children, and serves on the Hartland School Board. When Beth is not working you will find her exploring the woods around her home with her family or cooking up a new taste test (made of local foods, of course!) for her children.



Doreen Guillette

Assistant to the Executive Director, Flavors Coordinator

Food & Farm

 802-291-9100 x104

Food & Farm

— Doreen Guillette, Assistant to the Executive Director, Flavors Coordinator

Doreen Guillette joined Vital Communities in January 2020 as the Flavors of the Valley Coordinator and Assistant to the Executive Director, with many years of administrative and management experience at Dartmouth-Hitchcock, self-employment, and volunteering. An Upper Valley native, Doreen spends most of her time and energy caring for her mini-farm and a large family in Norwich. She is a strong advocate for local community and is president of the Beaver Meadow Chapel, Trustee of the Beaver Meadow Schoolhouse, and Co-Chair of the West Norwich Community Resilience Organization. Doreen enjoys hiking, kayaking, writing poetry, nature photography, and cooking meals that come from her own land.



Nancy LaRowe

Food & Farm and Local First Coordinator

Local First, Food & Farm

 802-291-9100 x106

Local First, Food & Farm

— Nancy LaRowe, Food & Farm and Local First Coordinator

Nancy joined Vital Communities as the Food & Farm Coordinator in 2014. She works to support and grow our local food system and economy. Nancy has lived, worked, and farmed in the Upper Valley for more than 25 years and believes our community is healthier and stronger when our connections to food and the farms that produce it stay vital.

Nancy's informal job title is Farmer-in-Residence: she also runs a pasture-based cattle farm in Norwich. Nancy is on the Board of the Norwich Farmers' Market and a retired Norwich volunteer firefighter and EMT. She loves puttering in the garden, hiking with her dog, and visiting farmers' markets.