COACHELLA VALLEY

            It has been a very busy winter, and many hours were spent by the executive board and chapter members to complete several successful projects.

            The winter vegetable tour fielded 112 participants.  Despite heavy rain the day before, and an early morning bus stuck in the mud, the rest of the day went by without a hitch, and participants were full of praise.

            February required preparation for the Riverside County Fair and National Date Festival.  We constructed a booth, distributed dates, and several members presented a cooking show with a guest chef each day on behalf of the California Date Commission.  President Ann Copeland managed the date and citrus building, which was filled with entries.

            Our Alice Lowery Legacy Funds provided money for the buyers’ breakfast before the livestock auction, “Row of Champions” pens and banners, livestock dollars, and FFA uniforms and equipment for two local high schools.

            All of us look forward to a little rest this coming month before we start our scholarship winners search and select Agriculturist of the Year.

INLAND EMPIRE

            Inland Empire has chosen the theme “Marketing” for programs at meetings in 2008.

            The January meeting focused on our youngest consumers, school children and their school gardens.  Emily Bueerman, our own education chair, presented a Power Point program on school gardens in Redlands.  Emily developed the first of these gardens, and has been the impetus behind creating others.  Each garden is tied to academics, with themes such as the Shakespeare Garden, the Historic Garden and the Native Plant Garden.

            The latest garden, at a middle school, will show varieties of citrus which were so important in the Inland Empire.  Gardening teaches many subjects, including math, science, botany, agriculture, nutrition, literature and history.  The happy smiles on the faces in pictures taken in the gardens show the outstanding success of Emily’s project.

            We were pleased to have Mary Landau, CWA State Ag Education Director, Joan Smith, CWA Southern District Director and Police Chief Jim Bueerman, Emily’s husband with us at this meeting.

            Several local field trips are planned to learn more about current ag marketing, and will be featured in future reports.  Some Los Angeles Chapter members will be joing us for an April 12 trip to Temecula.

LOS ANGELES CHAPTER

            Los Angeles Chapter is currently working on its first Tablescaping Competition Fund Raiser, to be held April 26 at Cal Poly, Pomona, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.  All are welcome.

            The theme is “Sowing the Seeds of Spectacular Settings,” with tables from local merchants and friends featured.

            Maura Graber of R.S.V.P. Institute of Etiquette will be a co-sponsor.  Maura is a tabletop specialist, dining historian, and tablescaping judge at the Los Angeles County Fair for ten years.

            We are looking forward to participating with Inland Empire Chapter on a trip to Temecula and hope to be able to do with other Southern Area Chapters as well.

            Our annual AGDAY LA will be held on May 14 and 15 in conjunction with the 48^th District Agricultural Association’s Fair.  Workers and visitors from other chapters will be welcomed.

            We continue to distribute the CWA bags and have found they make great “gift wrapping” for wine, cheese and other food related gifts.

            Our chapter continues to work hard to meet the challenge of being located in an urban community.

PALO VERDE VALLEY CHAPTER

            January began with the Blue Grass Festival, with PVCWA cooking breakfast between 5:30 a.m. and 11 a.m.  Everyone turned out to help, and it was a good fundraiser for us.  The Festival covered three days, which meant three mornings at 4 a.m. for us.

            Our next event was the Hobo Rally.  Again our girls jumped on the tour bus and provided snacks and drinks.  Our favorite guide, local city councilman and farmer Joey DeConinck provided a talk on the history of the Palo Verde Valley.

            In February, 4H members presented their animal projects at our meeting, there was a brief presentation of the Cancer Resource Center Desert Lily sale, our budget was approved and members approved a bid to paint and repair the fair building.

            Ag Week will be celebrated in March, the Colorado River County Fair and the Farmer’s Ball take place in April, and our Donor Appreciation Night will be May 9 at a member’s home.

            Finally, our scholarship chairmen, Gloria Stroschein and Carol Almquist are working on scholarships for this year.