Washington County Community Action Organization 546 S.E.,Baseline Hillsboro, OR 97123 503/648-6646 We are a non-profit.group organized to serve the needs of low-income and minority p<lrsons. We provide the following ongoing services: • Consumer advocacy for Welfare, Food Stamp, Soeial Security and other problems. • Discrimination Services • Emergency Shelter House - • Gleaning Project-last year over $57,000 worth of food was harvested from local fields and distributed to over 1,000 low-income, elderly and d-isabled persons; the food was the windfall crop which would have otherwise gone to waste; farmers donate this food and get a tax break. • • Rural Awareness Project • Home Maintenance & Winterization •Juvenile Rights • Translator's Bureau • Head Start • Rural Tribune-an 8-page, monthly bilingual (Spanish-English) newsletter, distributed free • Update and workshops for.Washington County's Directory of Human Services·(Medical and Social) Currently operating programs: • Women's Self-Help Divorce Project • Natural Food Preservation Project (food dryers, juicers, pressure cookers). • Community Gar,dens • Seni·or Food Stamp Outreach • Tax Assistance Clinic • Bicultural Bilingual Comm~nity Education • Emergency Food and Nutrition June 1976 RAIN Page 5 • Information and Referral • Tualatin-Sherwood-Tigard Youth Group Cooperative efforts: • RSVP (Retired Senior Volunteer Program/ ACTION) • Citizens for Progress through Law • Emergency Services Coordination Ideas with energy (expect to b~ going next year): • mechanics co-op • solar energy units • alternative school • women's crisis shelter • migrant day care • • video access equipment • credit union • home resource center (tools) • housekeeping assistants for seniors • comprehensive child care (Jim Long) video equipment to continue t~e process. From the Ground Up And now they are in the final stages of preparing a twovolume, 600-page work on homesteading which they started last winter.· Glen and Kathleen Simmons · Dear Haven Farm Star Route, Box 1370 Glenwood, OR 97120✓ Glen and Kathleen challenge the definition of an institution. They live at about the 1200' level on a 30-acre-farm 35 miles west of Portland. In the past several years, mostly through the courses they teach-at Portland Community College on homesteading and innumerable other workshops, all in on.e fashion or another on homesteading, they have entertained several thousand people at their place. {Last Christmas 90 students showed up for supper). It is part of the Simmons' philosophy that in order to teach one must also show: one 98 percent self-sufficient homestead is worth 10-20 lectures (or more). , While maintaining the farm and earning about $250 a month teac~ing, they have managed to videotape a half-dozen shows on homesteading and are now in the process of buying "' We have only seen glimpses of "From the Ground Up," but realize it will be one of the more complete books on the subject and surely shquld be of interest to many people. The volumes contain informatio~ oh: soil, growing, buildings, harvest, storage, food drying, making soap, lotions, sprouts, cheese, livestock, grains and cereals .•.. We hope to excerpt from it i,n future RAINs. Orders for "From the Ground Up" are now being received. 2 vols. $9.00, from above address. A couple of drying hints from the Simmons: • Instead of slicing vegetables, like cabbage, carrots, beets, celery and green peppers, shred them. These dry readily, are easily reconstituted and' can be ground into vegetable flours for baking. Mrs. Simmons says the sliced vegetables'just won't go through the grinder properly after they are dried. • Whole fruits, such as prunes,. cherries and grapes, should be dipped· in blanch water for about eight seconds, drained, dipped in cold water a,nd drained before drying. This causes the fruit to dry quicker because the skin breaks. • Fruit leathers are highly concentrated, chewy, nutritious snacks. They are made by putting fresh or canned fruit or any combination of fruits in a blender and liquefying (add small amount of water'or canned fruit juice if fruit is too dry). Add sugar or honey to taste and pour the mixture about 1/4" thick on plastic wrap molded inside a 'cookie sheet. • Put this in the dryer until the upper side is no longer soft. Turn it out onto a cloth, peel off the plastic and let the other side dry in the dryer until no moisture is apparent. It should be dry enough to roll up, but not brittle.' Roll it .between sheets of plastic wrap and seal in jars. To eat, just . tear a piece off. Mrs. Simmons recommends using pectin for berries to help them set up. Their fruit leathers include grape, strawberry, apricot, apple, cherry and cinnamon-apple. Most other foods can be blanched with steam for two or three . minutes before dipping in cold water and draining. This method preserves more of the.natural vitamins and usually helps food hold its color. • Baking temperatures should be·lowered when using recipes with . dried foods. For instance, dried corn can be ground into corn meal to make corn bread or muffins. Use less sugar when making the bread and bake 11t a lower temperature so it won't burn. • Mrs. Simmons puts most food on dish cloths or nylon netting before placing it on the dryer shelves. Things like corn that could lose moisture on a cloth or glazed fruits that would stick are dried ~n plastic wrap.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc4NTAz