Chef Jen Takes Spiritual Approach to Cooking, Healthy Meals at Genesis
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The Westfield NewsSearch for The Westfield News Westfield350.com The WestfieldNews Serving Westfield, Southwick, and surrounding Hilltowns “TIME IS THE ONLY WEATHER CRITIC WITHOUT TONIGHT AMBITION.” Partly Cloudy. JOHN STEINBECK Low of 55. www.thewestfieldnews.com VOL. 86 NO. 151 $1.00 MONDAY,TUESDAY, AUGUST JUNE 27, 16, 2017 2021 VOL. 75 cents 90 NO. 194 Southwick plans ‘Welcome Back Day’ for seniors By PETER CURRIER Staff Writer SOUTHWICK — The Southwick Council on Aging is planning a “Welcome Back Day” event Sept. 9 to cele- brate being able to have Senior Center activities in-per- son. COA Director Cindy Sullivan said during the Aug. 9 COA meeting that the Sept. 9 event will be split into four activities throughout the day. It will begin with a coffee and doughnut hour at 9:30 a.m., featuring donuts from Mrs. Murphy’s. Also beginning at 9:30 a.m. and going to 11 a.m. is a meet-and-greet with Senior Center class instructors and Southwick’s new Chief of Police Bob Landis. Sullivan said that Senior Center classes would begin Sept. 13. At 11:30 a.m. there will be a lobster lunch for seniors hosted and paid for by Southwick’s Fire Department. Sullivan said that the lobster lunch is the only event that will require pre-registration, simply so that the Fire Department knows how much food to buy for the event. “The Fire Department will do a fire safety and aware- ness talk and will also be paying for the lobster lunch,” said Sullivan. She said 55 people had registered as of Aug. 9 with a limit of 75 people. Moolicious ice cream will also be served during lunch. Jen Moynihan, head cook at the Genesis Spiritual Life and Conference Center, prepares a salad for retreat guests. (LORI Sullivan said that the final activity will be an open craft SZEPELAK PHOTO) session at 1 p.m. Seniors will be given a free raffle ticket for every event they attend. She said the police associa- tion and Select Board are donating raffle baskets, and the Council on Aging will be putting a basket together as Chef Jen takes spiritual approach well. She noted that the Welcome Back Day activities will be contingent on the state of the pandemic locally at that time, and the ongoing spread of the delta variant. to cooking, healthy meals at Genesis “I think we will move forward until we can’t,” said Sullivan. By LORI SZEPELAK recently as she was preparing a salad that Correspondent included multi-colored cherry tomatoes See Welcome Back Day, Page 3 WESTFIELD — A nourishing meal and cucumbers she had just harvested. feeds the mind, body and spirit, and Jen Moynihan, who has been at Genesis Moynihan relishes each opportunity to for nine years, said she also enjoys creat- provide healthy meals for guests at the ing sauces and salsas from what the Genesis Spiritual Life and Conference garden has to offer. Center. On a recent morning visit, Moynihan Known affectionately as “Chef Jen” had a field day picking yellow squash by her colleagues, Moynihan can be and zucchini, heirloom tomatoes, found on many mornings searching for Jerusalem artichokes, eggplant and blue- the right ingredients for the day’s meals berries. in the vegetable and flower garden The garden area also has apple, peach behind the Carriage House. and pear trees. The sour cherry trees While the region logged more than an have also provided Moynihan with average rainfall last month, fruits and ample fruit to make a sour cherry salsa vegetables were not impacted in the and a sour cream concoction for a pork Genesis garden, providing Moynihan Jen Moynihan, head cook at the Genesis tenderloin meal. with a multitude of meal options. Spiritual Life and Conference Center, “The sour cherry salsa was a little dif- “I love looking out the kitchen win- enjoys picking fruits and vegetables from ferent,” she said, noting she looks at her Council on Aging Director Cindy Sullivan explains the dow every day since you will see some- the garden in preparation for the day’s details of the Welcome Back Day to the rest of the thing new sprouting up,” said Moynihan meal offerings. (LORI SZEPELAK PHOTO) See Chef Jen, Page 3 COA. (PETER CURRIER/THE WESTFIELD NEWS) Faces of the Fair: Randy Pomeroy Whip City Brewfest is back By MICHAEL derbys and truck pulls, and BALLWAY lawn-and-garden pulls with to benefit children’s museum Staff Writer the antique tractors when I WESTFIELD — As we was younger. Growing up I By HOPE E. TREMBLAY do at the museum — from bag. The first 400 general count down to this year’s showed 4-H, so I did dairy