<html><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; ">Its been quite some time since we've last given you an update, but boy do we have a lot of exciting news! <div><br></div><div><b>New Employee!</b></div><div>We're in the final stages of employing a new Education Coordinator at the Farm. This person will be responsible for coordinating the community gardeners, teaching gardening and cooking classes open to the public in the Farm, coordinating youth education, and conducting cooking demonstrations at the nearby Riverdale Farmers Market. Because we haven't quite sealed the deal, we'll give more information on that in a bit.</div><div><br></div><div><b>New Position!</b></div><div>Because of the new employee, Vinnie Bevivino's position has changed from, well, coordinating everything, to managing the Farm's production and marketing, and using the Farm as a demonstration to promote urban farming throughout Maryland. This means that more food will be grown at the Farm, and other communities that want to start a similar project can get the help they need to get growing.</div><div><br></div><div><b>We're Teaching!</b></div><div>Even with snow on the ground, we started our spring teaching this week. We started teaching middle school students from William Wirt Middle School during the day in their science classes. They learned about the science of seed germination and then helped us plant lettuce and spinach seeds in the high tunnel and chile peppers in containers for the greenhouse. Next week we're starting a program with GEMS (Girls Excelling in Math and Science), where middle school girls are going to set up an experiment that compares the growth of lettuce in and outside of a greenhouse, all culminating in a salad party at the end of the year. Who new that science could taste so good?</div><div><b><br></b></div><div><b>Its Spring!</b></div><div>You wouldn't know it from last weekend, but warm weather is here. Yesterday was beautiful outside, today is beautiful, and the weekend is going to be just amazing. So, we have some volunteer opportunities for those that are just plain sick of winter and want to get outside to get dirty. There's lots of work to be done to get the Farm ready for spring.</div><div>- I know its short notice, but <b>this Saturday, the 7th</b> from 1 to 4 pm, a group of 10 University students are going to be coming to volunteer, and you're invited too! <br></div><div>- <b>March 21st</b> from 10am to 3pm is the beginning of our Saturday volunteer hours. This day will be our first <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>official opening of the Farm, and we're trying to get lots of people out for that day to help get it ready for the<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>community gardeners and ready to plant for market. Also, we will be handing out community garden plot applications that day, so come by and get one. We already have a group of University students coming, we've told lots of middle school students, and now we just need you! It'll be a fun work day together.<br></div><div><br></div><div>Finally, we've been selling lots of produce already this year to restaurants. If you are on campus today, swing by the Maryland Food Coop in the Stamp Student Union and ask for some spinach paneer, because the spinach is from us. We've been selling lots of vegetables from our high tunnel, which has been growing greens all winter long. We will start selling our produce at the <a href="http://www.rpfarmersmarket.org/">Riverdale Park Farmers Market</a> starting April 9th.</div><div><br></div><div>Thanks for reading, we're very excited about the season, and hope to see you out in the Farm soon!</div><div><br></div><div>-Vinnie Bevivino and the Master Peace Community Farm Staff</div><div>Center for Educational Partnership</div><div>62nd and Sheridan Street</div><div>Riverdale, Maryland</div><div><br></div><div>The Master Peace Community Farm is a project of <a href="http://www.engagedu.umd.edu">The Engaged University</a>, an organization within <a href="http://www.extension.umd.edu">Maryland Cooperative Extension</a>.</div></body></html>