The PEA Pod, April 2011-Earth Day Fair Edition

From the Executive Director

In 2005, a small group of friends joined together to create a family friendly event to celebrate Earth Day.  Through word of mouth and targeted phone calls, an organizing committee was formed to host the first annual Piedmont Earth Day Fair.  The purpose of this fair was to lead by example.  It was a zero waste event that provided environmental education to our community free of cost.  It brought together businesses, organizations, and individuals throughout the Triad who shared the common goal of making our community more sustainable.

It was a huge success and over the next five years PEA continued this tradition.  Each year our Earth Day Fair grew, reaching an estimated 8,000 attendees last April at Wake Forest University.   As the fair has expanded we have kept our gold standard of zero waste, all-natural foods, and a family friendly setting.  We are now proud to host this year’s fair at the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds and I would personally like to invite you to join us on April 16th for our Planet Party!

To date, the annual Piedmont Earth Day Fair has been our greatest success and we have used this foundation to expand the community services we offer.  Recently we revamped our Eco-directory to be more user-friendly and to include even more local green businesses.  We created our speakers bureau to provide local groups with professional speakers on various environmental topics.  In addition, our weatherization program was praised by the US Department of Energy.

All of these successes are made possible by individuals like you - passionate people who want to help our community become more sustainable!  We appreciate all of the support you have given us and hope that you will continue to volunteer, donate, and be active members of PEA.  While there are still many challenges ahead, together we have already made our community more sustainable.  So come out and celebrate with us! 

Sincerely,

Charles Adair
Executive Director

6th Annual Piedmont Earth Day Fair

The sixth annual Piedmont Earth Day Fair will be held on the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum Complex on Saturday, April 16, 2011, from 10 am to 5 pm. The Piedmont Earth Day Fair is a family friendly outdoor event designed to offer guests multiple solutions for protecting the environment.  The Fair features over 100 exhibits on a wide range of environmental topics, sustainable solutions, and local initiatives.  Also offered are children’s activities, live entertainment, demonstrations, all-natural food and more.  The Fair will be held inside the Education Building in the event of severe weather.  Admission is free.  Parking is free.  Visit peaNC.org/earth-day-fair for more information.

Stop by the PEA/Information booth for a special PEA membership offer!

Main Stage-2011 Earth Day Fair Performers

The Main Stage Performances at the Piedmont Earth Day Fair are sure to set your toes tapping!  Live performances by Randy Fulk, Wyndy Trail Travelers, The Lizzy Ross Band, Latin Trio, and Porch Dog Revival.  

The Wyndy Trail Travelers will also be performing at Foothills Brewing Co. for an “After Planet Party” show to benefit Piedmont Environmental Alliance.  Stop over after the Earth Day Fair and continue in the Earth Day celebration!  Read more

The Green Scene Investigation

Please join us for 'THE GREEN SCENE INVESTIGATION,' a fair wide scavenger hunt for children!  Click to see a list of participating exhibitors and what they will be contributing to the hunt.  After completing 'The Green Scene Investigation', stop by the Children's Tent area to receive a prize and participate in other festivities! 

Traveling Teacher Goes Green to Perform at Piedmont Earth Day Fair

Stefanie Boone and Melissa Stewart are two engaging classroom teachers who combined creative talents to become The Traveling Teacher Show.  Their mission is to enrich the lives of children by teaching them their role in saving the planet.  After years in the classroom, they decided there wasn’t enough being done to educate children about environmental concerns.  They put their creative heads together and invented a children’s environmental awareness program.  Children learn by doing in their interactive and entertaining
program.   To learn more, check out their website and come see them perform on April 16th at the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds.  Click for children’s entertainment schedule. 

Earth Day Demo Deck 

The Demo Deck will offer twenty minute, in-depth demonstrations on a variety of topics including composting, butterfly gardening, rain water harvesting and the benefits of renewable energy.  Click to see a complete schedule and plan your visit around the topics that interest you the most.  

This is Not Your Normal Fair Food 

The Fair will offer a wide range of food, from Mexican prepared-to-order, organic hotdogs, vegetarian dishes, pizza fresh from a wood-fired oven on-site, and ice cream and gelato.  The food vendors at the Fair are trying to use as much local produce as possible, given the seasonal weather.  All meats served are from animals raised humanely without growth hormones.  Bring your taste-buds and your appetites.  Read more 

Recycle and Shred

Bring your electronic equipment for recycling and paper documents you want shredded and recycled to the Fair.  Goodwill and the Better Business Bureau will be offering free, drive-up, recycling and shredding services at the Fair. 

How are you getting to the Fair this year? 

Click here to find directions, bike and walking routes, public transportation, and zipcar options. 

In The Company of Friends-Business Spotlight

Twenty six years ago three teenagers from diverse backgrounds came together to play the game of basketball. Now the same former teammates have formed an organic T-Shirt company that is creating a buzz in the community.

Garry Wadell, Will Blackwell, and Scott Spransy are partners in a newly formed company named Eretz (air-rtz) Design. The Winston-Salem company specializes in organic T-Shirts made out of Bamboo, Organic Cotton, and Hemp.

The company was formed in late September by founder Garry Wadell, who visualized creating a company that would provide customers with a product that was environmentally friendly and provide a message of preservation. Wadell approached Blackwell with the business concept, and the two men contacted several local businesses with their organic product with much success. Spransy, a Charlotte attorney would later join the company in December.

The word Eretz is an ancient word meaning “Land”. The mission of Eretz Design Tees is to demonstrate how practicing a sustainable lifestyle not only makes good environmental sense, but is economically sound as well. The Eretz Design Tees are comfortable, functional, and affordable, and best of all, have minimal impact on the Earth.

Since it’s opening, Eretz Design has attracted a significant following in the community with their organic bamboo T-Shirts. Recently, the company was selected by the Piedmont Environmental Alliance to provide T- Shirts for Piedmont Earth Day Fair. (See our top 10 reasons to buy this t-shirt.) Since their formation the company has expanded their business to Charlotte run by Spransy and the New Orleans markets. 

For further details the company can be contacted at Eretz Design 101 W. Third St. Suite 470 Winston-Salem, N.C. 27101, Garry Wadell – 336.734.3646, gcwadell@eretzdesign.net, Will Blackwell- 345.1500, will@eretzdesign.ent. 

 

Not a Member Yet? Join Today!

Please join and become part of the solution for a sustainable future. To become a member, you may join on-line or download the membership form from our website and mail it to us. PEA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization supported solely by membership dues and donations.