JCP
01-22-2007, 02:55 PM
Support Your Local 4-H with Page Seeds
It’s fund raising time for the 4-H’ers of Chenango County, but this year they’ve teamed up with the Page Seed Company of Greene to sell seeds that will help continue the valuable programming provided by 4-H. The Chenango County 4-H Leaders Association and 4-H Clubs will be offering Family Fun Gardens© from Page’s Seed through February 15th. The fund raiser even kicked off with a tour for one lucky 4-H group.
Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Elizabeth Hofmann Bunce, the Extension Educator who grew-up in Oxford, felt that this was a much better idea than selling the usual cookies or popcorn.
Liz said, “It’s a great way to support two local organizations and to beautify our community; and fundraising with Page’s can help reach goals in a safe, family and community friendly way.”
Liz went on to explain that all the fund raising income stays completely in the County to support clubs, projects and 4-H member recognition. The Chenango County 4-H Leaders Association supports 4-H members through awards, trips, camp and school scholarships, project materials and many other special opportunities.
As a special treat, the Page Seed Company’s President, Lynda S. Granger invited the 4-H Club of Greene, led by Jacqui Rayne, for an educational tour to tie in with the fund raiser. Representing Cornell Cooperative was Liz Bunce and Carol Loefstedt, the 4-H Program Assistant. Jacqui Rayne and friend Kim Wood brought their children: Jennifer and Rebecca Rayne and Abigail, Avery, and Aaron Wood. All five children are home-schooled and the 4-H curriculum is part of their education.
Linda LaRosa-Mosner of Oxford, Page’s Director of Marketing, accompanied Lyn bringing the parents and students to the seed packaging area. They passed many signs of the company’s age, as they’ve been in business selling “Quality seeds since 1896.”
Along the way, there were paintings of former (family member) presidents, old tin ceilings, and rough hewn beams. Coincidentally, Page’s past and the 4-H establishment almost coincide, as they were organized in 1902. Today the local Page Seed Company is doing tremendous business; each year they fill and distribute more than 30 million packets of seeds across the country!
All the Page Seed Co. employees were busy making carrot seed packets which will be used in another fund raiser. (Page Seed contributes over $20,000 of vegetable seeds annually in an effort to stop world hunger.) It was very interesting for the kids to see how the machinery worked and what the employees had to do. It was a fun and educational tour that explained how the 4-H seed packets they would be selling came to be.
There are seven clever Family Fun Gardens©, or packages of four seed packets, available from 4-H’ers for just $4 each. They have fun themes like “Plant a Rainbow” which is a wildflower garden mixture (in a box) to “Pizza Garden” that has all the ingredients except the dough! The gardens offer the entire family a fun, healthy activity.
The 4-H orders will be accepted through February 15th so the Family Fun Gardens© can be delivered on March 1st. This will ensure the gardens are available early enough to start them indoors. With twenty-three 4-H Clubs in Chenango County that have 286 kids aged 5 -19, there should be a 4-H’er near you to purchase seeds from. If you don’t know one, however, or just want more information, please call the Cooperative Extension at (607) 334-5841 ext. 15, 17 or 14. If you would like more information about the Page Seed Company, please call Linda Mosner at (607) 656-4107 or visit their website at http://www.pageseed.com (http://www.pageseed.com/).
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge photos.)
Caption 1: At the Page Seed Company in Greene were Liz Hofmann Bunce of Cornell Cooperative Extension; Linda LaRosa-Mosner, Page Seed Director of Marketing; Jacqui Rayne, Greene 4-H Leader; Lyn Granger, Page’s Seed President; along with 4-H’ers: Abigail Wood; Jennifer Rayne; Avery Wood and Rebecca Rayne. (Aaron Wood was off camera.)
Caption 2: 4-H’ers Avery Wood, Rebecca and Jennifer Rayne, and parents Jacqui Rayne and Kim Wood look on as Lyn Granger, President of Page Seed, shows how the seed packaging machine works.
