Fall 2015 Newsletter - Vegetarian Society of El Paso

NEW SLETTER
Vegetar ian Society of El Paso
Fal l
2015
From The Prez
In the fall, it seem s that the special days all center on food ? especially Thanksgiving. W hy only give
thanks one day a year ? This fall w e can give our thanks by choosing a diet that is com passionate and
lightens our footpr int on Ear th.
W hy not invite your non-vegetar ian fr iends and fam ily to our Septem ber dinner ? We w ill have a vegan
M exican buffet at La Ter r aza r estaur ant along w ith a pr esentation by our ow n vegan physician, Dr. Jim
Gibson. Jim w ill give a pr esentation follow ed by a Q & A, so br ing your dietar y- and health-r elated
questions. This is a gr eat oppor tunity to educate your self and guests on all of the health benefits of a
plant-based diet.
Wor ld Vegetar ian M onth is held each October. VSEP w ill host a Restaur ant Hopper at Dr agonfly Sushi
and W ine Bar. The chef w ill pr epar e a special vegan m enu for us ? you don?t w ant to m iss this special
tr eat! - Another oppor tunity to enjoy gr eat food, fr iends, and a w onder ful m eal that does no har m to
anim als.
Novem ber br ings our signatur e Com passionate Thanksgiving Dinner. This year w e w ill hold our
dinner at the beautiful Sum m it Ballr oom and Confer ence Center and have a ?tr aditional? vegan
Thanksgiving m eal including seitan en cr oute, gar lic m ashed potatoes, and pum pkin pie for desser t.
We w ill also have a vegan bake sale at the event so you can stock up on goodies for the office par ties,
fr iends dr opping by, or just to enjoy your self!
And be sur e to save the date:
? Decem ber 5th. We w ill have a holiday potluck hosted by our founder
Sukie Sar gent and her husband Richar d.
- Happy Hippy Holidaze at Hal M ar cus Galler y. We w ill have an
educational booth and sale vegan gour m et gr anola and other tr eats.
And speaking of giving thanks, - thanks to all of you! We r ely on you,
our m em ber s, to help keep VSEP vibr ant by planning, or ganizing and
par ticipating in all of our events. If you have an idea you w ould like to
shar e for incr easing our im pact, please com e and shar e your vision at our m onthly Boar d m eetings.
Her e?s to having a w onder ful, com passionate and thankful fall!
Hope to see you soon,
Liz Walsh
VSEP BOARD M EETINGS
Sept em ber 28 @ El oi se (255 Sh adow M ou n t ai n ),
Oct ober 19 & Novem ber 30 @ Locat i on t o be an n ou n ced
Social tim e at 6:00 p.m . M eeting at 7:00 p.m .
All VSEP m em ber s w ho w ish to attend the boar d m eetings ar e ver y w elcom e. Com e discuss issues and help plan
VSEP?s futur e. Fr esh ideas and per spectives ar e alw ays appr eciated - w e w ant to keep our or ganization healthy,
vital and r elevant to the needs of our m em ber s. If you ar e planning to attend, please let Liz Walsh know @
915-342-7630 or e-m ail her at ew [email protected]. If the m eeting is changed or cancelled, you w ill be notified.
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Veg
News
it ems
2016 VSEP Elect ions!
Elections w ill be held this fall for VSEP officer s. Ballots w ill be sent out dur ing late Oct/ear ly
Nov and voting w ill be held in m id Novem ber. Voting is lim ited to m em ber s in good
standing w ho ar e vegetar ian or vegan accor ding to VSEP By-Law s. If you ar e inter ested in
r unning for office, please contact Liz Walsh at vegsocietyep@gm ail.com .
El Paso's True Food Buying Club
This m em ber ship-based com m unity
suppor ts the gr ow th and vitality of our local or ganic far m s.
M em ber ship is fr ee and gives you access to boxes full of fr esh,
or ganically-gr ow n fr uits and vegetables fr om ar ea gr ow er s w ith the
option of adding Belle Sucr e Baker y br ead to your or der. By
pur chasing Tr ue Food boxes, you suppor t sustainable and healthy
far m ing. Thr ee pickup locations ar e available at east, w est, and
dow ntow n businesses. For m or e info, visit
w w w.el pasot r u ef ood.com
New Veget arian & Vegan Opt ions in t he 915
- Dar k Hor se Taver n, located in dow ntow n's Union Plaza has a few
vegan options, including vegan sopes.
- Taco Tote intr oduced a m ushr oom veggie taco that seem s to be
vegan if or der ed on cor n tor tillas.
