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The vision for Alchemy is constantly evolving.
It began with the desire for community - a place
where like-minded
individuals and families--people of all ages,
backgrounds & abilities--would come together
and support one another to live consciously on
the Earth. Almost eight years into our endeavor,
we enjoy the fruits of our labor everyday. Alchemy
is a reflection of how we live our lives and a
collection of all of our favorite things! We feed
our community what we feed our own family every
day. Healthy food choices are our priority!
At Alchemy we believe that what we eat has a
direct impact on our overall state of health.
The link between disease and what we eat is the
central to our decision to serve only organic
food free of pesticides, herbicides
and other harmful toxins. Fresh food (especially
that which has not traveled thousands of miles
to reach our plate) is still alive and provides
our bodies with enzymes and vitamins that our
bodies need. In addition, we seek foods that are
mineral and nutrient dense in an effort to restore
our bodies back to a point of balance. Our bodies,
like the earth, have been drastically depleted
in the past century to the point of destruction.
Organic food, if grown in depleted soil, has little
nutritional value. This is why we are launching
an effort to buy our own farm where we can grow
organic, local, nutrient dense food based on the
work of Dan Kittredge and The Real Food Campaign
(www.realfoodcampaign.org). To find out more,
visit www.alchemyacresfarm.com
Cost is always a factor when it comes to eating
the most nutritious food on the planet. Good things
usually don't come cheap and this is true of food.
We are a culture addicted to cheap (non) food
and we are suffering.
When we eat food that is dead and empty of calories
we eat more of it in an attempt to find fulfillment.
The opposite is true when we feed our bodies living
foods. We find that we actually eat less because
our bodies feel satisfied, we have more energy,
clarity and a more positive outlook on life! It
is our intention at Alchemy to be able to satisfy
both the healthiest person and the person experiencing
a healing crisis with our menu. Providing healing
food that tastes great is a tremendous accomplishment.
Good health is not something that money can buy
yet feeding our bodies real food is an investment
will provide long-term savings down the road.
You are worth it!
Imani & John, the owners of Alchemy, met when
Imani approached John at his place of business
( a four generation stone business) about opening
a juice bar there. His curiosity piqued, John
pursued Imani's vision of raising her family (three
daughters at the time) by creating an interactive
learning environment where she could run a business
with her children by her side. Together, they
blended their families, six kids in all now seven
to eighteen, in a community setting where values
of sustainable living, zero-waste and conscious
consumerism are not only practiced, but a way
of life. Imani's recently published book, The
Absence of Soil, is a personal look at how
one family has been able to successfully follow
a sustainable path. The café has transformed
from a tiny store front in the Southend of Hartford
to various expansions over the years. Today it
now houses a Living Arts Studio & Workspace
for moms running businesses (while their children
attend The Sustainable Academy for Kids - classes
on eco-activism focusing on the arts, recycling,
real food & gardening). The family stone business
still supports the overall operations and sits
in between the café and the latest addition,
The Growing Green Wellness Center where fitness
classes such as yoga, Zumba & bellydance are
held on a weekly basis. Workshops, meditations,
drum circles, live music & film nights are
held regularly. Click her for our calendar of
events www.growinggreenevents.com
In addition, recycled bikes and repairs are available
through John's Bike Shoppe housed in the co-op
basement. The oldest of the tribe can often be
found working in the kitchen (in between homeschooling
activities & adventures) as well as other
community volunteers. Artists, Gardeners, Raw
Foodists, Healers and those interested in all
aspects of sustainable living can be found hanging
around the café. Our current passion and
interest is to grow an Urban Permadise in the
middle of the city as a model for what is possible.
Recycled objects such as stones from the family
business, food storage containers & bicycle
parts have been used to construct eclectic urban
gardens. Our café compost is turned into
black gold with our red wigglers and kale grows
in gutters on the roof. We are also helping out
on a long time organic local farm (Udderly Woolly
Acres in Glastonbury) to learn how to grow our
own food. Currently we are launching a "farmraiser"
to raise the money needed to facilitate a transition
takeover of the farm to maintain it as a working
farm here in CT. The farm will not only serve
as a sister site to the café but also as
an educational center where others can witness
how to grow the most mineral & nutrient-dense
foods. (www.alchemyacresfarm.com)
Keep an eye out for the Alchemy Acres Raw food
Line coming soon! For more information about the
farm, to volunteer on a committee or to help out
in the gardens contact Imani@thegreenvibration.com
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