Correspondent programs to events and spe- admission ticket holders will Westfield Fair, every day cow [exhibitions]. WESTFIELD — The third cial days we do for the kids.” also receive a glass. this week The Westfield Whip City Brewfest is Aug. The Aug. 28 Brewfest will Local breweries will show- News will interview one of When you’re not at the 28 to benefit the Amelia Park help “bring in funds to allow case their beers, and every- the volunteers who make fair, what do you do? Children’s Museum. us to have a lot more flexibil- thing from IPAs to porters and this annual event happen. I’m a dairy farmer. Right The Brewfest takes place in ity in our offerings for the sours will be available to Be sure to check back now, I’m actually baling the Central Street parking lot, kids at the museum,” Barry taste. tomorrow for another pro- hay. My sister and I run with a VIP hour at noon and noted. “We are looking at having file of one of your neigh- Pomeroy Farm. general admission starting at There are 150 VIP tickets about 30 brewers, which is a bors. 1 p.m. The event ends at 5 available at $55 each, with couple less than we have had, Where better to start What’s the one thing p.m. general admission tickets at but still a good amount,” than a man with a name that folks should make Rick Barry, a member of $40, and $20 for a designated Barry said. synonymous with sure they don’t miss at the museum board, said last driver ticket. Tickets are avail- Headlining sponsor is Tin Westfield’s agricultural the fair? year the Brewfest was can- able on eventbrite.com and Bridge, glass sponsor is Great history — dairy farmer The whole thing! Any celed because of COVID-19 will be sold at the gate if not Awakening and Skyline Beer Randy Pomeroy. day of it. There’s some- restrictions, as was the 2021 sold out in advance. VIP tick- Co. is one of the stage spon- thing going on from when Penguin Plunge. In a typical et holders gain entrance with sors. What’s your favorite the gates open to when the year, these are the museum’s a limited crowd and are guar- thing about the Westfield last person leaves. two major fundraisers. anteed a glass and a goodie See Brewfest, Page 3 Fair? RANDY POMEROY Barry said “2020 was a It’s a community event, tough year for the museum. for me. I grew up, my With attendance down father was always helping old craft barn, helping because of the pandemic and out there, my family grew Andy [Freniere] rewire the 4 DAYS having to be closed for a up showing cows there. … new one, and then help out while, the income wasn’t Everybody from the com- at the track during the fair, being generated. Not being munity kind of helped out, the demolition derby and able to hold the plunge was a in one way, shape or form. the truck pulls. second blow to us.” Donations are crucial to What do you do at the How did you get keep the museum running. Westfield Fair? involved with the fair? “The museum counts on Anything I can help I’ve been involved with donations and fundraisers to with. Re-roofing some of it basically my whole life. continue operating,” said the barns, tearing down the I’ve done the demolition Barry. “Most people don’t realize that the admission we Whip City Brewfest glasses are lined up at the start of the charge won’t cover what we 2019 event. (HOPE E. TREMBLAY PHOTO) Arts Beat PAGE 2 - MONDAY, AUGUST 16, 2021 WWW.THEWESTFIELDNEWS.COM THE WESTFIELD NEWS WSU dean receives award from Latino organization WESTFIELD — Westfield State University with my work on these highly important mat- who graduated from Westfield State in 2019. interim Dean of Faculty Enrique Morales- ters of inclusivity and accessibility.” “Dr. Morales-Díaz has always taken an ini- Díaz, Ph.D., is the recipient of the Latino An activist for the Puerto Rican commu- tiative to be involved with Latinx students Scholarship Fund of Western Massachusetts’ nity in New York City, Pantoja is best known who are trying to navigate their collegiate Antonia Pantoja Award, which honors people for establishing ASPIRA in 1961, a non- careers. who contribute to the Latino community profit organization that promotes education “In addition to serving in various mentor- through research and education. It was pre- and advancement for Puerto Rican youth by ship roles, he has pioneered many conversa- sented in June, during the organization’s 30th providing clubs within schools, career and tions surrounding intersectionality of being annual awards ceremony, held virtually. college counseling, advocacy for bilingual queer and Latinx,” Estrella added. “For these The Latino Scholarship Fund of Western education, and other services.