- Hot Joe's Food Tr uck has a veggie dog. Facebook .com /hotjoes
- Ice Cr eam ed myself offer ed a vegan ice cr eam option dur ing the
sum m er at the Punk Rock Flea M ar ket.
Facebook .com /icecr eam edmyself
- Chuy's Tex M ex is open! The Austin-based chain has plenty of
vegetar ian options & can easily m ake vegan accom m odations.
Both char r o & r efr ied beans ar e alr eady vegan!
Amazon Smile Donat es t o VSEP
VSEP is par ticipating in the Am azon Sm ile pr ogr am ! If you shop
online at Am azon, 0.5% of your eligible pur chases w ill be donated to
VSEP. All you have to do is visit sm ile.am azon.com and star t
shopping!
Cont act I nf or m at ion
Em ail Addr ess:
VegSociet yEP@gm ail.com
Mailing Addr esses:
4903 Love Rd.
El Paso, TX 79922
For membership
& renewals:
6757 Gat o Rd.
El Paso, TX 79932
915-877-3030
Boar d Posi t i on s cu r r en t l y h el d by:
- Pr esident: Liz Walsh
- Fir st Vice Pr esident: Gr eg Law son
- Inter im Second Vice Pr esident:
Hal M ar cus
- Inter im Secr etar y: Patr icia M edici
- Tr easur er : Sukie Sar gent
Up f or el ect i on :
- Second Vice Pr esident: Hal M ar cus
- Secr etar y: Patr icia M edici
I n addi t i on w e h ave m an y vol u n t eer
l eader sh i p posi t i on s t h at ar e open . Let
u s k n ow i f you ar e i n t er est ed i n
pu r su i n g on e of t h ese oppor t u n i t i es.
You can al so ch eck ou t t h e l eader sh i p
posi t i on s n eedi n g t o be f i l l ed at
w w w.vsep.or g.
Vacan t Com m i t t ee Ch ai r s
- Assistant Tr easur er for Book Sales
- Bulk M ail M anager
- Dinner Coor dinator
- Dinner Reser vations
- Dining Guide Coor dinator
- Fundr aising
- Fundr aising at Events
- Histor ian
- Lone Star Vegetar ian Netw or k
Liaison: Lisa M ar tinez ?
bettyfem m e@gm ail.com
- M em ber ship Dr ive
- Phone Calls
- Photogr apher
- Publicity
- Restaur ant Hopper s
Last Chance t o Use Your Albert sons Communit y Key Tag!
Please use your Alber tsons Com m unity Par tner s car d w hen shopping at
Alber tsons this Fall and help suppor t VSEP. Alber tsons has m er ged w ith
Safew ay and w ill discontinue the Com m unity Par tner s Pr ogr am as of
Decem ber 31, 2015. Because they know that m any gr oups, including VSEP, r ely
on these r etur ns, they have com m itted to double the am ount of r ew ar ds
ear ned in the last tw o quar ter s of this year. We have one quar ter, this Fall, to
m axim ize the am ount of funding w e r eceive. Alber tson?s car r ies a var iety of
vegan-fr iendly pr oducts (Gar dein, Soyr izo, lim ited selection of Tofur ky
pr oducts, etc). So tim e to br eak out your r eusable shopping bags and stock up
for the Fall holiday season!
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SATURDAY, SEPTEM BER 19
Dr. Jim Gibson & Vegan M exican Buffet
La Terraza M exican Rest aurant 11250 M ont wood Dr.,
915-593-6400
- 6 pm m eet and gr eet, eat at 6:30 pm
- Cost: $18 m em ber s & students w /ID; $20 nonm em ber s; $10 childr en
under 12 year s of age.
- Paid r eser vations ar e due Tuesday, Septem ber 15.
- Reser ve your space & pay online w ith a cr edit car d or PayPal
w w w.vsep.or g OR em ail [email protected] OR call 915-877-3030. M ake
check or m oney or der s payable to VSEP & m ail to: VSEP, 6757 Gato Rd.,
El Paso, TX 79932
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17
Rest aurant Hopper @Dragonfly W ine & Sushi Bist ro
5500 Doniphan Dr., 915-478-6667 (Price: $11-30)
- 6 p.m . m eet and gr eet, or der dinner at 6:30 pm
- Reser vations: Please call or text Liz Walsh at 342-7630 or em ail vsep.r eser ve@gm ail.com
- Deadline: no later than 5:30 p.m . on Fr iday, October 16th. * If you have r eser ved & cannot m ake it, please
call the coor dinator no later than noon on the day of the Hopper so they can infor m the r estaur ant.
