Let Us Give Thanks
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Thanksgiving is upon us and soon we will be gathered around a table with family, friends, and (most importantly) FOOD! Overall we’re enjoying the day in our own fashion; some might watch football, while others enjoy the Thanksgiving Day parades. The kids might play a video game or work on Thanksgiving Day crafts to keep them occupied. Then there are the rest of us who are stressed, watching a dozen pots on the stove in hopes of serving dinner on time.
No matter what the day’s activities hold, at the end everyone retreats to the final calm and sanctuary provided by the dinner table. Behold, the Thanksgiving Day feast is laid out before everyone. Around the table we’ll gorge ourselves on all the classic trimmings the feast has to offer: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and the like. At the end we’ll pause for a brief moment of thanks and then move on to dessert.
Those of us here at Sprouts have a unique Thanksgiving Day tradition we’d like to share. We gather our family and friends together before dinner and hand out plantable Wish Sprouters. Everyone writes down what they are thankful for on the Sprouter. At the end of the meal, we read to each other the things which we are thankful and then we plant our Wish Sprouters in a pot. As they grow into beautiful wild flowers throughout the year, we are reminded of all the things which we gave thanks.
If you would like to participate in this fun holiday tradition, you can order your own Wish Sprouters by clicking on the following link:
http://www.sproutem.com/category/Favors-and-Tags
Forgotten Soldiers Outreach Partners with Sprouts to Raise Funds and Awareness
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Forgotten Soldiers Outreach, Inc., whose goal is to continually encourage the men and women fighting abroad for our great nation by sending monthly “we care” packages and letters of encouragement to deployed soldiers, has partnered with Sprouts to raise funds necessary for operations.
For some of these men and women the packages and letters written are their only contact back to the United States. Being so far from home can be quite lonely for them, missing all the things they love about our great nation. Sending these letters and packages gives them back a little piece of home. It lets our troops know someone out-there cares about them. Sprouts cares about our men and women in the armed forces that’s why we’re partnering with Forgotten Soldiers Outreach, Inc.
Sprouts is working with Forgotten Soldiers to create a line of custom designed note cards featuring the Forgotten Soldiers logo and Supporting Our Troops images and phrases. A portion of the proceeds from each sale will go directly to Forgotten Soldiers, enabling them to encourage and inspire our armed forces serving overseas.
If you would like to help our men and women in the armed forces continue to receive these charitable gifts of love and support, you can purchase a box of our Forgotten Soldiers Note Cards. The proceeds will help with many of the costs needed to keep the Forgotten Soldiers Outreach program going including shipping of the packages to our troops.
The cards can be purchased by clicking on the link:
http://www.sproutem.com/forgottensoldiers
If you would like to learn more about Forgotten Soldiers Outreach, Inc. please visit:
http://www.forgottensoldiers.org
Fall: Too Many Leaves, Too Little Time!
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Fall is a wonderful time of year and perhaps one of the most beautiful seasons. It’s at this time of year the leaves begin to change (if you are living up north). The transition from the lush greens to the deep reds to the rustic browns is one of Mother Nature’s gifts to us. And this is a gift that keeps on giving with the leaves, later on, wreaking havoc all over our yards! Even down here in South Florida, we have leaves to contend with (although not as pretty as the fall leaves of our northern companions).
Leaving them scattered across our yards is not an option. Too many leaves covering a yard can kill off the grass and other plants, not to mention they can be an eyesore. Burning the leaves is never a good option. The burn drums up a lot of smoke and down in the south can become a major disaster during the dry season. Throwing them out in the trash is never a good idea; there is little space left and landfills as it is. Craft projects are a fun way to use up some leaves, but still won’t solve the problem. What is one to do? The best answer is COMPOSTING!
By composting you not only solve the problem of what to do with your leaves, but you create a rich soil for your other plants to thrive! Buying compost at the store can be quite costly. Making your own compost not only saves money, but it keeps recyclable plant material out of over crowded landfills.
Don’t think you have the time to start your own compost pile? Composting is a much easier than you think. Once you have your pile started it takes less than ten minutes a day to maintain.
First, obtain a plastic garbage can with a lid and make a number of holes (a little bigger than a quarter) spread out through the sides of the can.
Next, you add to the pile your leaves, grass clippings, kitchen scraps, and some garden soil. For the best possible mix of materials you should have about two parts dry leaves to one part grass clippings. Add just enough water to make everything moist, but not overly soaked with water. Other materials you can add to the mix are shredded , coffee grounds, other garden clippings, paper towels, and other organic materials. Things you want to avoid mixing in are fats, oils, meats, perennial weeds, diseased plants, as well as pig and pet droppings.
