Lots of great news and happenings to report! Vegan Kalamazoo tabled at the Marathon and the Dog Walk, so thousands more people now know that, yes, there really is a vegan Kalamazoo!
The most exciting things were:
1) The many surprised and happy shout-outs we got from vegan-friendly runners at the Marathon. And,
2) The fact that we were one of three animal rights / animal welfare organizations tabling at the Dog Walk. Also present were All Species Kinship, who brought along Rosa, an adorable rescued “spokeschicken” for compassionate living, and the Michigan chapter of the Humane Society of the United States, which does phenomenal work advocating for all sorts of animals.
When people see three booths advocating for compassionate living, our cause no longer looks fringe, but part of a powerful movement that is becoming more and more mainstream.
So, how do you like our new tee shirts? (Modeled by Hillary and Nathan Poirier, who organized the recent excellent Rewilding Conference at Aquinas College.) We’re selling them for $20–if you’d like one, email Hillary and she’ll arrange to get it to you. Remember that tee shirts, buttons, bumper stickers, letters to the editor, and other public expressions of veganism are fantastic activism! Speaking of which….
If you haven’t checked out VeganKalamazoo.com, lately, you might want to. Our Restaurants and Food Stores section now includes many great options, and we’ve also got some Vegan Neighbors for you to meet. (If you have a food entry or correction, or would like to be featured on our Neighbors page, please email Hillary.
Vegan Kalamazoo has a terrific location for its hydration table at the Kalamazoo Marathon. We’ll be at Mile 19, right inside the entrance to Verberg Park, off Gull Road. We’ll be tabling alongside Central High School’s Honor Society, and right next to the “Gummy Bear Trail” where dozens of students will be handing out Gummy Bears* to the runners. So we’re going to have a great time, and also have the opportunity to model joyful, fun, cool veganism to lots of high school students.