We left bright and early Friday morning to meet the rest of the Beth-El crew and start pressing apple cider at 9. Here's the machine setup we used:
Manly men mastering machines.
The team getting started.
Three of these crates full of apples (Empire, Golden Delicious, and Jonathan, if you're an apple connoisseur like me), and most of them were in liquid form by midafternoon.
Here we're tasting those first heavenly sips of cider.
Around midday, the Albuquerque Service Adventure unit arrived and dived in to help.
After the cider pressing, we helped the ABQ crew unload books for their book sale, and eventually we headed to Rocky Ford Mennonite Church to drop off our stuff and rest for a bit before dinner. The evening entertainment was Hesston College's Bel Canto, who put on an incredible performance.
On Saturday, we spent some time helping to run the food booths, but also had plenty of time to wander around, watch the auction, and talk to people. And eat. This is kusherie, the Egyptian street food that I've spent the entire past year waiting to eat again. So delicious.
And I can never pass up shoofly pie, good little Mennonite that I am.
Quilt auction.
COS girls running the food booth. They super love it when I take their picture.
It's hard to see it, but this is the MCC Traveling Quilt, raising funds for water projects. It travels around to regional relief sales, and people bid on it in the form of pledges. Instead of one winner taking home the quilt, all bidders pay their pledged amount, and all funds raised support clean water projects around the world.
What I love about the Colorado Relief Sale is that it feels like a weekend-long, community-oriented experience. I love the Virginia sale, too, but most people go in the morning on Saturday and leave after lunch. In Rocky Ford, most people are coming from at least a couple of hours away, so a lot of people come Friday, spend the night, and stay until Saturday afternoon and evening. Also, because it's a smaller sale than the more heavily Mennonite regions, people have to take on more responsibility. It feels like most people are there to help with a project, in addition to just attending. It's joyfully immersive and full of helping hands.
If you haven't gotten involved with MCC lately (or ever), check out their work here!
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