Finally, you want to keep your composting can in the shade with the lid (which also needs holes) closing the top. You can add kitchen scraps and other organics as you accumulate them. Then once every few days you want to mix up the pile with a shovel. This will mix up the ingredients and get the oxygen and nitrogen moving throughout which aids in the composting process.
Do not be alarmed if the pile seems warm in temperature. You are trying to create a hot humid environment to speed up the natural composting process. These composting bins can get quite warm which is just what the pile needs to turn into compost.
In a few months (depending on where you’re living and the time of year), you will have a nice pile of compost to use for potting soil, mulch your garden, and fertilze your yard. When you use the compost make sure to leave a quarter of the material in the bin. The left over material will aid in producing your next pile of compost.
Canstruction: Sculpture to Fight Against Hunger
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Did you ever think about cans of food as works of art? Most of us are familiar with Warhol’s soup can masterpieces, but did you ever think about cans as being used as as sculptural materials? In cities across the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Columbia, artists, architects, engineers, design professionals, and students are creating structural master pieces using can goods! These temporary sculptural works are part of on going exhibitions collectively referred to as Canstruction.
The Canstruction Exhibition Contest was first initiated by the Denver, Seattle, and New York chapters of the Society for Design Administration (SDA). As a foundation of the SDA and though its promotion, there are over one hundred thirty individual competitions being held throughout the 2009-2010 cycle. The sculptures take anywhere from eight to twelve weeks to create, using thousands of cans. These sculptural wonders depict a wide variety of iconographic images ranging from a giant octopus, hotdog, lighthouse, and just about anything one can imagine. The results of competition are displayed for public viewing in cities where the contest is taking place. At the close of the exhibition all the food is donated to local food banks for distribution among emergency feeding programs.
The Lighthouse Center for the Arts in Tequesta is currently hosting its Second Annual Canstruction Exhibition sponsored by The Kitchen Strand. The Kitchen Strand is a premiere South Florida kitchen and bath design firm located in Hope Sound. Thursday, November 5th is the conclusion of the exhibit when the award ceremony will take place. Winners of the contest will be entered into the 2009 National Canstruction Competition. At the end of the evening on November 5th, the exhibition will be dismantled with all cans collected being given to local Palm Beach County food banks to be distributed.
The Lighthouse Center for the Arts is located at Gallery Square North, 373 Tequesta Drive, Tequesta, FL 1.5 miles west of US Highway 1.
The Gallery is open Monday through Friday 10:00 am to 4:30 pm.
For more information about the exhibit at The Lighthouse Center for the Arts please visit: www.lighthousearts.org
For more information about Canstruction please visit: www.canstruction.org
The Vanishing Honeybee! Article in 24Seven
Posted by Sprouts Staff
The November issue of 24Seven Magazine - Palm Beach North made its debut this morning across the web. 24Seven is a digital online magazine that uses groundbreaking technology which allows you to turn the pages, download, search, print, and zoom content. It features news articles and content spotlighting Health and Wellness, Going Green, Charity/Non-Profit, and other topics covering the events and happenings effecting the community of Palm Beach County.
24Seven Magazine
In this addition of the digital magazine Sprouts is a proud contributor of content in the Going Green section. Our own Dawn Dodenhoff supplied an article about the plight of the vanishing honeybee. The article goes into detail as to why the honeybees are important and causes to their disappearance. Sprouts is big supporter in trying to save the honeybees with our Bee Kind campaign. We’ve created a special eco-friendly plantable seed paper which blooms into beautiful wildflowers when planted. These wild flowers attract honeybees and other pollinators which are vital to the sustainability of crops which make up a large portion of our food supply.
Please click on the link and go to the table of contents to view the article. It’s found by clicking the Going Green section: http://epaperflip.com/aglaia/viewer.aspx?docid=6d062196800748d1aa923d91d29eed6e
To help save these important pollinators you can purchase a box of our eco-friendly plantable greeting cards. Please click on the link to purchase: http://www.sproutem.com/category/Variety-Packs
Grassy Waters Gala and Golf Classic: A Night and Day to Remember
Posted by Sprouts Staff
On Friday October 8th and Saturday October 9th, Grassy Waters Preserve held their 12th Annual Gala and Golf Classic event featuring the theme of Hidden Treasures. Hidden Treasures truly was an appropriate title because the preserve offers so many natural treasures unique to South Florida. The affair had a fantastic turn out with many supporters and vendors include some of our own Sprouts team on Friday night: Sharon, Glenn, Nikki, Sean, Laura, Mike, Diane, and Theresa.
Sharon and Glenn with Pirates!
