for
EED
HOUGHT
F T
West Lebanon Feed & Supply’s
12 Railroad Avenue
West Lebanon, NH 03784
(603) 298-8600
www.westlebanonsupply.com
$1.00
Spring/Summer 2009
Vol. III Issue II
I
t’s a beautiful spring
Sunday as I sit down to
write a “welcome” to you,
our friends and customers. We
have made it through our first
three Chick Days...only two
more to go!
Planting season is upon
us and we reflect often on our
economic times. We have seen
some changes in our business this spring. There is more
activity within the family unit.
Adults and children are coming together to learn how to
raise chickens, plant gardens,
and make their families more
sustainable and healthy.
While it certainly is good for
our business, and we thank you,
it brings us all
a little closer
and creates a
sense of “the
old days” and
togetherness.
Curt and I would like to say
thank you for your loyalty and
business. We are very blessed
to call the Upper Valley home
and all be in this community
together.
-Sharon Jacques
WLFS Co-owner
“The better life
cannot be
imposed from
without - it must
grow from within.”
Mrs. Humphrey Ward
WLFS Launches “Share the Harvest” Program
H
by Ira Richards
ere in the Upper Valley of New Hampshire and Vermont, we take pride in being
neighborly and work hard to preserve our old-fashioned sense of community. Knowing the
names of the people you meet on the street or being greeted by a wave and a smile as you
step out the front door is part of what makes this a great place to call home. During every
snow storm, many of my own neighbors in Hartford Village will faithfully bundle up and
venture outside to clear not only their own driveways, but the driveways of the folks who
live up and down the entire street. It’s gestures like these that are so simple, and yet say so
much about who we are as a community.
It is in this spirit of “taking care of our own,” that West Lebanon
Feed & Supply is launching our Share the Harvest program. The
endeavor is designed to collect freshly grown fruits, vegetables,
and eggs for needy families here in our area and we will act as a
drop center for donations which will be turned over to our partners at the Willing Hands
organization for distribution throughout our community. As a way to encourage folks
to participate in Share the Harvest, we are offering a discount on all garden seeds with
a commitment to donate a portion of your 2009 crop yield and, for our poultry raising
customers, two free baby chicks (with an order of eight or more) with a commitment
to donate 2-dozen eggs per month for one year following the commencement of egg
production.
Most of us would probably agree that helping to provide food for needy families is
important. What many of us may not realize is that most area organizations that currently
provide food for hungry families are limited to non-perishable items simply because
of the many limitations involved in safely handling meat, produce, and dairy products.
Because of this, the food that is available is not always the most nutritionally-balanced
assortment. Since 2005, Willing Hands has been working to supplement the distribution
of non-perishable items with produce collected locally that might otherwise go to waste.
Our partnership with Willing Hands via Share the Harvest will not only provide additional
fresh fruits and vegetables to the program, but will incorporate the distribution of fresh
eggs, one of the most nutritionally complete and safe-to-handle protein sources available.
“We are very excited about our Share the Harvest programs,” says West Lebanon Feed
& Supply owner Curt Jacques. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for our customers to rally
together and provide a great source of fresh foods to our neighbors in need. We sincerely
hope that anyone in our area who is planning to raise chickens or grow a crop would
strongly consider participating in this effort. We know times are tough, but we’re all in this
together…and it’s our support of one another that has always made and will continue to
keep the Upper Valley community strong.”
Anyone interested in participating in the West Lebanon Feed & Supply Share the Harvest
program can sign up by visiting our store. Thanks for your support and happy growing!
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
• ‘Support Local’ Spotlight: Three Tomatoes
• Bailey’s Corner
• Get to Know A WLFS Employee: Molly O’Dwyer
• Special Customer Appreciation Coupon
Get To Know Our Staff
WLFS SUPPORT LOCAL SPOTLIGHT
Three Tomatoes works to promote community fellowship
Y
Molly O’Dwyer joined the WLFS team
in March of 2008. She currently works behind the Customer Service desk, assisting
customers as well as providing both her artistic and pet expertise to a variety of other
WLFS tasks.
Perhaps it is Molly’s love for animals that
drew her to West Lebanon Feed & Supply.
Having grown up around some of the more
unique varieties of pets including a hedgehog, a chinchilla, cockatoo, conure, and amazon birds, a tortoise, turtles and some others,
Molly truly has a soft spot for furry and feathered friends.
Molly grew up in Harrisville, New Hampshire and attended Keene Middle School and
Keene High School before studying at Keene
State College and obtaining her B.A. in Studio Art. Of course anyone who spends time
around Molly knows that she has a strong
artistic side and she has found creative ways
to incorporate her passion into some of her
projects at WLFS. Outside work, Molly also
enjoys drawing and painting landscapes, as
well as knitting her unique fingerless mittens,
and staying active by swimming or hiking
with her boyfriend and her Chesapeake Bay
retriever-cross “Toby Wobis.”
