This year, in lieu of gifts, consider making donations to our local farmed-animal sanctuaries. Sanctuaries are VERY expensive to run and the people who run them are some of the hardest-working and most dedicated people you’ll find. They are well worth supporting.
All Species Kinship (Battle Creek)
Barn Sanctuary (Chelsea)
Chubby Goat Acres (Schoolcraft)
Fauna Animal Sanctuary (Battle Creek)
Sasha Farm Animal Sanctuary (Chelsea)
Dear Friend:
A couple of weeks ago, I tabled at the Kalamazoo Night Market. I had a brilliant time, and gave out info to more than 250 people. Will they all become vegan overnight? Of course not! But they are all that much closer – as are the hundreds more who simply walked past and saw the display. (Marketing 101 says that many people need to encounter your message fifteen or twenty times before they’ll buy/try.)
I also made some great connections, some of which may lead to new workshop venues.
And some of the new people will join our fun Facebook community and/or participate in our Meetup events, thus strengthening our group and our cause.
When I first started tabling, four years ago, there were many who looked at our booth askance. Now hardly any do. It’s not that everyone is now pro-vegan: just that more are, and the rest mostly see us as a normal – albeit possibly annoying – part of the mix. Normalizing veganism in our community is one of the main goals of this group, and we’re succeeding.
That night, I was also surrounded by people selling meat products. I always try to remember that, if we do our job right, many people will experience economic dislocation. Where we can, we always want to help businesses convert to veganism.
I’ve probably tabled around fifty times over the past four years. (Next tabling event: SPCA Dog Dash, September 8). Tabling is hard work, but I love it. If you ever see me or others tabling on behalf of Vegan Kalamazoo, stop by and say hi! And if you ever want to help table that would be terrific, too. The more, the merrier!
Many thanks to Gaby Gerken and the rest of the team at the People’s Food Coop for putting together the fantastic Night Market and allowing us to participate.
Please join us at our September events – there’s something for everyone. (See below.) *Everyone* is always welcome at Vegan Kalamazoo events, including vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores. (However, out of respect for our mission, we request that you only order / consume vegan food at our events.) We also welcome people with *any* motive for going vegan, including health, the environment, animal rights, and spirituality.
Please especially note:
*Our Vegan 101 and 102 classes at the Kalamazoo, Parchment, Otsego and Coldwater libraries. Tell your friends in those communities!
*The upcoming Vegan Chef’s Table at Zazios. A Chef’s Table is like watching your favorite cooking show happening right in front of you. It’s held in a specially designed, state-of-the-art “cooking theater” within the restaurant, and the comfortable stadium-like seating will ensure you won’t miss any of the action. As part of a small group, you’ll get to watch and ask questions as Chef Jeremy Cawby and his team prepare your gourmet vegan feast; and if you want, you can even help!
See you at the events!
Hillary Rettig
Organizer
Wild Ginger is a contemporary Asian restaurant, offering delicious Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Thai dishes. In addition to many traditional favorites, they develop their own unique dishes. They also have a full bar. Wild Ginger is located in the D&W mall complex on Romence Road, just west of Westnedge.
They offer several tasty options that either are already vegan or can be customized to be vegan. Most (but not all) of the items marked as vegetarian on their menu can be made vegan. However, some of the items marked as vegetarian actually contain fish sauce, so be sure to read the menu description for mention of fish or oyster sauce or eggs, and talk to your server about your needs.
We have found the wait staff to be very knowledgeable and helpful. They would specify for the chefs to omit fish sauce or eggs to keep dishes vegans. This was shown on the receipt, which made us feel more confident that it was actually happening.
Appetizers that can be made vegan include: spring rolls, edamame, and vegetable pot sticker dumplings. The sweet chili dipping sauce for the spring rolls is vegan, but the spicy mayo and unagi are not.
They offer a variety of maki rolls, but only 3 are vegan: avocado roll, cucumber roll, and vegetable roll.
Entrees that can be made vegan (with fried tofu) include: Udon Basil Fried Tofu; Coconut Curry; Broccoli & Onion; Mongolian; Kung Pao; Hunan; Thai Basil; Cashew Nut; Singapore Rice Noodle; and others.
