Rippling Waters Organic Farm

Rippling Waters Organic Farm is a 12-acre farm located on the banks of the Saco River in Standish. It is a MOFGA (Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association) certified farm growing quality, certified organic vegetables, bedding plants, herbs, flowers, and perennials since 1991.

The farm is located at 55 River Road, which is the left-hand turn off of Route 25 as you leave Standish, before you cross over the Saco River at the Limington Rapids. This past week end was Potato Planting Day, which is an annual event and volunteers were sought to plant the potato crop and to bring a picnic and enjoy the river. This is typical of the events that are scheduled at the farm throughout the year. Richard Rudolf is the executive director of Rippling Water Farm and he is dedicated to bringing safe organic food to the marketplace and to help provide organic food to seniors and others who are not able to provide it for themselves.

The Saco Valley Food Connections is hosting a vegetarian pot luck dinner – Thursday, May 17 at 6 p.m. at Rippling Waters Farm. Besides good food and conversation, the council will be showing a video entitled Food for Thought. The video is a wake-up call to action around what is happening to our food supply. It examines a number of key issues about genetically modified foods, lack of testing or labeling, and other food safety issues. There will be a brief meeting to bring folks up to date on what they are doing to promote food security and how you can help. All are welcome to attend. Bring a vegetarian organic food item to add to the table.

The Saco Valley Food Connections, a program of Rippling Waters Farm, combines community food work with education to provide greater food security for residents living in the Saco Valley area. It links food producers and consumers in a common effort to grow organic produce for the school lunch program, CSA and Senior Farm Share members, low income residents served by the local emergency food system and local markets. The project supports Maine’s Food Policy development by improving the community’s agricultural capacity. Infrastructure improvements at the farm and school sites along with the development of community gardens in Kezar Falls and at senior housing sites will increase the self-reliance of the community residents to grow food for themselves.

Stonecrest Senior Housing

The Saco Valley Food Connections Project is launching two new projects this year which will increase the amount of organic food available to local residents. The Gorham Savings Bank has underwritten a new intergenerational educational garden initiative at the Stonecrest Senior Housing Complex in Standish.

The project is a collaborative effort involving the farm, the Avesta Housing Management Corporation, Communities Promoting Health Coalition and the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. They will provide seniors with the tools, resources and technical assistance needed to grow organic produces for themselves. It will also increase their nutritional knowledge enabling them to make better food choices and help break down the isolation that many seniors encounter once they are no longer part of the nation,s workforce. Seniors living in the Saco valley area are welcome to participate. Rippling Waters will be constructing four 10-foot-by-4-foot raised garden beds that are two feet high, as well as planting materials and organic seedlings. Interested seniors will be able to assist in planting the beds and they will share in the produce. For more information contact the farm at 642-5161.

Steep Falls Elementary School

Thanks to a small grant received from the Wild Oats Supermarket in Portland, the second project to be launched this year by The Saco Valley Food Connections will be the raised bed garden project at the Steep Falls Elementary School.

The nine raised beds that have been built will enable teachers and master gardeners to engage 125 students, K-3 in classroom activities and work in the beds to grow food for a family food festival to be held each fall.

This event will provide an opportunity for students and teachers to share their accomplishments and their harvest with family and community residents. An AmeriCorp member, Betsy Mattox, who is part of Rippling Waters farm staff will be on hand one morning each week to teach participants how to prepare raised beds, use the year-round mulch method to reduce weeding, trellis tomatoes and cucumbers, and use compost. She is also assisting teachers in selecting learning activities that are related to the curriculum and reinforce the learning taking place on site. The curriculum materials will be used to teach biology, math, language arts and history lessons. Students will learn about the life cycle of plants, the water cycle, and will compare and contrast how folks gardened in pioneering days with what is being done today.

The raised beds have been made and are in the process of being filled with loam and compost. The organic seedlings will consist of both flowers and vegetables. Some of the classrooms are planting seedlings in their classrooms to transplant into the gardens. The teachers are excited about the project and many parents are involved and interested in working as volunteers. Hopefully more volunteers from the community will come forward to help in these worthwhile projects. During school vacation volunteers will be needed to weed and water the beds. For more information or to volunteer call Rippling Waters at 642-516l.

Steep Falls Library

Mommy and Me Yoga class begins on May 9 for a 4-week session on Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m. Cost is $20. Also Introduction to Yoga begins May 16 on Wednesdays from 4-5 p.m. Cost is $28. Proceeds benefit the library. For more information about the library, call 675-3132 or visit the Web site at www.steepfallslibrary.org.

Attention Standish Residents

Are you aware that you can obtain a Standish EMS subscription plan that could save you, or a member of your family hundreds of dollars if you ever need to be transported by Standish EMS? A small annual fee is required but after that fee is paid, you or your family, or business would not be billed for the co-pay or charge your medical insurance does not cover for treatment and transportation. If you have no insurance the entire bill would be paid. If you have any questions about this service call 642-8821 to obtain and application to become a subscriber.

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