Events

Transition Sebastopol is having a family potluck picnic!

Thursday, July 15
from 5:30 pm to 8 pm.

The picnic is happening on the beautiful grounds of St. Stephens Episcopal Church at 500 Robinson Road (off Bodega Ave. between Jewell Ave. and Pleasant Hill Road) in Sebastopol.

Everyone and anyone is invited. Kids are welcome and encouraged to come. Please bring some food to share, and bring your own plates and utensils. Also bring blankets and lawn chairs. Extra kudos if you bring some food grown from your own garden.

Transition is largely about building community bonds and strengthening our connections with each other. And what better way to do that than by sharing food together on a mid-summer evening!

It doesn't matter if you've attended a Transition Sebastopol event or not. Come just to meet others in the community. Or, if you are interested in Transition, this might be a good time to meet some of the folks involved in Transition and to get some information. However, this picnic is about sharing food and just being together more than being an informational meeting.

Also, there will be an introduction of the new Transition Sebastopol clubhouse room which has been generously donated for Transition Sebastopol's use by the wonderful folks at St. Stephens Church.

A Wisdom Council Discussion Group of Transition Sebastopol 

Calling All Elders, Earth Elders, Wannabe Elders, Soon-to-become Elders, or Interested Baby Boomers on up! 


The Elder Salon is a nonhierarchical circle of peers. We’ll introduce the discussion with some thoughts from an elder voice or thought-provoking instigator to kick off our own discovery of what it is WE think and believe about the topic; what WE want and need now and in our future; what WE think should be the course of action and attitudes as we progress into and through our older years.

WHY: There are a lot of new ideas about aging, staying youthful in body and spirit, and our role in society and local life. What have our generational contributions been and what is left undone? What are our mistakes and triumphs?

If we don’t want others to determine what becomes of us in very old age, we need to be proactive and begin making conscious, thoughtful choices about our future, how we want to live and be regarded. What role do elders want to play in the coming changes; what wisdom can we offer?

This month's topic:
HOW MONEY WORKS (OR DOESN’T) FOR US NOW
We promise to use a fun twist on it to give it more zip than zap. Think about what your personal money style is and what challenges aging brings you in your relationship to it.

Friday afternoons at 3:30 at Coffee Catz, an informal gathering, usually outdoors, at least in good weather. There has been a different assortment of folks at each one, usually 4 to 5 of us. We encourage you to try it some week.

First person there asks at the counter for the “Insurgent Elders” sign to put on the chosen table area so others can find you. You might check the far back room if the weather’s cold or wet and choose some shade if it’s warm outside. It’s possible no one would show up, but it hasn’t happened yet!

Come nourish and rejuvenate your Heart and Soul in an atmosphere of singing, sharing, poetry and meditation.
 
We have many wonderful ways we get together to talk, to work and to socialize. However, this event is specifically a way we come together with our hearts to stabilize and grow our love in these times of greater concerns. We will sing songs from across the devotional landscape, offer heartfelt musings and poetry and bask in the joy, love and community of being together in this very special way.
 
Bring your instruments, songs, poems and heartfelt expressions as you feel inspired, or just come and follow along. This is a sacred space event. Socializing will be before and after the event. Feel free to bring snacks or drinks to share.

Come join us at our next Transition Sebastopol Movie Night at the French Garden Restaurant. Come early and enjoy dinner and conversation.

Flow Synopsis

Water is the very essence of life. It sustains every living being on this planet and without it, there would be nothing...

FLOW - Irena Salina’s award-winning documentary investigation into what experts label the most important political and environmental issue of the 21st Century - The World Water Crisis.

Salina builds a case against the growing privatization of the world’s dwindling fresh water supply with an unflinching focus on politics, pollution, human rights, and the emergence of a domineering world water cartel.
Interviews with scientists and activists intelligently reveal the rapidly building crisis, at both the global and human scale, and the film introduces many of the governmental and corporate culprits behind the water grab, while begging the question ‘CAN ANYONE REALLY OWN WATER?’

Beyond identifying the problem, FLOW also gives viewers a look at the people and institutions providing practical solutions to the water crisis and those developing new technologies, which are fast becoming blueprints for a successful global and economic turnaround.

Film length: 84 minutes

Friday afternoons at 3:30 at Coffee Catz, an informal gathering, usually outdoors, at least in good weather. There has been a different assortment of folks at each one, usually 4 to 5 of us. We encourage you to try it some week.