My husband and I went there for lunch. For an appetizer, my husband ordered the vegetable roll and I ordered the pot sticker dumplings (steamed). Both were yummy, and also nicely presented, with fresh ginger and wasabi with the vegetable roll and a nice dipping sauce with the dumplings. As an entrée, my husband ordered the Broccoli and Onion with fried tofu, and I ordered the Black Bean Sauce with fried tofu. Lunch entrees (which are served between 11 AM and 3 PM) are served with steamed white rice (no brown rice option and the fried rice has egg), a fried spring roll (unfortunately, there was no fresh spring roll option), and soup. The vegan soup option is hot & sour soup; it had a strong mushroom flavor, which wasn’t my favorite (I don’t like mushrooms), but my husband enjoyed his. Both entrees were awesome, and we gobbled them down.
This was not our first time eating at Wild Ginger. Other entrees that we’ve tried and particularly loved include: Udon Basil Fried Tofu; Coconut Curry, Mongolian, and Singapore Rice Noodles (which are awesome if you like curry).
Warning: The fortune cookies are NOT vegan (contain egg) so be sure to tell the server to omit them.
In addition to dine-in, Wild Ginger offers takeout and delivery. (Be sure to specify no fortune cookies before they pack up the food.)
By Wendy Jaehnig
The Humane Society’s annual Humane Lobby Day in Michigan is a fun and interesting event. This is a great opportunity to tell your state legislators about issues affecting Michigan’s animals such as what changes are needed to protect animals from puppy mills and gas chamber euthanasia. Don’t be worried if you have never participated in this sort of event before, as there will be plenty of people with lobbying experience to help out.
If you need a ride or would like to offer a ride to the event, please use the comments section on our Meetup site to organize carpools.
Registration is $8 and that covers materials and a vegan boxed lunch. Last day to register is May 13.
***Attendees must register on the Humane Society website***
When: Tuesday, May 17, 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Where: Anderson House Office Building, Mackinac Room
124 North Capitol Ave., Lansing, MI 48909
Cost: $8
Living Vegan is a social group where we come together informally for fun times and fun discussions. Need a recipe? A vegan fashion tip? Tips for dealing with non-vegan family/friends? You’ll get it all at Living Vegan! We also have plenty of fun discussions on non-vegan topics like movies, TV, gardening, photography, and science fiction. And sometimes there’s a pool game or two!
We hope you’ll join us for our next get-together on Monday, May 23 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Tropical Smoothie Cafe (4315 West Main, Kalamazoo) Event is free (except the cost of your food and drink); we do request and appreciate an optional $2 donation to cover group expenses.
Tropical Smoothie Cafe, located behind The Hanger on West Main, has excellent and healthy food with lots of vegan options including sandwiches and wraps with Beyond Meat. If the weather’s good we can eat outside!
Our gracious host is Hillary Rettig. RSVP requested in advance on our Meetup (preferred) or Facebook page.
Please note: there will be no Living Vegan Potluck at Laurie Oldfather’s house this month.
As always, at Vegan Kalamazoo events, everyone is welcome, including vegans, vegetarians, omnivores, and vegans-in-progress.
Living Vegan is a social group where we come together informally for fun times and fun discussions. Need a recipe? A vegan fashion tip? Tips for dealing with non-vegan family/friends? You’ll get it all at Living Vegan! We also have plenty of fun discussions on non-vegan topics like movies, TV, gardening, photography, and science fiction. And sometimes there’s a pool game or two!
We hope you’ll join us for our next get-together on Saturday, May 14 from 10:00 a.m. to Noon at Fourth Coast Cafe (816 S Westnedge Ave, Kalamazoo) Event is free (except the cost of your food and drink); we do request and appreciate an optional $2 donation to cover group expenses.
Our gracious host is, as always, Laurie Oldfather. RSVP requested in advance on our Meetup (preferred) or Facebook page.
As always, at Vegan Kalamazoo events, everyone is welcome, including vegans, vegetarians, omnivores, and vegans-in-progress.
Please join Chef Paul Vugteveen at Pierce Cedar Creek Institute on Saturday May 7 to learn about vegan cooking.
Vegan diets offer a variety of health and environmental benefits, and interest in them has grown rapidly in recent years. Chef Paul Vugteveen will highlight several vegan recipes, including how to make vegan cheese and meat alternatives that can be used in favorite recipes.
