FREE Presentation about Climate Change and Agriculture comes to SUNY Ulster

This informative presentation entitled, "The Role of Agriculture in Curbing Climate Change: Win-Win Scenarios", will be presented at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s Annual Meeting to be held on Monday, December 14, 2009 at 6:30pm in the Student Lounge located in Vanderlyn Hall at the SUNY Ulster campus in Stone Ridge. The meeting and presentation is free and open to the general public. Please pre-register by calling 845-340-3990.

The keynote speaker, Jennifer G. Phillips, Assistant Professor at the Bard Center for Environmental Policy, will look at agriculture as both a source and a sink for greenhouse gases that are likely to be regulated in the future. Fortunately, many of the practices that will curb greenhouse gas production or lead to increased carbon storage are also ones that can increase farm productivity, lower costs, and lead to resilient, sustainable agro-ecosystems. Although in the early stages of research, many of these practices are both familiar and proven. Phillips will include a brief review of the role of greenhouse gases in climate regulation and the expected changes in store for the Northeast that focus on recent science and field research.

The evening’s agenda begins with the election of new CCEUC Board and Program Committee members, Treasurer’s report, a review of CCEUC programs of 2009, a vote on the proposed changes to the CCEUC Constitution and CCEUC Staff and current Board and Program Committee member recognition followed by fall themed desserts, coffee, cider and tea. The evening closes with the featured presentation by Jennifer G. Phillips.

First Annual Respite Holiday for Relative Caregivers Coming in December

Our Relatives as Parents Program (RAPP) is proud to announce the first annual Respite Holiday on Sunday, December 20, from 12:00pm to 4:00pm at the CCEUC Education Center located at10 Westbrook Lane in Kingston.
We are offering this FREE event to any person who is raising a relative’s child in Ulster County. Go shopping or go home and take a well deserved nap knowing your child will be in good hands.

RAPP staff will be conducting therapeutic play activities, games, and arts & crafts throughout the day. We will also be introducing theatre arts to the children in preparation for a play called “What’s Your Story?” that we are organizing for the children to perform for their relative caregivers next year.
Lunch and a healthy snack will be provided to the children. Relatives are welcome to join but are not required. Pre-registration is required no later than Wednesday December, 15 and limited to the first 15 children. Please call Barbara Grumberg at 845-340-3990 to pre-register.

For more information on “Living and Re-learning” (formerly known as the RAPP Support Group for caregivers and the RAPP Kidz Club) please call Danielle Garris, RAPP Program Coordinator, at 845-340-3990. These groups meet in New Paltz on the first Monday of every month or in Kingston on the first Saturday of every month.

RAPP is funded by Cornell Cooperative Extension Orange County through a grant from the NYS Office of Children and Family Services, The Brookdale Foundation, and The Dyson Foundation.

FREE Bi-Lingual Program in Kingston Teaches Healthy Eating Habits & Food Budgeting

Our Eat Smart New York Program is offering the program “Healthy Nutrition Habits”, a free six part series that runs continuously every Monday, from 1:00pm to 2:00pm at the CCEUC Extension Education Center located at 10 Westbrook Lane in Kingston. This program is also available in Spanish. For more information or to attend please call Barbara Grumberg at 845-340-3990.
This program is open to all food stamp participants and low to moderate income families and individuals residing in Ulster County. Sessions will include various topics including food budgeting, serving sizes, learning about food groups, eating healthier by making better food choices, food safety and more! Participants will gain valuable kitchen skills through hands-on food demonstrations with CCEUC Nutrition Program Educator, Pablo Shine. One on one session’s in the home can be arranged for those without transportation.

All participants who complete six sessions of the program will receive a Certificate of Completion from the Cornell Cooperative Extension Ulster County’s Eat Smart New York Program.

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s Eat Smart New York Program is funded through the Department of Social Services of Ulster County from the NYS Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance and USDA.

