Cooperative Living May 2020 - 6

Brights | from Staff Reports
Kitty Cat Update
Jack is back in a cat colony, except
this one is heated and there's no gunfire
aimed at him.
Jack is the barn
cat featured in the
March-April issue of
Cooperative Living.
Sweet Virginia Barn
Cats, operated by
Holly Burnette and
based in Clarksville,
Va., rescued her
from an outdoor
feline community after a gunshot
damaged a front leg, which required
amputation.
In late February, Suzanne Metcalf
and her husband, Tim, adopted Jack
into their Winston-Salem, N.C., home,
where they have six other cats. They've
previously had a three-legged cat,
so they know about Jack's special
needs, such as weight management.
" We fell in love immediately, "
Suzanne reports. " She was hiding
under the bed and Holly pulled her
out and put her on the bed. She was
afraid, of course. However, as soon as
we very gently approached her and
MailBag
ANIMAL-LOVER ENJOYS
MARCH-APRIL ISSUE
Kudos for the great articles on
animals and animal welfare! There
is a special place in heaven for those
who help animals.
- Joe Wilson, Fredericksburg, Va.
READER ENJOYS
SWEET SUBJECT
I can't tell you how nostalgic it
was to read about maple-syruping in
your March-April issue. We happily
came to Virginia after 40 years of life
on a 100-acre farm in the foothills of
the Allegheny Mountains in upstate
New York. Similar to the folks in the
article, we tapped the maple trees in
our yard until I retired. We knew we
had a huge " sugar bush " (hard maples
as opposed to red or " soft " maples) on
the hillside (we lived in the valley), so
my family decided to start a syruping
operation. The area already had many
4 | Cooperative Living | May 2020
started stroking her, she rolled over
on her back. "
Jack is being slowly introduced to
her new housemates. In the meantime,
Suzanne adds, " Cats are like potato
chips. You can't just have one. "
Brand Promotion
A face familiar to Virginians has
been appointed to a top spot in the
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Bette Brand, who spent 35 years
with Farm Credit of the Virginias, is
the new deputy
undersecretary for
rural development.
She replaces Donald
" D.J. " LaVoy, who
retired at the end
of February.
" The mission of
Rural Development
to improve the
economy and quality of life in rural
America will continue to advance with
Bette at the helm, " said Agriculture
Secretary Sonny Perdue, adding that
Brand's " drive and tenacity " to
champion rural prosperity make her
well suited for the role.
syruping operations, so we had plenty of
help. Some folks still gathered sap with
horse and wagon. We ran plastic lines
well over a mile when finished. Sap was
gravity-fed (no pumps) to our new
sugar house by a year-round stream.
We lazily read books and magazines
as the evaporator boiled down the sap.
Our first year yielded 100 gallons of
grade-A " liquid gold. " Sugar maples'
sap-sugar content was always greater
than 2 1/2% so the sap-to-syrup ratio
was near 25 to 1. Our best was 20 to 1.
Whatever trees these folks in Virginia
tap (except cedar, of course) we're sure
will be a " labor of love. " It gets lonely
this time of year for us as we see the
daily temperatures fluctuate from
daytime 50s to nighttime 20s (highest
sap flow-time).
Let's encourage these syruping
adventurers to bring to Virginia an
endeavor that is guaranteed to bring
happy memories and perhaps do to
the morning " refreshment " what
wine-making did for the evening.
- Frank Sardina, Unionville, Va.
Brand had served as administrator
of the federal Rural Business Service
agency since 2018. In Virginia, she was
a friend to electric co-ops, chairwoman
of the Virginia Agribusiness Council,
a member of the Virginia Cooperative
Council and chief advocate for the
agriculture industry and rural
businesses.
A/C Cutback?
Residents of Virginia and
Maryland might be able to spare
the air conditioner a little this summer,
according to federal projections.
The Energy Information Agency
projects a 9.4% dip in the number of
days that electricity users in the South
Atlantic region will require cooling
from July to September, compared
with the same period in 2019. The
region includes Virginia and Maryland.
For the entire year, EIA sees a
drop of 11.9% in cooling degree
days from 2019.
That's a return to normal patterns,
the agency said, since there has
been a spike in recent years in days
when the thermometer topped
65 degrees. 
READER SUGGESTION
Just read the articles in the February
issue of the magazine about the African
American schools in Virginia and was
wondering if you could do an article on
Belmead Mansion in Powhatan that was
started in 1895 for American Indians
and African Americans? It opened as
St. Emma's Industrial and Agricultural
School for African American children.
St. Emma Military Academy (named
after Emma Wicke) for boys and St.
Francis de Sales School for girls are
credited with educating 15,000 black
students.
- Diane Jadlowski, Montpelier, Va.
WRITE US !
We welcome signed letters of less than
250 words. Write: MAILBAG, P.O. Box
2340, Glen Allen, VA 23058-2340 or
email mailbag@co-opliving.com.
Please read and observe our policies
at co-opliving.com/mailbag before
submitting a letter.
co-opliving.com
9.4%
MORE
LETTERS
ONLINE!
http://www.co-opliving.com/mailbag http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living May 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cooperative Living May 2020