First person there asks at the counter for the “Insurgent Elders” sign to put on the chosen table area so others can find you. You might check the far back room if the weather’s cold or wet and choose some shade if it’s warm outside. It’s possible no one would show up, but it hasn’t happened yet!

West County Community Seed Bank meets monthly on the last Saturday of the month (except Nov. and Dec) from 9 -11:30 am to share seeds, plants, resources and local gardening and food information.

Our vision is to create a network of seed savers that build a repository of locally grown seed for Sonoma County gardeners. The seed is offered free to anyone who will use it, and the goal is to have it be an exchange where people take seed and they bring seed to share.  In order to build the network of seed savers, we offer classes in seed saving and other food gardening skills.

The Community Seed Garden is a new project of the WCCSB, located at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Sebastopol.  We are caretaking a 1/2 acre garden the main purpose of which is to grow seed for the seed bank.  The seed garden allows us to grow more seed than many of our home gardens allow.  The garden will be used as an educational tool to teach about the seed saving process.

Creating a local source of seed is an important part of creating a healthy and resilient local food system. Seed is the beginning of the food cycle.
 
Location:
St Stephen's Church
500 Robinson Way in Sebastopol

There is a garden work party from 9:00-10:30
Class from 10:30-11:30, and seeds available all the time. 

Bring plants and seeds, questions and experience to share.
For more information contact Sara at 829-5234

Also check out the seed bank blog at westcountyseedbank.blogspot.com and you can sign up to receive event announcements and updates via the seed bank google list on the Seed Bank page here.

All are welcome, including children!

The Transition Sebastopol Energy Group will host its second workshop on how to build a solar batch water heater.

The simple design is an insulated box with reflective interior and double pane (re-used) sliding glass door to heat the water in a steel tank salvaged from a used water heater core. The hot water can be used directly or can be used to preheat water feeding into a conventional water heater, allowing it to work more efficiently. This concept can be also used to make a solar oven. Come join us at Laguna Farm for this fun, hands-on workshop!

• Learn an easy way to take simple materials and transform them into a practical appliance.
• Build a solar water heater in a single afternoon with others.
• Save money by heating or preheating your water with energy from the sun!

Space is limited, please RSVP early to:
scott@lagunafarm.com or call 707-823-0823

When: Saturday, July 31st, 2pm to 5pm
Where: Laguna Farm, 1764 Cooper Road, Sebastopol
Cost: Suggested Donation: $10
Bring: Work gloves, working clothes

Transition Sebastopol Reskill Working Group Bi-Monthly Meeting

Here is your opportunity to participate in the Transition Sebastopol Reskilling Group. We are Transition members who are interested in sharing and learning practical skills through planning workshops and online communication for prepardedness as a community. Examples of reskilling topics include: gardening skills, preserving food, building shelters, grey water systems, learning about tools, arts and crafts.

Transition Sebastopol Reskilling Mission Statement:
Organizing venues for people to learn practical skills to increase individual and community resilience and networking with other groups providing opportunities for skill sharing.

Come Join Us. We are planning an all day Reskilling for Our Future Event for Fall 2010 and would love your involvement.

Tuesday, August 3rd
7:00 - 9:00pm
Petaluma Avenue Homes Community Room
571 Petaluma Ave
Sebastopol

Please call or email Wendy Taylor for questions.
707-824-8989
wendy@tayloreldercare.com

Visit the Reskilling Group's web page here and sign up to receive announcements about other Reskilling events!

Friday afternoons at 3:30 at Coffee Catz, an informal gathering, usually outdoors, at least in good weather. There has been a different assortment of folks at each one, usually 4 to 5 of us. We encourage you to try it some week.

First person there asks at the counter for the “Insurgent Elders” sign to put on the chosen table area so others can find you. You might check the far back room if the weather’s cold or wet and choose some shade if it’s warm outside. It’s possible no one would show up, but it hasn’t happened yet!
 

Friday afternoons at 3:30 at Coffee Catz, an informal gathering, usually outdoors, at least in good weather. There has been a different assortment of folks at each one, usually 4 to 5 of us. We encourage you to try it some week.

First person there asks at the counter for the “Insurgent Elders” sign to put on the chosen table area so others can find you. You might check the far back room if the weather’s cold or wet and choose some shade if it’s warm outside. It’s possible no one would show up, but it hasn’t happened yet!