This week, April 6-12, we are celebrating National Volunteer Week.  For ten--almost eleven--years, volunteers have been the lifeblood of Global Village.  Our board members, our shop staff, our friends who work our tables during special events...all volunteers!  And we are grateful for the hours of service our volunteers donate to Global Village every year.

This year our annual Global Village board meeting comes during National Volunteer Week.  April 10 we will welcome in new board members and say goodbye to retiring board members Elizabeth Imtairah, who has done our purchasing for several years, Clare Tschirn, who has worked to organize our yearly store inventory, and Elijah Samson, our newsletter editor for the last two years.  We give thanks for their time and their talents.

You are invited to join us on Thursday evening at Forrest Hill United Methodist Church for soup and dessert.  Dr. Martha Willi, Medical Director of Haiti Mission Connection,  will speak about Haitian culture.  Haiti Mission Connection, Inc., based in Peoria, seeks to help the people of the Haitian village of Bodarie by helping to provide medical care at a year-round clinic staffed by a Haitian nurse, household water purification systems, and assistance for the school operated by the parish of St. Benoit.

Forrest Hill United Methodist Church is located at 706 E Forrest Hill Ave in Peoria.  We have a very brief board meeting at 6:30 pm to formally elect our slate of board members, then food and our program.  Please help us celebrate our invaluable Global Village volunteers.

Global Village has a special Valentine treat this year for folks who plan to dine at a locally owned restaurant:

If you spend Valentine's Day at one of the following restaurants in the Heights, you will find a beautiful Fair Trade rose on your table. SALT, JUNE, THE HEARTH, JIM'S BISTRO, and THE PUBLIC HOUSE are participating. With the kind assistance of Gregg's Florist, Global Village is proud to spread the word about Fair Trade roses. 

According to AboutFlowers,com, Valentine's Day ranks third in flower transactions and dollar volume--(Based on consumer purchases of fresh flowers and plants for holidays at all outlets.)--behind Christmas/Chanukah and Mother's Day.  However:

• Of fresh flower purchases only, Valentine's Day ranks No. 1, capturing 36% of holiday transactions and 40% of holiday dollar volume.
• Valentine's Day the No. 1 holiday for florists.

Estimated number of roses produced for Valentine's Day in 2013: 233 million

But where are all those roses produced?  According to Fair Trade Certified's 2009/2010 Impact Report, Fair Trade Certified (TM) Flowers

"Historically, the Netherlands held the largest market share for exports of fresh and cut flowers. But in the last few decades, South America and Africa have emerged as major providers of the worlds’ flowers: in 2009, the U.S. flower imports from Colombia and Ecuador represented a full 75% of total flower imports. With Americans spending over $1 billion per year on cut flowers from abroad, the flowers export industry provides a significant source of employment and revenue for flower growers in the developing world.

"Despite the industry’s great potential for growth and employment generation, the conditions for many workers on flower farms around the world are not ideal. Jobs at large flower farms in East Africa and Latin America are often insecure: many workers do not have labor contracts to guarantee their employment conditions and can be let go at a moment’s notice–something that may happen when female workers become pregnant and companies do not want to pay maternity leave. Additionally, many workers are exposed to pesticides and chemicals without proper safety equipment or training."

Fair Trade certification ensures:

• That workers on large-scale flower farms have access to unions, receive better wages, and work under safe labor conditions with protective equipment and proper training.
• Growers are able to keep the best workers because of these benefits, leading to better productivity and better flower quality.
  
• Fair Trade certification provides workers vital financial support in the form of the Fair Trade premium: 10 percent of the commercial price of every stem sold is allocated to a development fund that gives workers the opportunity to invest in the future of their communities.
• Since the Fair Trade Certified floral program launched in 2007, U.S. consumers have purchased over 20 million Fair Trade stems, resulting in an impressive $600,000 in community development funding for workers to reinvest in their communities.

Fair Trade carnations are also commercially available.  If you are planning an event, go Fair Trade flowers.  Contact Gregg Florist or Google "Fair Trade flowers."

Update:  Here are our  volunteers who prepared the roses for our participating restaurants:  Donna Schwab, Nancy Long, Adria Guard, and Sigrid Rogers.  Sigrid contacted all the restaurants and worked with Gregg Florist to make this event possible.