Win a Hand-Crafted Kayak!

Partake in the 2010 Winter Raffle. For just $10 a ticket or 6 tickets for $50, you can win a hand-crafted kayak built by Yestermorrow students and teacher Hilary Russell and support Yestermorrow.

This lightweight boat is strong, handles beautifully, and is elegant in its craftsmanship.

You can see photographs, get specifications, and buy raffle tickets online at http://www.yestermorrow.org/kayak-raffle/ or come by the Yestermorrow lobby to see it in person.

You can purchase your tickets online through our secure donation site. You must specify “kayak raffle” in the memo line and include your contact information so we can get in touch with you, if you are the lucky winner.

All proceeds benefit Yestermorrow’s Scholarship Fund.

Save the date & join us for the raffle drawing during Yestermorrow’s 6^th Annual Art Auction, Saturday, December 4. A live auction, silent auction, and all around great party is planned. Check out http://www.yestermorrow.org/december-4-art-auction/ for more details. We’ve already got art work and handcrafted items from Yestermorrow instructor Ken Burton, board member Mickey Ackerman, interns, former students, and staff lined up.

Purchase tickets to win the kayak and join us on December 4^th.

Green Buildings Open House October 2nd

Ever wonder what your friends and neighbors are doing in terms of sustainable technologies and renewable energy solutions? Time to come on inside and find out for yourself! NESEA’s highly successful Green Buildings Open House is scheduled for October 2, from 10 AM to 4 PM in locations around the Northeast, including here at Yestermorrow. Last year, more than 16,000 people toured some 500 sites from Maine to Pennsylvania, and this year’s event is expected to be even bigger!

For a complete list of locations in your area (or to learn more about building features or fuel types) go to http://www.nesea.org/openhouse/listings/ and search the NESEA GBOH database.
For the past 14 years, the GBOH program has inspired thousands of individuals to learn about and implement energy efficient and renewable energy solutions in their homes. The goal of the GBOH event is to enable participants to see, firsthand, energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements in their communities and subsequently motivate them to adopt similar solutions themselves. At host sites, participants are able to talk with home and business owners, ask questions, and see how their renewable energy technologies actually work. GBOH also connects building owners and managers with professionals who can provide them with sustainable energy services or energy efficiency retrofits.

As host sites register, detailed information and photos of the buildings' innovative energy features are posted, providing an ongoing educational tool (see Yestermorrow's listing at http://www.nesea.org/Scripts/googleMaps/detail.php?id=610). Just a few of the features you can see here at Yestermorrow include: a composting toilet, daylighting, Energy Star appliances, FSC certified wood, two green roofs, grid tied photovoltaics, heat recovery ventilation, local materials (slate, stone, wood), passive solar, recycled materials, solar domestic hot water, straw bale, and super insulated walls/roofs.

Talk to the people who are in the trenches – what worked, what didn’t work, what they may be thinking about doing next. There is something really powerful about homeowners talking to other homeowners and sharing what they’ve learned. This is how change happens ‐ be a part of it!

Yestermorrow is pleased to be a recipient of 1% for the Planet. The Brown Buffalo in Burlington, VT has committed to give 1% of their profits to support Yestermorrow. We’re looking forward to give Brown Buffalo staff a tour of the campus during leaf-peeping season.

A Creative Design Studio, The Brown Buffalo’s mission aligns well with ours. They employ architecturally minded methods to create product from process, with a specialty in designing backpacks, handbags, luggage, and travel gear. See what they are up to at http://www.thebrownbuffalo.com/

If you want to a simple way to support Yestermorrow, you can become a member business, visit 1% for the Planet. It’s easy. It’s fun. And it keeps earth in business.

Meet Development Director Ruth Dinerman

We're excited to introduce our newest staff member, Ruth Dinerman, who came on board this week as our first Development Director. Ruth holds a BA from Oberlin College and an MFA in fiction from Brooklyn College, City University of New York. She comes to the Mad River Valley by a circuitous route that’s taken her to various places in the Midwest, New York City, China, Boston, and most recently, the Berkshires in western Massachusetts. She’s taught high school students who were failing in the Newark, NJ public schools to enjoy writing, run programs to help adults prepare for college, and taught English to Chinese undergraduate and graduate students as well as to Chinese engineers and mechanics. After living and working in China for four years, she settled in New England, fiercely committed to protecting the natural world. At the Appalachian Mountain Club, she involved volunteers from Maine to DC in stewardship projects and advocacy to protect the region’s mountains and rivers. As she became increasingly concerned with issues of sustainability, she’s helped farmers increase their energy independence through efficiency and renewable energy improvements, and created a program to teach new moms about ways to reduce toxics in their homes to protect their babies. Since 2001, she’s been raising money for not-for-profits, most recently, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. She loves writing, reading, raising chickens, hiking, bicycling, as well as live music and theater.

In her role as Development Director here at Yestermorrow, Ruth is responsible for creating and executing a comprehensive strategy that grows contributions to Yestermorrow and developing Yestermorrow’s Capital Campaign to expand campus facilities. She works on a variety of fundraising and outreach activities such as alumni relations, special events and social media campaigns. You can contact her at Ruth (at) yestermorrow.org.