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THE NOURISH LETTER
Meet the Team Behind Your Meals NOVEMBER 2020
OctoberKitchen.com | 860-533-0588 | 309 Green Rd., Manchester, CT 06042
WHY I CELEBRATE VETERANS DAY
Recognizing a Special Veteran in My Life and All Those Beyond
N ovember is a time for us to remember what’s most important to us and what we’re most grateful for. It’s fitting then that Veterans Day comes in the same month as Thanksgiving. We owe so much to our veterans; often their sacrifices affect their everyday lives. I’ll never forget the first time I met Adam Durocher Sr. two years ago, one of our staff members at October Kitchen. He’s always enthusiastic in our kitchen, but as we became close friends, I understood just how much his service has affected him. We work together (just the two of us) one day a week, which gives him plenty of time to enjoy and explore civilian life. Adam has told me that he used to feel uncomfortable with the idea of working with other people, but, at least with our staff, he feels part of a team again all while working toward a good cause. Cooking and working
with others has also helped with his personal processing and journey toward a mentally healthier life. Even if it only helps a little bit, that really means the world to me. Adam might not realize it, but he inspires me all the time, from his constant energy to his passion for being a good team member. I appreciate his work for us tremendously and I’m also very proud of his activism with the Rockville Fish & Game Club. He started his own veterans committee within the club and now they’re helping veterans throughout the area find a relaxing hobby as well as this support group. According to the National Center of Veterans Analysis and Statistics, the U.S. has a veteran population of over 19.2 million in 2019 (the last available statistic). There is an overwhelming number of veterans out there who we might not know personally — but whose stories embody America and her
“Veterans Day is a reminder that we can’t leave anyone behind and especially not our veterans.”
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How October Kitchen Gave a Hardworking Couple Their Sunday Mornings Back
O n a Sunday
morning, Bill and Lynda Fee used to have breakfast
and have to run out to go grocery shopping. This wasn’t their favorite time to get out of the house, but they didn’t have a lot of choices. Coordinating meals was always a big problem. The couple both had busy schedules; Lynda worked long hours for
quality, quantity and value make October Kitchen a very sustainable part of their dinner routine. Lynda’s personal favorite dish of ours is the Not Your Mom’s tuna noodle casserole, which is part of our ongoing menu as a classic, healthy comfort food.
United Technologies and Bill worked late hours as a DJ for parties and karaoke nights (a career he’s had for 24 years!).
Then, two years ago, one of Bill’s regular karaoke singers suggested that Bill and Lynda should check out October Kitchen. They haven’t looked back since! Now, every Tuesday morning, Bill picks up all the meals for the week. In fact, one of their favorite parts about October Kitchen is that they can come to the location. They say that meeting Stephanie, Alice, Chef Paul and other staff members have been one of the highlights of their experience. Also, they absolutely adore the weekly chef’s specials. “I’m constantly calling back to ask if they have any more,” Bill beamed to us. When we asked about his latest favorite, he said that the pork fried rice got him to order eight more servings! “[In the chef’s specials,] we find these creative masterpieces, I call them.”
These days, Bill and Lynda get to have breakfast on Sunday morning and don’t have to go shopping for their weekly
meals. And, in the pandemic, they’re still as hardworking as ever — Bill is staying out of bars but plans to adapt his DJing business to the ever-changing pandemic conditions and Lynda has gone fully remote with the same long hours. The couple recommends that everyone checks out our location in person if they have the opportunity! Meeting the staff and checking out the chef’s specials has been a huge part of their special experience with us. We were so excited to hear that. Thank you, Bill and Lynda, for being such a wonderful part of our October Kitchen family! See you soon!
“And he’s eating a lot more veggies!” Lynda happily chimed in. The couple admit that the healthiness, high
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A TODDLER BORN WITH A CLEFT LIP HAS A NEW BEST FRIEND
_____________________________ Write your name here and fax the completed puzzle to 860-533-0585, send it via empty delivery box or bring it to the shop and receive 10% off your next order . Limit one per customer. Expires Nov. 30, 2020. WORD SEARCH COBBLER CRANBERRY Having a cleft lip is not completely uncommon for humans — or animals. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 1 out of 2,800 babies in the U.S. are born with cleft lips; for dogs, that number isn’t even known. When an animal shelter in Jackson, Michigan, received a black and white puppy with a cleft lip, they worried nobody would adopt him for two reasons: the cleft lip and the fact that the puppy had traveled over 1,000 miles to reach the shelter (due to shelter overpopulation). One of the last 25 to be adopted, it became clear that this puppy was struggling to find a home where he was wanted. That completely changed when Brandon, Bentley’s father, walked into the Jackson animal shelter, hoping to find chickens. Instead, he found a beautiful black and white Considering that it’s election year, we think everyone needs a break to hear some adorable news. And, man, do we have the story for you this month! Despite his young age, 2-year-old Bentley Boyers has already undergone several surgeries for his cleft lip. His mother, Ashley, knew he would have a cleft lip since an early ultrasound and Bentley’s first surgery occurred when he was only 5 months old. “He’s the strongest little boy I know,” Ashley says.