- Please r efer to the guidelines on page 6 of this new sletter.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10
Downt own Art & Farmers M arket
Union Plaza at San Ant onio & Ant hony St reet s
- 9 am -1 pm
- VSEP w ill have an infor m ation table at this ever -gr ow ing, w eekly local m ar ket.
- Please visit us or contact us if you w ould like to volunteer to m an this table.
OCTOBER 18 - NOVEM BER 1
3rd Annual Best Veget arian Food of El Paso Awards
- VSEP & EP Veg Snob (epvegsnob.w or dpr ess.com ) ar e pr oud to announce the 3r d annual Best Vegetar ian Food
of El Paso aw ar ds!
- Voting is open to ever yone, but please only vote once. The voting site w ill open fr om October 18-Novem ber 1.
- If you don't see your favor ites on the ballot, w r ite in a nom inee.
- Categor y w inner s w ill be r evealed on Novem ber 8 (venue to be announced) & at the Com passionate
Thanksgiving Dinner on Novem ber 14.
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The 2015 Best Vegetarian Food of El Paso Nominees!
Don't see your favorites? You'll be able to write them in on the online form!
Best Tacos
- The Organic Taco Machine
- The Grooovy Smoot hie
- Tacohol ics
- Riviera
- Leo's
- Green Ingredient
- Mal ol am
- Taco Tot e
Best Veggie Burger
Best Asian Food
Best Cof f ee Shop/ Tea
- The Hoppy Monk
- Singapore
House
- Ripe
- Red Lant ern
- El oise
- St eve-o's
- China House
- Tippi Teas
- The Green Ingredient
- Sam's
- The Tea Spout
- Hel l o Day Caf e
- Saigon Tast e
- Kinl ey's Cof f ee House
- Crave
- Pho Tre Bien
- Kinl ey's Tea House
- CocoMiel
- Tara Thai
- Joe, Vinnie, &
- Tut u?s Burger & Handwash
- Thai Chef
Bronson's
- Independent Burger
- Dragonf l y
- 2Ten
Best Nachos
- Magic Bist ro
- Sun Garden
- Bl dg 6 Roast ers
- Riviera
- The Riviera
- Mirai Gril l
- The Cof f ee Box
- Carl os & Mickey's
- Joe, Vinny, & Bronson?s
- Hil l side Cof f ee
- The Greenery
- Angry Owl
Best Sushi
- Shake & Tea
- Hel l o Day Caf e (vegan queso
- Sunny's
avail abl e)
Best Sandwich
- Sushi Express
Best Smoot hie/ Juice Bar
- Lucy's
- Ripe
- Samurai
- The Bl end
- Angry Owl
- Crave
- Dragonf l y
- The Grooovy
- El oise
- Mirai Gril l
Smoot hie
Best Mexican Food Overal l
- The Greenery
- T-Coast ers
- Carl os & Mickey's
- Tosca
Best Indian Dish
- The Green Ingredient
- Leo's
- Tom's
- India Pal ace
- Tippi Teas
- The Riviera
- Magic Bist ro
- Chut -ney
- Heal t hy Bit e
- The Greenery
- D'Lox
- RV Int . Grocery St ore
- Mom?s Fresh Juice
- Lucy's
- Heal t hy Bit e
- Joe, Vinny, & Bronson?s
- Casa Jurado
- Papa Pit a
- El oise
Best New Business
- Caf e Mayapan
- Craf t & Social
(Must have opened
- Pho Tre Bien Express
Best Medit erranean Food bet ween Oct 2014 &
Best Pizza
- The Green Ingredient
- Nour Med. Caf e
Oct 2015)
- The Pizza Joint (vegan cheese) - Sabert oot h
- Sinbad
- The Organic Taco
- Unrul i's
- Nol it a Corner Bist ro
- Sal ma Farah's
Machine
- Ardovino's
- The Kit chen at 150 Sunset
Medit erranean
- Hot Joe's
- Hel l o Pizza
- Baba Ganoush
- Mirai Gril l
- Caf e It al ia
Best Brunch
- Zino's
- Dark Horse Tavern
- Tosca
- Hoppy Monk
- Jerusal em Gril l
- Nol it a Corner Bist ro
- Nona's
- El oise
- Medit erranean Cuisine - Shake & Tea
- Art isan Pizzeria
- Tom's
- A2Z Caf e
- Pit a
- Sparrow?s
- Ripe
- Pit a
- The Kit chen at 150
- Cical as
- D'Lox
Sunset
- House of Pizza
- The Green Ingredient
Best Fal af el
- A2Z Caf e
- Ciel o Vist a Nat ural Market
- The Kit chen at 150 Sunset
- Zino?s
- Angry Owl
(vegan cheese)
- Hel l o Day Caf é
- Pho Tre Bien Bist ro
Best Food Truck
