Friday, January 12, 2007- 3:00 pm
Memorial Service for Anne Weaver, founder of The Very Vegetarian Society of Winston-Salem
It is with sadness that we note the passing of Anne on Sunday, January 7 around 2p. Anne and her husband Wes, vegetarians for three decades and vegan for almost as long, founded The Very Vegetarian Society in 1990. They have organized monthly events and published a quarterly newsletter, influencing many people especially about the health aspects of a plant- based diet. A number of TVSers have met the Weavers at their events, their home, and at the annual Vegetarian Summerfest conference that they attended every year from 1989 (and which inspired them to form their vegetarian society) till 2006. Anne will be missed by many.

Anne was 85 years young. She is survived by her husband of 63 years, Wesley Weaver Jr, as well as children Wesley Weaver III of Boone, Ron Weaver of Roanoke, VA, and Carol Smith of Richmond, VA, as well as seven grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and nieces and nephews.

Anne's obituary is available for reading. A celebration of her life will be held at Highland Presbyterian Church (where she was a charter member), 2380 Cloverdale Ave, Winston-Salem, 336-724-6303, on January 12, 2007, at 3p, followed by a reception of friends by the family. Memorials may be made to the Very Vegetarian Society, c/o Jan Lukens, 2348 NC Hwy 65E, Walnut Cove, NC 27052.

Note: Our friends with the Very Vegetarian Society have created a memorial cookbook page and hope to have some of Anne's recipes published there.

Friday, January 12, 2007 - 7:00 pm
Restaurant Review, Ragazzi's Italian Restaurant
5800 Glenwood Ave, Raleigh (see a map)
787-0434
Ragazzi's website is www.ragazzis.com/raleigh.html, and, as their name says, they serve Italian cuisine. The pasta is vegan as is at least one sauce, and at least one other sauce is vegetarian. View their menu (PDF).

If you plan on attending, please let us know by 9pm on Thursday, January 11, so we can provide a firmer count for our reservation. You can let us know by email to restaurantreviews@trianglevegsociety.org or by phone at 787-6280. If you are confirming for more than yourself, please tell us how many. It is also good if you can provide an alternate method of contacting you such as a phone number in case of a last minute change in schedule. Those who RSVP will be sent a reminder email a day or two before the review including directions and/or a link to an online map of the restaurant. If you do not receive the reminder email by the evening before the review, please contact us to make sure we received your RSVP.

Saturday, January 27, 2007 - 7:00 pm
Potluck Dinner (Potluck FAQ)
Chuck and Connie Johnston's home
500 N. Duke Street (Bullington Warehouse Condos), Durham (see a map)
260-9126
From Raleigh and eastern Durham, take the Durham Expressway north to the Duke Street exit (one-way going north); pass Main and Morgan Streets along with Brightleaf Square; pass West Village Apartments on R and Durham County Social Services (300 N. Duke St, prominently written on the side of the building); they are in the next building at 500 N. Duke St at Corporation St; R onto Corporation and immediate L into parking lot.

The potluck is in the community room in building 54 (building numbers are on the orange awnings over the entryways) - come up the stairs to building 54 and make an immediate R onto the wooden deck, and enter the room via doors behind the deck.

Saturday, January 27, 2007
Potluck Dinner and talk by Rynn Berry (Postponed until a later date)
This event has been postponed. In mid-December 2006, we had to postpone this event to another date TBA due to personal commitments that came up from the speaker. Please let Dilip know if you would like to be notified for information about acting in vegetarian plays that Rynn has written, once the date is set again.

Rynn is a lecturer at New School for Social Research in New York City, and is author of five books, including "Food for the Gods" and "Famous Vegetarians" (May 1994 with last reprint Aug. 2002), and is currently in pre-press with a book called "Fruits of Tantalus: A History of Vegan Rawfoodism and the Origins of Cooking". He is the author of the entry on the history of vegetarianism in the United States in the "Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America" (Oct. 2004). He is a well known lecturer on these and related topics, and has spoken at venues around the world. Mr. Berry is historical advisor to the North American Vegetarian Society and is on the Advisory Board of Earth Save.

Tuesday, February 13 - 7:00 pm
Orange/Chatham Sierra Club (non-TVS) lecture: "Eating for Health - Yours and the Planet's"
Lecture Hall of Carolina Meadows (near Chapel Hill - see a map and directions)
There is increasing evidence that the healthiest diet for our health may be a fully plant-based one, and, with the possible exception of driving a car, that eating a non- plant-based diet may be our biggest impact on the environment. The Orange/Chatham Sierra Club hosts today an event that hopefully will not ignore this "elephant in the room". Its description follows.