For Molly the perfect day would start by
taking the phone off the hook and cooking a
homemade French toast or pancake breakfast.
Then she and her boyfriend would pack Toby
Wobis’ hiking backpack (he loves to carry
his own gear) and the three of them would go
for a trail hike, cooling off afterward with a
refreshing swim. Then they would head back
home for a barbecue with friends, a bonfire
and a night of camping out in a tent.
Molly enjoys reading and her favorite
books include “The Five People You Meet in
Heaven” by Mitch Albom and “The Hidden
Life of Dogs” by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas. She also enjoys pet-sitting and is currently
trying to build her art portfolio by creating pet
and people portraits, sketches, and more. In
addition to quoting the serenity prayer to help
keep things in perspective, Molly’s words to
live by are to “’Gulp Life’ – one day at a time
(sometimes one moment at a time!)”
by Jen Jacques
ou know, I am always struck by our home: the Upper Valley. We are so
blessed by one another, by the community that we have built. Call me sentimental,
but I think that it is something you take for granted until you go away for a period
of time and return. Whether it’s the postman knowing your box number for your
mail without asking, or your bagel and coffee ready and waiting when you get to
the front of the line, or your car loaded with feed before you’ve finished shopping,
we all know one another. But how much time do we really spend with one another?
If what you eat is what you are, what about where
“
you eat? It was in November of 1990 that Jim
Reiman and Robert Meyers built an Upper Valley
cornerstone and the featured business of this issue:
Three Tomatoes Trattoria. It would also appear
”
that they have built an exemplary philosophy for
Anthelme Brillat-Savarin
our Upper Valley Community.
In talking with Jim this past week, I realized that they have built their restaurant
around an Italian essential: the Trattoria. I had always known generally what a
trattoria was, but perhaps took for granted its symbolism. Jim and Rob envisioned
a place for the community to gather; to come together over a meal: the embodiment
of a true trattoria. From the warm tomato-hued lights framing the windows, to the
crackling brick oven and to the warm and outgoing staff, to the extensive wine list,
it is easy to see that they created just that. The business partners and friends share a
love of food and wine and have known one another since 1974. Both have traveled
throughout Italy and wanted to bring a part of that to the area. When describing the
type of restaurant they set out to create, Jim said: “…a place where people could
enjoy the conviviality of good food and conversation. We loved simply prepared
Italian food, and we were both inspired by the idea of cooking in a wood fired oven.
So, the idea of Sweet Tomatoes Trattoria was born.”
Three Tomatoes opened as “Sweet Tomatoes” in November of 1990 and not long
after, two more locations followed suit in both Burlington and Rutland, Vermont.
After a federal trademark registration issue evoked a name change, the restaurant
evolved to Three Tomatoes Trattoria and soon thereafter in 2004, another location
was opened in Williston, Vermont.
Over the past 19 years Three Tomatoes has remained true to its original vision;
to offer simply prepared Italian food and serve as a community gathering place. The
idea of “restaurant and community” has become a focal point in recent years and
has inspired the “sustainable communities initiatives.” Jim and Rob have always
believed that business and community join hands in creating the kind of vibrant place
we all want to live, and to that end we have offered our help through the “sustainable
communities initiative”. Once a month at each restaurant, Three Tomatoes hosts a
non-profit organization to recognize that organization for the good work they are
doing in the community. They then donate $1 dollar for each entrée served that
Tell me what
you eat, and I
will tell you
what you are.
-continued on page 4
Easy-to-Make in a Bag
Homemade Ice Cream
1 Tbsp. Sugar
1/2 Cup Half & Half
1/4 Tsp. Vanilla
6 Tbsp. Food-Grade Rock Salt
1 Pint-size plastic storage bag
1 Gallon-size plastic storage bag
Ice Cubes
Fill large bag with ice (about halfway) and add rock salt.
Seal the bag.
Put half & half, vanilla, and sugar into the small bag and
seal it tightly. Place the small bag inside the larger one and
tightly seal it again. Shake large bag for approx. 5 minutes,
until mixture becomes ice cream.
Extract small bag and make sure to wipe it off. Open the
small bag carefully and enjoy your homemade treat!
Fresh Ideas
F i g h t i n g We e d s a n d F e e d i n g L a w n s i n O n e E a s y S t e p !
Do you have dandelions, ragweed,
weeds all in a single application.