- 5 Point s Bist ro
Best Appet izer
- Tacohol ics
- Sabert oot h
Best Vegan Friendl y
- El oise
- Lit t l e Luna Pizza
- A2Z Caf e
Rest aurant
- Singapore Caf é
- Red Whit e & Chew
- Papa Pit a
- The Green Ingredient
- The Green Ingredient
- Sgt . Cheddar?s
- Nour
- El oise
- The Hoppy Monk
- El Paso?s Wurst
- Hel l o Day Caf é
- Ripe
- Comf ort Co. Tast y Eat s
Best It al ian
- Tom's
- Hel l o Day Caf e
- The Organic Taco Machine
- Nuovo Capet t o's
- Sabert oot h
- Carl os & Mickey's
- The Grooovy Smoot hie
- It al ian Kit chen
- Dragonf l y
- St eve-o's
- Hot Joe's
- Trat t oria Bel l a Sera
- Sabert oot h
- Tosca
- Joe, Vinny, & Bronson?s
Writ e-in cat egories: Best Vegan Bakery/ Dessert & Best Overal l Rest aurant
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SATURDAY, NOVEM BER 14
Annual Compassionat e Thanksgiving Dinner
The Summit Ballroom & Conference Cent er
120 N. Fest ival
- Special Guest Speaker Lisa Levinson, Dir ector of the Sustainable
Activist Cam paign for the national or ganization In Defense of Anim als
and founder of Vegan Spir ituality.
- 6 pm m eet and gr eet, eat at 6:30 pm
- Cost: $22 m em ber s; $15 students w /ID; $25 nonm em ber s; $10 childr en
under 12 year s of age.
- Paid r eser vations ar e due Tuesday, Novem ber 10.
- Reser ve your space & pay online w ith a cr edit car d or PayPal
w w w.vsep.or g OR em ail vsep.r eser ve@gm ail.com OR call 915-877-3030.
M ake check or m oney or der s payable to VSEP & m ail to: VSEP, 6757
Lisa Levinson is the Dir ector of the Sustainable Activism Cam paign for the national or ganization In Defense of
Anim als and founder of Vegan Spir ituality. She is a tr ained m ovem ent ther apist, m useum exhibit designer, and
m osaic ar tist. She uses her ther apeutic skills to pr om ote self-car e for anim al activists. Lisa develops exhibits as a
volunteer for the National M useum of Anim als and Society. She or ganizes Vegan Spir ituality M eetups and
Retr eats acr oss the countr y to explor e veganism as a spir itual pr actice. She co-founded Public Eye: Ar tists for
Anim als to teach com passion for anim als thr ough the ar ts.
In her pr esentation at our Com passionate Thanksgiving Dinner, Lisa w ill shar e her r eflections on veganism as a
spir itual path and the im por tance connecting w ith other like-m inded souls in com m unity. As Dir ector of In
Defense of Anim als' Sustainable Activism Cam paign, pr oviding em otional and spir itual r esour ces for anim al
activists, Lisa cr eates pr ogr am s that unite fellow vegans and celebr ate our cr uelty-fr ee lifestyle. She w ill close
w ith a guided m editation and pr ayer for the anim als.
SATURDAY, DECEM BER 5
Holiday Vegan Pot luck @Richard & Sukie's Home, 6757 Gat o Rd.
- 5 pm
- Br ing your favor ite holiday dish and join us in celebr ating another year of com passionate, healthy eating, and
pr otecting our envir onm ent. - Hosts w ill pr ovide non-alcoholic bever ages, r ecyclable plates, utensils, and
cups. You m ay br ing your ow n if you pr efer. Please br ing your favor ite appetizer, m ain dish, side dish, or
desser t, enough for 8.
- Please RSVP by Thur sday, Decem ber 3 by calling (915) 877-3030 or send an em ail to [email protected]
- All food m ust be VEGAN (see page 6 for guidelines), and please br ing a copy of your r ecipe to place alongside
your dish. NOTE: Don't for get to submit your r ecipes, cooking tips, substitution idea s a nd wor ds of
wisdom for our Cookbook Pr oject to Sumer (sumer 8586@gma il.com) or Lisa (bettyfemme@gma il.com).