The industry that brings us our food has some harmful affects on both human health and the environment. For instance, every calorie of conventionally grown food takes about 7-10 calories of oil to produce, and the fertilizer made from fossil fuel runs off fields, polluting streams, lakes, and rivers. Transporting food from farm to plate then takes more energy. At the meeting, David Auerbach, North Carolina State University professor, food writer for The Independent Weekly, and former head of Triangle Slow Food, will analyze some of the problems of the conventional food supply and Ruffin Slater, co-founder and General Manager of Weaver Street Market in Carrboro, will present some solutions.

From Durham or Chapel Hill, take I-40 East to Davis Drive exit. Turn left at end of exit ramp, going South about 5-7 miles. When you see Preston Village on Right - turn Left onto Hogan's Valley Way; take the next Right onto Glen Abbey, then right onto Preston Pines, then right onto Creek Park Drive. Turn left onto Turquoise Creek Dr; Jodi is at 118, the 10th house on the Right. To return: from Turquoise Creek turn left onto Creek Park Drive until it ends at Davis Drive, then turn right going north until Junction for I-40.

Saturday, March 10 - 7:00 pm
Potluck Dinner (Potluck FAQ)
Eilene Bisgrove's home
Please email her at ebisgrove@nc.rr.com for details.

Tuesday, March 20
Great American Meatout
Invite your friends to enjoy a day without meat and take advantage of the many benefits that a plant-based diet affords for them and for the planet.

Saturday, March 24 - 7:00 pm
Restaurant Review, Xiloa Restaurant
748 Ninth St, Durham (see a map)
286-1430
Xiloa serves Nicaraguan food and has been getting rave reviews from many TVSers. They have several vegan and vegetarian dishes. We couldn’t find a website for them, well, not counting their myspace page, but you can read a little about them on CitySearch.

If you plan on attending, please let us know by 9pm on Thursday, March 22, so we can provide a firmer count for our reservation. You can let us know by email to restaurantreviews@trianglevegsociety.org or by phone at 787-6280. If you are confirming for more than yourself, please tell us how many. It is also good if you can provide an alternate method of contacting you such as a phone number in case of a last minute change in schedule. Those who RSVP will be sent a reminder email a day or two before the review including directions and/or a link to an online map of the restaurant. If you do not receive the reminder email by the evening before the review, please contact us to make sure we received your RSVP.

Saturday, April 28 - 7:00 pm
Potluck Dinner and talk by Saurabh Dalal on Jainism and Vegetarianism (Potluck FAQ)
Durham Friends Meeting House
404 Alexander Avenue, Durham (See a map and directions)
Please note: Due to a Friday Night family hospitalization, Saurabh has had to cancel his visit. Thankfully, things seem optimistic, but Saurabh will remain for support in Washington, D.C. In his place, we're lucky to have TVSer Pravin Shah, Education Coordinator for the Federation of Jain Associations in North America, giving a talk on this topic.

Sunday, April 29 - 3:00 pm
(Non-TVS event)
Jeffrey Smith, author of the new book Genetic Roulette, speaking on his new book about the health risks of genetically engineered food. Regulator Bookshop, 720 Ninth St, Durham, 286-2700.

Saturday, May 12 - 7:00 pm
Potluck and Talk by Will Tuttle (Potluck FAQ)
Durham Friends Meeting House
404 Alexander Avenue, Durham (See a map and directions)
Will Tuttle, advocate for veganism, peace, and the animals for 25 years, as well as author, musician, and author of the new book The World Peace Diet, will speak during his visit of the Triangle area. After we eat, we will be treated by a talk and, if we're lucky, some music by Will.

Will's activism includes having served on the board of advisors of EarthSave as well as being a frequent presenter at vegetarian and animal welfare/rights conferences. He has been a regular columnist with VegNews Magazine since its founding six years ago and is a co-founder of the Worldwide Prayer Circle for Animals, a non-denominational group using "action and the power of prayer, meditation, and/or focused thought to liberate all animals from human oppression and exploitation". Will has a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley focused on educating intuition and compassion.