Weed & Feed is best applied in the
morning when dew is still on the ground,
because it is a contact killer and needs to
stick to the actively growing weeds in order
to do its job. You should also apply the
Weed & Feed when the forecast calls for 24hours of dry weather immediately following
application. This will prevent the treatment
from being washed off prior to taking effect. It is not too late in the season to have a
beautiful, green lawn again! We have Weed
& Feed available in bags that will cover
5,000 and 15,000 sq. ft.
-Chris Mazurek
ground ivy or clover taking over your yard?
Mid-spring is a great time to get rid of those
pesky weeds that may be ruining a beautiful
lawn. There are two general types of weed
control: pre-emergent and post-emergent.
Although it is now too late to use the preemergent, which prevents weed seeds from
germinating, it is the perfect time to use
a post-emergent broadleaf weed killer. In
fact, you could use a weed killer and fertilizer combination (a.k.a. Weed & Feed) to
green up your lawn and take care of those
Coupon must be presented at time of purchase in order to receive discount.
THANK YOU
5
WLFS BUCKSed
r
i
xp
$
THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT. WE APPRECIATE YOUR BUSINESS!
Get $5 in instant savings when you purchase $50 or more in
non-feed items*.
C
p
ou
E
o$n
Limit 1 Per Customer
Cannot be used with
any other offers
5
Expires 07/04/2009
Excludes Pet Food, Animal
Feed, Frontline, Sale Items
Three Tomatoes
(pictured right)
is located on the
mall in downtown
Lebanon, NH.
Owners
Jim Reiman
and Robert
Meyers strive to
make it a place
for the community to gather for
“good food and
good conversation.”
Check out our new WLFS Blog full of interesting articles, info, and more!
Visit our website at www.westlebanonsupply.com and click on the “WLFS Blog” link.
THANK YOU
5
$
West Lebanon Feed & Supply’s
FEED for THOUGHT
This publication is provided to WLFS
patrons and friends for the purpose of
providing information and entertainment.
The reader assumes all risk and responsibility for measures or actions taken in
response to the content herein.
If you feel you are receiving this in error
or would like to be removed from the
mailing list, please contact us:
phone: (603) 298-8600
email: [email protected]
Mail in your questions for our upcoming
“ask the pro” portion of the newsletter.
Feedback and suggestions also welcome.
Editors: Jen Jacques and Ira Richards
Contributors: Jen Jacques, Ira Richards, Curt
Jacques, Sharon Jacques, Chris Mazurek
Puppy dogs and spring just seem to go hand in hand. My
mom says it’s “my time of year” and I love our long walks and
adventures. So with that in mind, don’t forget to put Frontline on
us and keep us canines safe from fleas and ticks. Stop by our store
and ask for it at the counter.
The other thing we find fascinating this time of year is water.
Please remember that while most canines love water (especially
us labs) the water temperature may still be very cold. We can tire
easily while swimming and should be protected with a life vest
-continued from page 2
night to benefit the organization’s cause. Three Tomatoes also
works closely with local farms and producers in New Hampshire
and Vermont by buying their products. Three Tomatoes has also
been a long term supporter of International Slow Food, The
Vermont Fresh Network and Valley Farms and Fields in an effort
to promote sustainable agriculture in our area. This commitment
to “buy local” helps to sustain our agricultural and rural character
for future generations, and makes our communities stronger and
healthier.
You might be wondering about how the economic slowdown
has affected those who dine out. So far, Three Tomatoes has
managed to continue business without being affected significantly.
However, thinking of those who gather at the Trattoria, Jim and
Rob have changed how they do business…for their customers.
They have worked hard to come up with affordable dining
options. One popular option is the $35 dinner for two. This
makes a date night a feasible option on a budget.
made especially for canines.
I would like to wish all of our friends and customers (human
and otherwise) a happy, light-hearted spring!
-Bailey the Lab
Here’s a picture of me
at the beach doing
what we love!
As James Beard said: “Food is our common ground, a universal
experience.” My family is what one might call ‘regulars’ at
Three Tomatoes. We each hold “Frequent Diner’s Cards” and
get hugs from the staff when we arrive. It’s like eating at a family
member’s house and is truly a wonderful time to catch up with
our community. Just last week, I saw my childhood doctor.
The last time I was in, I saw the parents of a now grown and
wonderful young woman I used to babysit for. I saw the priest
from our church. I saw a fellow colleague. While we may not
have planned to meet one another for dinner, we all are gathering
together over sumptuous meals and what I would call ‘comfort
food.’ Three Tomatoes is more than just a place to have a bite to
eat. Three Tomatoes Trattoria truly is a reminder to us all to take
time to gather, to take time for one another and to support one
another’s efforts to sustain our earth and our communities.
For more information
visit www.threetomatoestrattoria.com