Events
Covid-19 Update
During these unpredictable and uncertain times, we are doing our best to continue our work while preceding with the utmost care for the health and safety of our team members and supporters. For the time being, we are continuing with our volunteer days on the second Saturday of each month. (see info below). As we move forward, we will continue to assess the situation and decide what is best. Check back here for more updates.
What's Happening?
Stay updated on our events, meetings, and volunteer days below. You can add our Google calendar to yours to make sure you don't miss a thing!
See more detailed descriptions of our events
Event Details
Stay tuned for upcoming events in 2024!
Volunteer Days!
Join us every Second Saturday of the month from 10am-12pm for our volunteer days! We will be meeting at the CSC community gardens to work on various land projects. We want to encourage families with children and volunteers of all ages to participate; any and all contribution is valued. Community and co-operation is what we’re all about!
For those who haven’t seen it before, come early or stay after for a CSC land tour. Light refreshments of snacks, iced tea, lemonade, and water will be served to keep our bodies nourished and hydrated!
2023 Dates: July 8th, August 12th, September 9th & October 14th
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Highlighted Event
Cob Oven Build with Deanne Bednar of Strawbale Studio and Meghan Arcari (to be scheduled for 2021)
Join us for three days of all things cob oven. Over twenty years ago, Deanne and a few others built the Strawbale Studio, a home built using all natural materials. She had taken courses from the Cob Cottage Company and was inspired to take on a project of her own. Today, Strawbale Studio of Oxford, Michigan offers tour, workshops, and hands-on opportunities to study natural building. Meghan studied under Deanne at Strawbale Studio during the September internship program of 2019. They are teaming up to build a cob oven for Center for Sustainable Community and are using it as an opportunity to educate and share their knowledge.
Special Event Details
Schedule:
2:00 pm: Meet in the Stelle Community Center for registration and light refreshments. Students can set up tents or lodging accommodations.
3:00 – 6:45 pm: Classroom instructional time
7:00 pm: Dinner in the Stelle Community Center
8:00 pm: Finished for the day
Sunday:
8:00 am: Breakfast
9:00 – 11:45 am: Hands-on work outside
12:00 pm: Lunch
1:00 – 2:00 pm: break
2:00 – 6:45 pm: Hands-on work outside
7:00 pm: Dinner
8:00 pm: Finished for the day
Monday:
8:00 am: Breakfast
9:00 – 11:45: Hands-on work outside
12:00 pm: Lunch
1:00 – 4:00 pm: Hands-on work and closing
Price: $250 per person *Camping is included
Lodging: We have two rooms in the Stelle Community Center and our Earth Shelter available for rent. Contact us at (815) 383-4426 for more information and pricing on rooms.
Space is limited!
August 28th
Preserving the Harvest with Peg Homeier
Participants will be taken through the various steps of preserving the harvest with drying, canning, and fermenting on the agenda. Peg Homeier, a CSC board member, re-purposed her old cabinets into a canning kitchen in her garage and invites students to gain hands-on experience with her. During the workshop, we will process apples for applesauce, pound cabbage for sauerkraut, and grind dried tomatoes to make “tomato powder”. Everyone will also take home “goodie” bags full of various canned goods made in Stelle this season. Last year was a huge success and we are excited to carry on this tradition!
September 2021 -to be scheduled
Farm Scale Tomato Intensive: From Seed to Harvest
Join Rick Rigutto and Alex Rosenberg for a day of hands on learning, tasting and discussion about all things tomatoes. We will cover topics from seedling propagation, planting, pruning, trellising system, and the how to’s of harvest and storage. We will dive in to pest and disease management as well as fertilization methods for a long harvest window with the healthiest plants possible. This class will be a mix of discussion, PowerPoint presentation with videos from our own farms, hands on potting and will culminate in a diverse tomato tasting with fresh tomatoes, salsas and sauces.
Past Events
Past Events
Take a look back at our previous workshops!
Take a look back at some of our previous workshops!
Day of Mindfulness and Qigong
Participants enjoyed a restorative day of strengthening and mindful qigong practice. Ruth Kamen, a Stelle resident, lead the group through beginner qigong movements and meditations to nourish both the body and the mind. She also incorporated educational materials to fortify each lesson. Students left feeling rejuvenated and centered. Thanks, Ruth!
Fall Harvest Festival
Our Harvest Festival was a huge success! We saw many new and familiar faces and had a day full of fun, laughter, and community. Children got to spend lots of time in the craft room making ghost leaves and monster rocks as well as decorating picture frames with natural materials like sticks, leaves, and pine needles. There was also pumpkin painting, cookie decorating, bread making, traditional stone soup, a raffle, and a bazaar. There was no shortage of things to do and it all came together and created a special event. Thank you to our volunteers and everyone who came out to join us! Stay connected to learn about more events like this.
Our Harvest Festival was a huge success! We saw many new and familiar faces and had a day full of fun, laughter, and community. Children got to spend lots of time in the craft room making ghost leaves and monster rocks as well as decorating picture frames with natural materials like sticks, leaves, and pine needles. There was also pumpkin painting, cookie decorating, bread making, traditional stone soup, a raffle, and a bazaar. There was no shortage of things to do and it all came together and created a special event. Thank you to our volunteers and everyone who came out to join us! Stay connected to learn about more events like this.
Soil Health with Bill Wilson
During this workshop students helped build a three-bin composting system in our community gardens and built a “lasagna” bed to prepare our garden for next season. After a light lunch, Bill Wilson talked about the importance of building healthy soil and how to increase the genetic potential of plants in the process. Students also got to tour the CSC land and snack on fresh berries along the way.
During this workshop students helped build a three-bin composting system in our community gardens and built a “lasagna” bed to prepare our garden for next season. After a light lunch, Bill Wilson talked about the importance of building healthy soil and how to increase the genetic potential of plants in the process. Students also got to tour the CSC land and snack on fresh berries along the way.
Natural Connections
With no shade, it was too hot to use the labyrinth so Ruth lead participants in a wonderful Qi Gong meditation and exercise inside. After a delicious lunch, Kasandra lead us in an awareness meditation and then a perspective exercise to help them focus on the natural world around us as we sat in the shade of a lovely cherry tree. Some participants called it ‘eye opening’ and a ‘wonderful experience’. It turned out to be a lovely day with some wonderful people. Kasandra’s book “7 Simple Steps to Non-Toxic Gardening” details ways to build these connections at home in your day to day life and can be found here.
