Bakery News
The bakery program has been operating at high capacity. Megan has participants daily from 9:00 a.m. until 2 or 3:00 p.m. with each participant learning and assisting with a variety of tasks based on their abilities and interests. There are currently 24 individuals involved in the bakery program.
Megan and bakery participants are making sure that the weekly Spring Ledge Farm order and the front cases are full. Aurora Bakery has been added to the vendor list at Proctor Academy and this listing is adding orders to our growing special-order requests. The Bakery will also have a baked goods booth at upcoming Newport Opera House productions.
Aurora Bakery “On The Road Booth” has been active in conjunction with the Farm program to staff a weekly booth at the Newport Farmer’s Market. There was also a bakery booth in August at the Apple Pie Craft Festival. Megan and her crew prepared a wide variety of different apple themed baked goods for this annual event. The Apple Pie Crafts Fair was well attended and we sold out of almost all the goodies! We had another successful booth at the Corbin Bridge Festival, on Saturday, October 12th. Several participants joined Megan and her team of volunteers selling baked goods and spreading word about the program. Our farm program participants and volunteers, joined in the festivities by walking in the parade through the Corbin Bridge with donkeys Okemo, Pepper, Pimpernel, Nutmeg and Mattie. Aurora Bakery had another informational booth at Valley Regional Hospital’s Wellness Fair on Sept. 24.
On September 7th, the “It’s Vaudeville” show was staged at the Newport Opera House to benefit RTI programs. A local vaudeville troupe, led by Wally Borgen, very generously chose our organization to be the recipients of the ticket sales for their final performance. The group has been putting on benefit shows for local nonprofit organizations for the past 12 years. It was a great evening filled with lots of fun and laughter. The Bakery prepared and sold a variety of baked goods by donation throughout the evening. Our star donkey volunteer, Pepper, made her stage debut and was serenaded by the cast singing "Closer to You".
Aurora Bakery joined with other local vendors in a very successful Taste of Sullivan County on Nov 9th. Our ever-popular squash roll gained more fans. Currently it’s all hands-on deck for the upcoming Holiday Season!!! Orders are coming in for Thanksgiving pies and rolls and other irresistible goodies. Then Christmas is right around the corner!!
News From Down on the Farm
The farm and bakery wrapped up the Newport Farmer’s Market season with our last market on October 4th.
Newport and Sunapee alternative education students came to the farm as part of their summer programs.
Farm program participants were our volunteers when we headed to donkey visits at area health care facilities Summercrest, Woodlawn, Woodcrest, Granite Ledges, Harvest Hill and Sunapee Cove. Sunapee students were our volunteers at Summercrest for both a summer and fall visit.
Fall saw the return of our school programs. RTI donkeys and volunteers headed to Kearsarge Middle and High School to work with students at both locations. Sunapee students travel to the farm and work with the donkeys on-site.
RTI also does a bit of collaborative work with Full Circle Farm Therapeutic Riding Program. We are invited to offer donkey driving lessons to a number of their groups’ riding programs. It is great to be able to offer riders another experience with a different equine. The donkeys are especially popular with the Veterans from the VA in White River.
Save The Date - Saturday, March 28, 2020
The 4th Annual RTI Fundraiser at Colby Sawyer College featuring local musicians Nick's Other Band!!
Stay tuned for more information