Date: Saturday, May 7
Time: 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Location: Pierce Cedar Creek Institute, 701 West Cloverdale Rd, Hastings
Cost: Members $20 | Non-Member Adults $25
Program limited to 20 participants. Preregister here.
Chef Paul Vugteveen is originally from Zeeland, MI. Paul Vugteveen is the Chef at Pierce Cedar Creek Institute in Hastings, MI. He gained much of his cooking experience at the JW Marriott in Grand Rapids, MI, then spent 2 years as an artisanal pastry chef at Zingerman’s Bakehouse in Ann Arbor, MI. He also worked as a Bread Baker at Avalon International Breads in Detroit, MI, specializing in naturally leavened breads. He also spent more than two years growing organic vegetables at Brines Farm in Dexter, MI.
“Let food be thy medicine,” said Hippocrates more than 2,000 years ago—and health-conscious people continue to do just that. Vegan Kalamazoo is inaugurating its Healthy Eating discussion series with a truly special event. Professional chef Paul Vugteveen will share his personal account of being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) at the age of 25, and how that diagnosis has been woven into all of his food choices, eventually leading him to a whole foods, vegan diet. Among other topics he’ll be discussing
· Brief comparison of Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes
· What the Glycemic Index is and why it’s important
· How to shop for and prepare foods
· Tips for living an active life with T1D
· How to get involved with Vegan Kalamazoo or T1D in Action
Come prepared with your questions and to share your own experiences! Note: This talk will focus on T1D, but many of the tips will be useful to those with Type 2 Diabetes as well. Everyone is welcome!
Our speaker: Originally from Zeeland, MI, Paul Vugteveen is the Chef at Pierce Cedar Creek Institute in Hastings, MI. He gained much of his cooking experience at the JW Marriott in Grand Rapids, MI, then spent 2 years as an artisanal pastry chef at Zingerman’s Bakehouse in Ann Arbor, MI. He also worked as a Bread Baker at Avalon International Breads in Detroit, MI, specializing in naturally leavened breads. He also spent more than two years growing organic vegetables at Brines Farm in Dexter, MI.
Paul was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (a chronic autoimmune disease) in 2011. That diagnosis led him to question how consuming animal products affects the wellbeing of himself and others. He currently lives in Kalamazoo with his partner, Lindsey, and their dog and two cats. Paul is an Organizer and Camp Cook for the Kalamazoo based group, T1D in Action.
Paul has appeared on WZZM 13 and WOODTV 8 TV stations. You can email him at paul.t1dinaction@gmail.com, and learn more about his work at
www.facebook.com/chefpaulvugteveen
and
Please join us on Thursday, March 31 at 7:00 p.m. at the Stuart Avenue Association Building (530 Douglas Ave, Kalamazoo). White building on east side of Douglas Ave, (between Jefferson and North), park on Douglas Street.
We’ll be repeating this event Tuesday, April 19 at 7:00pm at Natural Health Center.
RSVP at our Meetup (preferred) or Facebook page
Remember: everyone, including vegans, vegetarians, omnivores, and the veg-curious, is always welcome at Vegan Kalamazoo events! Also the event is free, but we suggest an optional donation (which will be split between VK and the Stuart Avenue Restoration Association) to help defray expenses.
Living Vegan is a social group where we come together informally for fun times and fun discussions. Need a recipe? A vegan fashion tip? Tips for dealing with non-vegan family/friends? You’ll get it all at Living Vegan! We also have plenty of fun discussions on non-vegan topics like movies, TV, gardening, photography, and science fiction. And sometimes there’s a pool game or two!
We hope you’ll join us for our next get-together on Saturday, April 16 from 10:00 a.m. to Noon at Fourth Coast Cafe (816 S Westnedge Ave, Kalamazoo) Event is free (except the cost of your food and drink); we do request and appreciate an optional $2 donation to cover group expenses.
Our gracious host is, as always, Laurie Oldfather. RSVP requested in advance on our Meetup (preferred) or Facebook page.
As always, at Vegan Kalamazoo events, everyone is welcome, including vegans, vegetarians, omnivores, and vegans-in-progress.