SATURDAY, DECEM BER 12
Happy Hippie Holidaze Open House Art s & Craft s Fair
Hal M arcus Gallery, 1308 N. Oregon
-
10 am -5 pm
This annual fr ee, daylong event w ill include local vendor s, appetizer s, and live enter tainm ent.
VSEP w ill have a booth selling vegan food item s, books, liter atur e, and other goodies.
Handm ade goods, such as pur ses, apr ons, jew elr y, hats, scar ves, stuffed anim als, tie-dye, and m or e w ill be
available for pur chase.
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VSEP Event Guidelines
W hy VSEP Event s are Vegan
The Lone Star Vegetar ian Netw or k , a loosely-knit gr oup of Texas vegetar ian societies, w as for m ed in 1989. Ther e
w er e 4 m em ber s that fir st year : Austin, Houston, San Antonio and South Texas (Br azor ia County). Ther e ar e now
10 gr oups fr om ar ound the state. Contact am ong the gr oups is im por tant and, w hile each gr oup m aintains full
autonomy, it is agr eed that all vegetar ian events hosted by Netw or k m em ber societies w ill be vegan (m eaning, of
cour se, that no anim al pr oducts, including dair y and eggs) w ill be ser ved. Society m em ber s ar e not r equir ed to be
vegan, but it has been agr eed that it is not unr easonable to expect m em ber s to enjoy vegan food only at such
events.
This r ule has occasionally been questioned by lacto-ovo-vegetar ians. How ever, this r ule is im por tant for all the
ver y sam e r easons w e don?t eat m eat. We all know how fr ustr ating it is to have to ask , ?Is ther e lar d/m eat
stock/etc.? The decision has been m ade to allow our gr ow ing vegan m em ber ship the oppor tunity not to have to
w or r y about dair y or egg pr oducts in the food at Netw or k events. Vegan events ar e both suppor tive and
educational, and vegetar ian or ganizations need to be on the cutting edge. Thank you for your suppor t!
~ Shir ley W ilkes-Johnson,
Co-Founder, LSVNw w w.lsvn.or g
Hopper Rules in a Nut shell:
-
Please or der only vegan item s.
Please m ake a r eser vation by the deadline if you w ould like to be seated w ith the gr oup.
If you m ake a r eser vation, please be ther e and please show up on tim e.
If you ar e r eser ving on the day of the deadline, or canceling the day of the hopper, please call the hopper
coor dinator.
- Do not for get to leave an adequate gr atuity, w e alw ays w ant to be w elcom ed back .
- If you ar e happy w ith the r estaur ant, let the r estaur ant know. If you ar e not happy, please let the hopper
coor dinator know.
- Last but not least: Enjoy!!
* * Hopper Cour tesy Rem inder * *
PLEASE call 915-342-7630 by noon the day of the hopper if you have r eser ved and then cannot m ake it. The
r estaur ants set up a table for us w hich leaves less space to accom m odate other custom er s and Satur day is a busy
night for m ost r estaur ants. Som e r estaur ants even m ake a special m enu for us and or der ingr edients based on
the num ber of people in the r eser vation. We need to be sur e w e do not inconvenience them or any other
custom er s by taking aw ay tables and chair s that ar e not needed.
Guidelines for Pot lucks:
All dishes m ust be com pletely vegan ? no exceptions. Food m ust not contain any flesh (fish, fow l or beast), eggs,
dair y pr oducts or honey. This r ule guar antees that ever yone can eat ever ything (aller gies & pr efer ences aside).
Please w atch out for hidden m ilk pr oducts, such as w hey in cookies, cr acker s, br ead and m ar gar ine, and casein
or caseinate in ?non-dair y? soy cheeses and w hipped toppings. Som e m ar gar ines contain gelatin. Also, be aler t
for eggs in baked goods, m ayonnaise in salad dr essings, and honey in br eads, pastr ies and pr eser ves.
Please pr epar e a 4x6 car d w ith: Your nam e, nam e of the dish, a list of all the ingr edients, and the r ecipe on the
back , indicating w her e the r ecipe cam e fr om (or if it is or iginal).
-
Pr epar e enough to ser ve eight (8) people.
Please br ing your ow n table setting as w ell as a ser ving utensil.
If you don?t feel like cooking, you m ay br ing a gr een salad, chips & salsa, fr uit, or another vegan m unchie.
Your host w ill pr ovide dr inks.
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