CCEUC Announces New Staff Member and New RAPP Coordinator

Danielle Garris of Kingston, NY has been employed with Cornell Cooperative Extension Ulster County as a Nutrition Educator since December 2008. Danielle coordinated the “Healthy Nutrition Habits” group as well as educated individuals in their homes. She has been in the Human Service field for over ten years and graduated from SUNY Ulster in May 2009. Recently, she received a promotion to the “Relatives as Parents Program” as the RAPP Coordinator. RAPP provides support, education and referral to relative caregivers residing in Ulster County.


Don Doyle of West Hurley, NY has joined Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County as a home energy and financial counseling educator. Don continues to work in the local banking community where his 35 years of experience in retail banking, commercial and residential lending affords him the experience and tools to work with clients through personal and family financial counseling seminars as well as home energy seminars open to all Ulster County residents.

Make-It, Take-It Holiday Youth Workshop Will Offer Hands-On Gift Making

Calling all children ages 5 to 19! Want to give a unique gift this year? Why not make something special at the annual 4-H Make It, Take It Holiday Gift Making Workshop!

Join us on Friday, December 4 from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at the Fair Street Reformed Church on Fair Street in Kingston. Youth ages 8 to 19 are welcome to participate in a workshop of their choice. Deadline for registration is Wednesday, December 2. All classes must have a minimum of 5 participants to run.

There is a fee of $6. All materials will be provided for all workshops. To register call Jenny Burkins at 845-340-3990.

The workshops being offered are:

Quilting 101
Eileen Brophy, owner of Style Fabrics in Kingston, will instruct this workshop for beginning sewers. Learn how to sew a block for a quilt! The objective for this group will be to create a block with the theme, “What 4-H Means to Me.” Participants will be invited back to participate in a full-day workshop in January or February 2010 (date TBA) to learn how to put a quilt together using the blocks sewn in Make It Take It. The quilt will be shown at the Ulster County Fair in 2010. Ages 8 and up are welcome to participate.*All Ulster County 4-H Clubs are invited to sew a block for the quilt whether you can attend Make It Take It or not.

Feltcraft
4-H Leader and Afterschool Educator, Mary Lou Giuliano will teach this craft. Learn how to make a variety of crafts using felt, a durable and flexible material which is ideal for children. Make a small doll, finger and glove puppets, animals, and little gifts. You may sew or embroider your little characters. Ages 8 and up are welcome to participate.

Healthy Oaxacan Holiday Treats and Art
Learn from Kristen Wilson, 4-H Resource Educator, and her husband Miguel, a native Mexican, how to make a traditional healthy treats from the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. You’ll learn how to make “alegrias de amaranto”, joys of amaranth – a holiday snack with pre-hispanic roots. You can make these into fun shapes. You’ll also make a wooden box to hold your treats, which you can paint in your own style or in the style of “alebrijes” – a colorful and imaginative Mexican way of painting animals.
Ages 5 and up are welcome to participate. Bring your own cookie cutters to make the shapes that you would like!

Construct a Trebuchet
What is a trebuchet? It’s a contraption that was used in the middle ages to throw projectiles over walls. Join 4-H Leader and West Point science professor, Mike Labare, to learn a little about physics and how to make this exciting catapult. You can give this toy as a gift or take it home and defend your forts with bean bags. Ages 8 and up are welcome to participate.

Holiday Center Piece
Make a beautiful center piece for your holiday table. Join Master Gardeners, Susannah Satten and Denise Dourdeville in this fun workshop. Ages 8 and up are welcome to participate.

For more information and schedules for all Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County Programs log on to www.cceulster.org or follow us on www.facebook.com

Master Gardener Hotline Changes Hours for Winter

Our Master Gardener Horticulture Hotline will be changing their hours of service to 9:00am to 12:00pm on Fridays only from November 1, 2009 through March 1, 2010. The Hotline number is 845-340-DIRT. Messages can be left at anytime but will only be returned on Fridays from 9:00am to 12:00pm.

The Master Gardener hotline provides the public with free gardening advice. Other services offered are pH soil testing and Insect/Disease Identification.

Master Gardeners are volunteers trained by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County experts in the art and science of gardening. They provide the public with gardening programs and activities that draw on the horticulture research and experience of Cornell University.



If interested in learning more about the Master Gardener Program call Dona Crawford at 845-340-3990.