The occasion was an affair to remember with incredible food, dancing, auctions, and pirates! Friday night was an evening of fun and relaxation with friends and business associates. The Gala also included a silent auction and a live auction as well. The items auctioned off were generous donations from local businesses and supporters. During the auction there were tables where some local businesses sold their wares in support of Grassy Waters Preserve; among them was Sprouts. Sprouts had a beautiful table where attendees could purchase plantable seed paper cards in support of Grassy Waters Preserve with a portion of the proceeds being donated back to the preserve.
Our Table at the Gala
Sharon and Nikki looking beautiful at the Gala
Saturday morning was friendly competition spread across two golf courses found in Ibis Golf and Country Club. Participates were divided up into foursomes to play the course for awards for those coming in first, second, and third. Among them were Sharon and her team of Bryan Beasley, Michael Mulach, and Richard Alker. To their surprise, they managed to pull off a first place victory on the Tradition Golf Course.
This year’s Gala and Golf Classic featured a new aspect to the event, the First Annual Grassy Waters Preserve Environmental Pathfinder Award. The winner of this newly created award went to Palm Beach Commissioner Jeff Koons. The award was presented to him for his service and dedication to making the community aware of the importance of nature and taking care of our environment. Commissioner Koons has been an instrumental force in aiding Grassy Waters Preserve in obtaining many of the amenities found there today.
The Grassy Waters Cards
Although the event is over, you can still help to support Grassy Waters Preserve and help in saving Florida’s most valuable water resources! Sprouts is still offering the special note cards created specifically for Grassy Waters Preserve. The cards feature beautiful images of the scenery found at the preserve. Please click on the link to place your order and help support keeping this important part of our environment protected and thriving.
http://www.sproutem.com/category/Grassy-Waters-Preserve
To Find out more about Sprouts!, Inc. Please visit:
To find out more about Grassy Waters Please visit:
To Find out more about Jeff Koons please visit:
http://www.pbcgov.com/countycommissioners/district2/biography.htm
Helping Others on Halloween
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Fall; it’s the time when the weather gets cooler and people come home to visit family and friends. Loved ones will gather around a dining table with plenty of food to go around. Sadly, a lot of families don’t have the luxury of enjoying a nice dinner with family and friends, let alone any meal at all. This is a disheartening thought, but there is something we can do to help.
This Halloween, instead of collecting candy from neighbors and friends try collecting non-perishable food. When you are out taking your kids around from block to block ask if the residents can spare any non-perishables. If your plans do not include kids, get dressed up and go around with a few friends and collect canned goods and other dry food items. People are already expecting trick-or-treaters and in most cases they have a spare can of food lying around they can give.
This also makes a great party game if you are throwing a Halloween Party. Gather your guests together and split them up into teams (no less than two for safety reasons), and give them a time frame of 15 to 30 minutes. Whoever comes back with the most food items wins! To have an incentive you could offer some sort of small gift (such as Sprouts plantable greeting cards).
- Sprouts Fall Cards
Click the link to order: http://www.sproutem.com/category/Fall
Here are a few tips on collecting canned and other food items this Halloween. Make sure you have a few friends with you. This is for both safety and you can carry more food this way. Also, make sure you use canvas bags, backpacks, or even a rolling suitcase to carry the items. Most people tend to give canned goods and too many will break plastic and paper bags (plus reusable bags are better for the environment). If you have access to a wheelbarrow, use it! It will mean few trips to the car or house to unload the goods. And last of all have fun; it’s Halloween!
Don’t know what to do with the food after you’ve collected it? Most local grocery stores like Publix and Winn-Dixie usual start collecting for food drives starting around October through December. Also try places like your local YMCA and community churches usually have a collection going too. If you still cannot find a place to donate the food try the internet to find local drop off locations.
Click the link to find out about Feeding America: http://feedingamerica.org
Here are some specific locations in South Florida:
Palm Beach Warehouse 426 Claremore Drive West Palm Beach, FL 33401 (561)659-5070
Broward Warehouse 2970 NW 27th Street Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 (954)486-7226
Administrative Office and Main Warehouse 5850 NW 32nd Avenue Miami, FL 33142 (305)633-9861
Reclamation Center 1363 NW 155th Drive Miami, FL 33169 (305)474-8805
Salsa for Halloween!
Posted by Sprouts Staff
It’s that time of year again. The air is getting cool (or so we hope here in Florida) and the ghosts, werewolves, vampires, and mummies are ready to come out to play. The party is just about at your door and you need something to give them that won’t break your wallet. The question is what do you feed this monstrous crew when they come to your door? Well, if you are throwing a party and need some thing to feed the fiends (friends) we’ve got a tip for you.
Take a trip down to your local farmer’s market. There you can find incredible bargains on everything from fruits to vegetables, nuts to fresh meats!
