We are officially at the half-way mark and oh my is this year going by quickly! We are so proud of our volunteers and donors for creating and delivering 408 delicious meals to those in need as well as donating $2613.80 worth of dry goods and produce to food pantries and neighbors in need. We are continually thankful and humbled by your generosity.
Summer is in full swing and this July 4th remember to be kind to our planet! Hot dogs and hamburgers taste better on reusable plates and charcoal grills use 3 times more CO2 than propane grills. Ditch the plastic water bottles for a refillable water station and make sure your party-goers are properly recycling their cans and bottles. The red, white, and blue needs your help to stay green!
What is Your Voice
| Congratulations to our friends at What is Your Voice, a Domestic Violence Peer Supported Advocate group. During the last year WIYV has responded to over 12,000 texts and calls through their 24/7 helpline, performed over 1,500 counseling sessions and intakes, and brought well-being and hope to more than 300 women and children through their whole-person centered approach. Intimate Partner violence does not discriminate.A big Thank You to Jeri Berc and The 100 Women Who Care of Southern Delaware who awarded the What is Your Voice group with a $10,641 donation as well as the Richard Shulze Family Foundation for their matching $5,000 donation. We are certain that these funds will help WIYV in their tireless mission to address domestic violence as well as homelessness, addiction, poverty, and human trafficking in Sussex County. It’s never too late to start your future. If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call or text 302-467-3310 or visit their online form HERE. |
| CHEER Meals on Wheels |
| The TAPTF Society is pleased to highlight our friends at the CHEER Meals on Wheels Program. The CHEER Meals on Wheels program has delivered in excess of 230,000 meals annually to eligible homebound seniors in Sussex County for over 25 years. This vital service ensures that no senior in Sussex County goes hungry.On July 30th, the TAPTF Society with be joining the CHEER group for their “Volunteers are our Pardners” Community Day where you can learn about a number of volunteer opportunities that can make a difference in your neighborhood. Join us for a fun day with new friends!”Real change in society must start from individual initiative.” -Dalai LamaIf you are or know a homebound senior in need of services, please call 302-515-3040. |
The Sustainability Chef
Michelin recently invented a new category, the Green Star rating for excellence in sustainability and Chef Dan Barber was one of the first recipients. His restaurants aren’t suffering from supply chain issues like so many of his competitors for one simple reason: anything he can’t grow, he buys hyper-locally, and if he can’t buy it locally, he won’t cook it. This simple step in sustainability has allowed him to excel in his art, but he isn’t going to stop there.
Chef Barber works with local vegetable breeders to create nutritionally healthier and literally better tasting vegetables through his new venture, Row 7 Seed Company. His most famous creation being a smaller, denser in fiber, butternut squash that does not need butter or sugar to make it taste five-star delicious! The breed is naturally smooth and sweet requiring fewer empty calories to create a healthy meal that is perhaps more appetizing to picky eaters, and due to its size and density, requires less water and space to cultivate. But that’s not the only produce, his website is full of tasty seed creations that are available right now to the public. That is a very exciting food future.
To learn more about Chef Dan Barber and his work visit Row 7 Seed Company, or catch his episodes of Chef’s Table and Somebody Feed Phil on Netflix.
Gas prices are at the highest level in history, hurting regular Americans, while Big Oil companies are enjoying record profits. The president earlier this month singled out ExxonMobil, saying the company “made more money than God this year.”
How did this happen? A lot of people will blame the war in Ukraine and America’s reliance on Russian imports, but that’s not necessarily the whole picture. Less than 2% of the US oil supply comes from Russian imports, which of course is not nothing, but it is certainly not enough to be driving prices to $5, $6, $7 or even $10 a gallon here where I live in Northern California. Something else is going on here.
Several refineries shuttered during the pandemic-induced recession of 2020 when demand for gasoline took a nosedive. A few refineries closed due to COVID, a Philadelphia refinery was rocked by explosions in early 2020, and another in Louisiana was destroyed by Hurricane Ida. They have not come back online. Today, the U.S. has five fewer refineries than it had at the beginning of 2020.
But now demand is suddenly back and the supply is not even close to meeting it. Why don’t these disused facilities simply start back up? The answer is simple: the cost to get these refineries back online does not compare to the profits that are being made by oil companies limiting their own supply. Greed over need.
But don’t read this and think I am advocating for more refineries, oh no. I truly believe that the last refinery in America has already been built. The message I am trying to impart to you is one of hope. Yes, greed is fueling this current market stranglehold, but there is a second underlying reason: oil executives see the writing on the wall. They see that they will soon become a part of the past. The transition away from fossil fuels is coming.
Green energy alternatives are nipping at the oil industry’s heels. Eco-friendly technologies are coming down in price to be accessible to the average household. American Muscle brands like Ford and Chevy are offering more electric and hybrid vehicles than ever. The current energy crisis is likely to accelerate the transition to cleaner, non-fossil sources as countries look to insulate themselves from price spikes while focusing on sustainability.
“The move to higher gas and power prices is potentially a longer-term catalyst for acceleration of development of renewable energy capacity globally across a variety of technologies including solar, wind and green hydrogen,” says Ameet Thakkar, energy transition and infrastructure analyst.
We hope to see a brighter, cleaner, cheaper future very soon.
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