puppy with a cleft lip. “It was pretty shocking actually,” Brandon told the Washington Post. “I’d never seen a dog with a cleft lip before.”
... continued from Cover well‑being. When our veterans are hurting, so are their families. The whole country hurts. Veterans Day is a reminder that we can’t leave anyone behind and especially not our veterans. One of our veterans’ greatest resources is not only the VA, but also the Wounded Warriors Project, where all of their services, counseling and support is absolutely free for former military. They’re also an invaluable voice in Washington, pushing litigation that helps provide veterans with a better life, one they certainly deserve to have. Your donation doesn’t only support veterans today, but tomorrow and every year after that. While we’re around our Thanksgiving table this year, let’s not only celebrate the silver linings of our lives, but also the entirety of the wonderful freedom we enjoy every day and the men and women who sacrificed to ensure the battlefield never reaches our homes. Thank you for reading this and I hope you have a beautiful November. Brandon and Ashley immediately agreed to start the adoption process and, two days later, Bentley met a little puppy with his matching condition. “They were head over heels for each other right away,” Ashley said. As soon as Bentley scooped the puppy in his arms, everyone started crying. Even the shelter owner was in tears. “The fact that this is something we never see, the puppy came from 1,000 miles away and that Bentley’s dad just happened to be here at that moment, it was just amazing.” The parents can’t express enough gratitude for the happy coincidence either, because Bentley won’t have to feel alone on his journey going forward. A Facebook post by the shelter went viral, sharing Bentley’s story with the whole world and we’re so grateful! It’s one that really warmed our hearts. We hope you and your new puppy have many happy memories together, Bentley!
ELECTION FOOTBALL NOVEL SAGITTARIUS THANKSGIVING TOPAZ TURKEY VETERANS VOTING WINDY
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INSIDE Why I Celebrate Veterans Day
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Meet Bill and Lynda Fee!
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The Most Adorable News You’ll Hear This Month
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Word Search
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How a Thanksgiving Dinner Mix-Up Led to the TV Dinner
A Meal for the Changing American Home How a Thanksgiving Dinner Mix-Up Led to the TV Dinner
By 1954, roughly half of American households had TVs. Over the next 10 years, that figure jumped to 92%. As the TV rose in prominence in American living rooms, the TV dinner’s popularity increased exponentially. Swanson sold
train cars back and forth between the East Coast and the Midwest to generate the electricity needed to keep the turkey from spoiling.
Would you believe that Thanksgiving dinner — a meal dedicated to home cooking, family time and, well, being thankful — was directly responsible for the invention of the TV dinner, the ultimate manifestation of the solitary, processed meal? If you are a little suspicious of that fact, you’re not alone. But, the connection is real. Those little frozen meals on trays were the result of a Turkey Day mix-up of epic proportions. The year was 1953. That fall, the frozen food company C.A. Swanson & Sons drastically overestimated how many Americans would want a turkey as the centerpiece of their Thanksgiving spread, leaving them with about 260 tons of extra turkey packed into 10 refrigerated railroad cars. They needed a way to sell this surplus quickly because they had to keep running the
The company sent out a bulletin asking if any of their employees had a solution to the problem. Swanson salesman Gerry Thomas had a winning idea. He suggested they package up the remaining turkey with a few sides as frozen dinners that would be ready to eat after being thawed. The twist? They would be served in compartmentalized aluminum trays, much like airplane meals, which were the inspiration for Thomas’ idea. Additionally, they would be marketed as “TV dinners,” with their packaging designed to look like a television set.
nearly 10 million of them during the first year of production. By 1959, Americans spent half a billion dollars gobbling up TV dinners. Several other phenomena have been linked to the advent of the TV dinner, such as the erosion of the traditional family dinner and a preference for TV entertainment over family conversation during mealtime. It’s hard to believe it all happened because of one Thanksgiving Day with too much turkey!
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