It’s fund raising time for the 4-H’ers of Chenango County, but this year they’ve teamed up with the Page Seed Company of Greene to sell seeds that will help continue the valuable programming provided by 4-H. The Chenango County 4-H Leaders Association and 4-H Clubs will be offering Family Fun Gardens© from Page’s Seed through February 15th. The fund raiser even kicked off with a tour for one lucky 4-H group.
Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Elizabeth Hofmann Bunce, the Extension Educator who grew-up in Oxford, felt that this was a much better idea than selling the usual cookies or popcorn.
Liz said, “It’s a great way to support two local organizations and to beautify our community; and fundraising with Page’s can help reach goals in a safe, family and community friendly way.”
Liz went on to explain that all the fund raising income stays completely in the County to support clubs, projects and 4-H member recognition. The Chenango County 4-H Leaders Association supports 4-H members through awards, trips, camp and school scholarships, project materials and many other special opportunities.
As a special treat, the Page Seed Company’s President, Lynda S. Granger invited the 4-H Club of Greene, led by Jacqui Rayne, for an educational tour to tie in with the fund raiser. Representing Cornell Cooperative was Liz Bunce and Carol Loefstedt, the 4-H Program Assistant. Jacqui Rayne and friend Kim Wood brought their children: Jennifer and Rebecca Rayne and Abigail, Avery, and Aaron Wood. All five children are home-schooled and the 4-H curriculum is part of their education.
Linda LaRosa-Mosner of Oxford, Page’s Director of Marketing, accompanied Lyn bringing the parents and students to the seed packaging area. They passed many signs of the company’s age, as they’ve been in business selling “Quality seeds since 1896.”
Along the way, there were paintings of former (family member) presidents, old tin ceilings, and rough hewn beams. Coincidentally, Page’s past and the 4-H establishment almost coincide, as they were organized in 1902. Today the local Page Seed Company is doing tremendous business; each year they fill and distribute more than 30 million packets of seeds across the country!
All the Page Seed Co. employees were busy making carrot seed packets which will be used in another fund raiser. (Page Seed contributes over $20,000 of vegetable seeds annually in an effort to stop world hunger.) It was very interesting for the kids to see how the machinery worked and what the employees had to do. It was a fun and educational tour that explained how the 4-H seed packets they would be selling came to be.
There are seven clever Family Fun Gardens©, or packages of four seed packets, available from 4-H’ers for just $4 each. They have fun themes like “Plant a Rainbow” which is a wildflower garden mixture (in a box) to “Pizza Garden” that has all the ingredients except the dough! The gardens offer the entire family a fun, healthy activity.
The 4-H orders will be accepted through February 15th so the Family Fun Gardens© can be delivered on March 1st. This will ensure the gardens are available early enough to start them indoors. With twenty-three 4-H Clubs in Chenango County that have 286 kids aged 5 -19, there should be a 4-H’er near you to purchase seeds from. If you don’t know one, however, or just want more information, please call the Cooperative Extension at (607) 334-5841 ext. 15, 17 or 14. If you would like more information about the Page Seed Company, please call Linda Mosner at (607) 656-4107 or visit their website at http://www.pageseed.com (http://www.pageseed.com/).
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge photos.)
Caption 1: At the Page Seed Company in Greene were Liz Hofmann Bunce of Cornell Cooperative Extension; Linda LaRosa-Mosner, Page Seed Director of Marketing; Jacqui Rayne, Greene 4-H Leader; Lyn Granger, Page’s Seed President; along with 4-H’ers: Abigail Wood; Jennifer Rayne; Avery Wood and Rebecca Rayne. (Aaron Wood was off camera.)
Caption 2: 4-H’ers Avery Wood, Rebecca and Jennifer Rayne, and parents Jacqui Rayne and Kim Wood look on as Lyn Granger, President of Page Seed, shows how the seed packaging machine works.