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  1. TopTop #1
    Barry's Avatar
    Barry
    Founder & Moderator

    Sonoma County Granges’ status in question


    Sonoma County Granges’ status in question
    BY ROBERT DIGITALE
    THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
    October 2, 2015, 7:53PM



    California’s community granges, 19th-century agrarian institutions that in Sonoma County have enjoyed a revival among sustainable food enthusiasts, now face a high-stakes decision on where to place their allegiances.

    For the past few years, the granges on the North Coast and around the state have operated apart from the National Grange and under the umbrella of a group that used to be called the California State Grange. But a federal court this week issued an order prohibiting the use of the word “grange” in the name of the breakaway state group, now rebranded as CSG, and of its 165 chapters.

    Now those local groups, which include a dozen in Sonoma County, must decide whether to return to the national group or risk losing both their names and any assets, including their grange halls.

    “We hope they will come back and rejoin the grange fold,” said Ed Luttrell, president of the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, as the group is formally known.

    The local chapters are free to remain independent, but in so doing “you’re not going to use our name and you’re not going to use our assets,” said Ed Komski, president of a group that the national grange reorganized in July 2014.

    Both Luttrell and Komski insisted that grange halls and related property remain part of the national organization whenever a local chapter ceases to exist as an official grange.

    Bob McFarland, president of CSG, didn’t respond to phone and email requests for comment Friday. But on Friday afternoon he sent an email to local chapter leaders in which he said that many aspects of the recent court case went in his group’s favor and CSG will appeal the ruling.

    “Do not be intimidated by Mr. Komski’s and Mr. Luttrell’s threats and demands,” McFarland wrote in the email. “Our freedom is not for sale at any price.”

    {snip}

    On Friday, a few county grange leaders demonstrated caution in discussing what comes next.

    Ned Lewis, secretary at the Hessel Grange, wrote in a email that his group has not made any decision about its name.

    “Right now we are waiting to see what happens and what advice we might receive from the original California State Grange (CSG),” he said. “I’m sure this will be a topic of much discussion at future meetings.”

    Jerry Allen, president of the Sebastopol Grange, said his group intended “to continue to use our name.”

    He declined to say much more, except that “we are going to follow all the court orders and rulings and remain a community grange.

    Full article here.

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  2. TopTop #2
    Barry's Avatar
    Barry
    Founder & Moderator

    Re: Sonoma County Granges’ status in question

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by Barry: View Post

    Sonoma County Granges’ status in question

    Full article here.
    Jerry Allen, the President of the Sebastopol Grange asked me to post this:

    "There has been a lot of public interest regarding the article
    in the Press Democrat about the conflict between the
    National Grange, the CSG which was formerly the state
    Grange, and the new California State Grange. The quote I
    gave for the article I want to reiterate. We in Sebastopol
    Grange were not a part of that lawsuit. We are going to keep
    on keeping on with our important vital local community work,
    building sustainable agriculture and community. We'll
    keep being a Grange and working with the Farmers Guild,
    holding film nights, fermentation classes, ping pong,
    hosting the Bread and Puppets theater next Wednesday night October 7th,
    and our monthly gatherings, as well as supporting positive
    change through advocacy.

    The Sebastopol Grange will abide by all laws and
    court orders and are not part of any legal proceeding.
    We have several members who will be attending a CSG
    annual meeting next week. We hope to learn more from
    them about what other Granges are doing to move forward.
    Our focus is and always will be our local important work."

    Jerry Allen
    President, Sebastopol Grange

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  4. TopTop #3
    ConnieMadden's Avatar
    ConnieMadden
     

    At Home with the Grange - response to PD article questioning status

    Home with the Grange

    Robert Digitale’s article, Sonoma County’s Granges Status in Question, left out the character and work of the California State Grange, now called CSG after a court order obtained by the National Grange, made it unable to use the common word grange.

    Living at Oasis Community Farm just outside Petaluma, we’ve learned farming is tough and isolating. To keep small and organic farms alive and kicking takes support and our grange village has stretched to Sacramento and San Luis Obispo and beyond. But now the National Grange has disavowed the California State Grange with a court ruling that the CSG can no longer call itself a Grange and must relinquish properties.

