Hello everyone,
WESPAC is delighted to be working with the Westchester MLK Institute for Nonviolence, the LOFT and the Memorial United Methodist Church (MUMC) this year to plan the 14th Annual Margaret Eberle Fair Trade Festival. This year the festival will take place on Saturday, December 3rd from 10am to 5pm in the Asbury Hall at MUMC in White Plains. You will be receiving a postcard and electronic invitation soon to share with family, friends and colleagues.
The planning committee has authorized a social justice educational component to the festival that will take place simultaneously in the rooms close to Asbury Hall for the benefit of all. I have been invited to coordinate this aspect of the festival and would love your input into the planning. Ideas so far include an Occupy Wall Street panel (Roger and Tracy have already been working on this), a food justice presentation, a collective meditation workshop with Alan Levin (Sacred River Healing) interspersed with films on fair trade, the dark side of chocolate (exploitation of agricultural workers) and Tracy and Scott’s film on hydrofracking.
We need lots of volunteer help to make this successful:
VENDORS
If you have ideas of potential new vendors, please send the information soonest to Joan Indusi who is coordinating the vendor applications [email protected]. Ideas include local artisans who make their own soaps, ceramic artists, other local craftspeople and of course other vendors who sell fair trade items from around the world.
KITCHEN HELP
Charlie Olson will spend the day in the kitchen coordinating the food deliveries and the serving of lunch. He will need at least six volunteers to help him run the kitchen that day. Please note that the planning committee has made the environmental decision not to use paper or plastic cups, plates and silverware which means volunteers will need to spend time washing plates, cups and cutlery.
FOOD DONATIONS
The planning committee is looking for volunteers to donate soups (to be delivered by 10:30am to the kitchen), bread, and homemade baked goods
ADMISSIONS TABLE
The planning committee will need people to staff the admissions table from 10am to 5pm
WESPAC TABLE
WESPAC will need volunteers to staff the WESPAC table from 10am to 5pm in two hour shifts. Please let me know if you can commit to a two hour shift that day (10am to noon; noon to 2pm; 2pm to 4pm; 4pm to 6pm – last shift will include help with cleanup).
VENDOR RELIEF
We will need to designate people who can go around asking the vendors if they need a food or bathroom break. Some of the vendors come alone and cannot leave their tables unattended.
CLEANUP
At 5pm we will need a strong crew to help leave Asbury Hall in excellent condition.
This year the planning committee has agreed to designate a portion of the proceeds to benefit a women’s collective in Nicaragua that Margaret supported and loved. The rest of the proceeds will be divided by MLK, the LOFT, MUMC and WESPAC. Please note that MUMC will barely cover their costs involved with this festival including the heating of Asbury Hall and the other rooms, the use of facilities, the use of kitchen, the wear and tear and other costs. We deeply appreciate Memorial’s ongoing generosity with the progressive community in providing access to their space.
I am the designated volunteer coordinator for this year’s festival. Please email me directly if you would like to help out on December 3rd and in what capacity (food, admissions, clean up, kitchen) so that I can keep track of the master list of volunteers and keep the planning committee informed. We hope you will join us to make this year the most successful year ever as we celebrate fair trade, support local and international artisans and honor the legacy that our beloved Margaret has left behind.
Nada Khader
Executive Director
WESPAC Foundation
914 449-6514