If you are looking for something specific to feed your guests we’ve got a recipe that will go a long way for little cost. Hearty Mango Salsa can make a delicious and healthy snack or be part of a full fledged meal. This salsa tastes great on tortilla chips or served over rice (we recommend jasmine rice) and serves as a side to fish or chicken.
By purchasing all the ingredients at the local farmer’s market you’ll save money and help support your local community’s farms. To find the market closest to you please visit:
Hearty Mango Salsa
One large ripe mango
Two medium sized avocados
One small onion
Five cloves of garlic
One tablespoon fresh cilantro
Half a teaspoon salt
Four medium sized ripe tomatoes
One fresh ripe lime
One tablespoon olive oil (optional)
Cut up the mango, tomatoes, and avocados into bite sized pieces and place in a large salad bowel. Next, finely chop the onion and the garlic and add it to the mixture. Then sprinkle the cilantro, salt, and oil (if applicable) over top and stir. Cut the lime in half and squeeze one half into the mix and stir again.
Serve either in a bowl with tortilla chips on the side or over rice.
Enjoy the salsa!
Grassy Waters Preserve Hosts 12th Annual Golf and Gala Classic
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Grassy Waters Preserve Non-Profit is dedicated to the promotion of environmental education and recreation programs at the 20-square mile wetland nature preserve and water supply for the City of West Palm Beach. The organization is charged with the pursuit of funding in the forms of grants from public, private, and foundation sources in addition to fund-raising activities.
On October 9th and 10th, Grassy Waters Preserve is hosting their 12th Annual Golf and Gala Classic to raise money for the preserve’s environmental education and recreation programs and promote the preserve to local communities.
The Grassy Waters Preserve 12th Annual Golf and Gala Classic consists of several luxurious proceedings. Friday the 9th will be a night of decadent hors d’oeuvres, cocktails, a live auction, a silent auction, a preview of the Audubon Centennial Edition, gourmet dining, and dancing. On Saturday the 10th, the day starts with an early morning breakfast and then the tee-off at the beautiful IBIS golf courses. The event finishes off later that afternoon with a delectable luncheon and award ceremony.
Participants will receive gift bags filled with various treasures and keepsakes celebrating the event, including a commemorative bookmark donated by Sprouts. These beautifully designed bookmarks were created on Sprouts Plantable Seed Paper which is 100 % recycled. The bookmarks can be planted to assist in beautifying our surroundings by germinating into lovely wildflowers.
In order to help raise funds for the event, Sprouts also created beautiful note cards from pictures taken at the preserve. Featured among the note cards is the 1st place winner of Grassy Waters 2009 Photography Contest, Melinda Moore. Her photograph titled “Marsh Meditation” is one among five other cards highlighted in the set of six note cards. For every box of cards purchased a donation will be made by Sprouts to Grassy Waters Preserve.
Please help to support this great cause by ordering a box or two of the Grassy Waters Preserve note cards; featuring images of the beautiful preserve.
Please follow the link to purchase note cards:
http://www.sproutem.com/category/Grassy-Waters-Preserve
Events such as the Golf and Gala Classic and donations from businesses like Sprouts are what help to fund Grassy Waters Preserve and keep it alive. This gives them the financial aid they need in their efforts of preserving the wetlands: which fuel the water supply for both Florida’s natural wildlife and the people living in Palm Beach County.
For more information about Grassy Waters Preserve and to find out more about the 12th Annual Golf and Gala Classic please visit:
http://www.grassywaterspreserve.com/
Sprouts! Featured in Premiere Issue of 24Seven Palm Beach North
Posted by Sprouts Staff
Palm Beach eMedia Group, LLC, announced the launch of 24Seven Palm Beach North, a high-end monthly digital magazine covering the trend-setting residents who live, work and play in Northern Palm Beach County. The eco friendly publication utilizes easy-to-use, state-of-the-art flip-page technology that puts you in control as you move through the publication’s beautifully crafted and designed sections, such as health and wellness, going green, travel, medical, arts & entertainment, personal finance, parenting and professional services.
“Digital magazines are at the heart of what green marketing is all about. An online publication means no trees being cut down, no recycling costs and no waste collection costs,” said Sprouts! owner and founder, Sharon Quercioli.
Sprouts is proud to be featured as an editorial contributor in the Going Green section on pages 40-43 in an article entitled “What Green Marketing Campaigns Can Do for Your Business.” The story links directly to a number of online articles quoting what today’s marketing experts are saying about the new green revolution. The article also mentions the recent commendations awarded Sprouts from U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL) and State Representative Carl Domino (R-District 83).
Click on the link below to view 24Seven Palm Beach. Feel free to forward the magazine to your friends and family.