    We’ve learned while attempting to label genetically modified foods as such that Monsanto Corporation and others have so invaded our land as to threaten the integrity of organic farming altogether so we stand against that. The National Grange does not.

    The Petaluma Grange has been a great alternative to doing nothing about climate change and associated tragedies. We’ve hosted speakers from Marin Slow Food and Rafael Gardens at Rudolf Steiner Institute, from Transition US and California Farm Link. We’ve learned how to build soil and build a farm business and have carpooled to demonstrations to ban fracking because we have a right to know what is injected into our water supply, to label GMOs because we have a right to know what is in our food, to support legalization of industrial hemp crops, which can become car parts, building material or clothing that lasts three times longer than cotton. Good stuff we can help do! We were instrumental in getting the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors to withdraw its attempt to raise Farmers Market fees that would have sent more farmers home.

    The CSG has worked hard on these issues and other causes focused on regenerating a healthier, happier world to pass along to our children and grandchildren. We’ve addressed these onslaughts by working with a lobbyist and legislators to get industrial hemp legalized, label GMOs, help make regulations around small farming workable for small farmers.

    But with the latest challenge to the integrity of the CSG by the National Grange, much of this may be lost; I sincerely hope not!

    I’ve never heard of the National Grange backing any of the causes we hold dear. Yes, they have the fraternal organization format that originally helped small farmers – but this current NG seems focused only on shutting down the good works of CSG.

    Really? Why, one would logically ask. Well, real estate could be a reason. The 165 chapters of CSG represent a lot of Grange halls which could be sold off by the NG.

    But all this is conjecture. While I’ve been in the inner circle of Grangers here, I’ve never met with the NG leadership so all I have to go by is mildly threatening letters republished on an elist. None of them friendly I felt; nothing at all I consider leadership toward a resilient farming community.

    What a sad tale: that 10,000 members of the CSG will likely lose their Grange halls, their home away from home, because of the NG challenge.

    Goodbye, then, to the CSG youth camp, the farm school, the good work with California legislators to restore our land to health and make small farming work in this state that supplies ¼ of the food for our nation.

    Connie Madden blogs at Petaluma360.com
    and co-owns Oasis Community Farm
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  6. TopTop #4
    Shepherd's Avatar
    Shepherd
     

    Re: At Home with the Grange - response to PD article questioning status

    Connie Madden of the Petaluma Grange speaks for many of us in the California State Granges. She and her husband are farmers, which is what the historic Grange is based upon.
    Shepherd, Sebastopol Grange #306

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by ConnieMadden: View Post
    Home with the Grange

    Robert Digitale’s article, Sonoma County’s Granges Status in Question, left out the character and work of the California State Grange, now called CSG ...
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  8. TopTop #5
    Shepherd's Avatar
    Shepherd
     

    Re: At Home with the Grange - response to PD article questioning status

    The Oct. 10 issue of the PD includes this article by Connie Madden as a Close to Home. That opens the door for people to make online comments, as well as write letters to the editor on this important issue. https://www.pressdemocrat.com/opinio...home-on?page=0

    My comment follows: Shepherd Bliss
    Petaluma Granger Connie Madden has done an accurate, helpful job here of representing the ideas of most of the local community Granges here in California. Our Granges have been a great support for small family farms, including educating non-farmers about food issues, as well as "climate change and related tragedies," such as the dangers of GMOs. We will continue to do our best to resolve issues with the National Grange leadership, without loosing our integrity, authenticity and values.

    In a recent letter to Grangers, Sebastopol Grange president Jerry Allen describes our Granges as committed to "sustainable agriculture, resilient communities, stopping fracking" and working for "food safety." Now is a time to come together, amidst differences, to insure that "no Grange lose their hall or their name," Allen writes.

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by ConnieMadden: View Post
    Home with the Grange

    Robert Digitale’s article, ...
    Last edited by Barry; 10-10-2015 at 05:34 PM.
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