Will travels full-time with his wife Madeleine, also a long-time vegan, a visionary artist from Switzerland, presenting lectures, as well as concerts of original uplifting piano music, workshops, retreats, and art exhibits. Among his CDs, AnimalSongs is well-loved by vegetarians because it includes the voices of non-human animals along with the music, as well as a discourse, Living in Harmony With All Life. His new book is said to be the first to make explicit the relationships between our culture and food, and to offer a positive transformation to our individual and collective lives.

Tuesday, May 22 - 7:30-9:00 pm
(Non-TVS event hosted by TVSer Tom Mitchell) Free public lecture "Ancient Secrets of Ayurveda" by Dr. Pankaj Naram, Ayurvedic master
Unity Church of the Triangle, Longview Center, Raleigh (directions)
Dr. Pankaj Naram, a lifelong vegetarian, practices Ayurveda as a medical system that includes a vegetarian diet as a key component. He has reverential respect for the environment and uses sustainable agricultural practices in cultivating plants used in their herbal preparations. TVS members may find this interesting to learn about an old (approximately three thousand years) system of health care, refined and still actively and, many say, effectively practiced, available that respects the environment, is vegetarian, and does not require introducing toxic chemicals to the body.

One of the great masters of Ayurveda, Dr. Pankaj Naram is a master of Ayurvedic pulse assessment and also marma therapy, and has been the physician to the Dalai Lama and Mother Theresa. He has been given the highest awards by the President and government of India for his outstanding contributions to Ayurvedic medicine over the past 25 years. As the current head of a 2500 year old lineage of doctors that started with Buddha's personal physician, Dr. Naram is the custodian of a vast collection of ancient Ayurvedic texts that heretofore have not been available to the public, and which are now being translated so that the world can benefit from this ancient storehouse of knowledge.

Note that Dr. Naram will also be available for individual consultations on the 23rd and 24th of May at Mitchell Chiropractic Healing Center, 2500 Blue Ridge Rd Ste. 308, Raleigh; call 919-785-2200 for more information.

Saturday, June 23 - 7:00 pm
Restaurant Review, Abyssinia Restaurant
2109-146 Avent Ferry Rd, Raleigh (see a map)
664-8151, abyssiniarestaurantnc.com
Abyssinia serves Ethiopian cuisine, and they offer a vegetarian section which includes vegan dishes. They are located in the Mission Valley Shopping Center at the intersection of Western Blvd and Avent Ferry Rd, near North Carolina State University.

If you plan on attending, please let us know by 10 pm on Friday, June 22, so we can provide a final count to the restaurant. You can let us know by email to restaurantreviews@trianglevegsociety.org or by phone at 919-208-7391 (relatively new number). If you are confirming for more than yourself, please tell us how many. It is also good if you can provide an alternate method of contacting you such as a phone number in case of a last minute change in schedule. Those who have confirmed by the end of Thursday will be sent a reminder email on Friday. If you don’t receive the reminder email by Saturday morning, please contact us to make sure we received your confirmation. We look forward to seeing you at the review.

Sunday, June 24 - 1:00 pm
Sunday energy brunch
Ron Neumann's home
ibron@nc.rr.com, 557-2860
1736 East Greenbriar Dr, Fuquay-Varina, 27526 (about half an hour south of Apex, see directions below)

Our member Ron is a vegetarian as he has always been concerned with the environment. The best thing that we can do to help the environment is to move to a plant-based diet, and, having done that, Ron is taking additional steps and is now a "buy all - sell all" energy user. He is "on the grid" but produces more energy than he uses, actually collecting money from the utilities each month for the clean, green geothermal and solar energy!

Ron generates solar energy via a 4-kilowatt photovoltaic grid on his roof, a 2-ton geothermal heat pump, and a tankless hot water heater. He also has been distilling his water with a steam distiller for many years. He was able to do all of this for his 1035 square foot home for $35,500 for the photovoltaic system, $15,000 for the geothermal (including having to drill down 300' x 6" to put two inch-and-a-quarter water pipes), almost $900 for the tankless hot water heater (with his own labor to install it but including the cost of hiring an electrician), and $1550 for awnings to shade the house in the summer (and $1100 for the drinking water distiller). He also has purchased appliances with significantly lower energy usage than the norm. Based on selling excess energy back, he has "negative" energy bills and in May 2007, for example, made $98.90, which he says is actually less than average. Ron has provided his recent energy bill history and some websites and phone numbers that might be useful.

After we eat, Ron will give a tour of his home and talk informally for a half hour about what he has learned to become a more energy efficient homeowner and more information about these systems. Bring your questions and your appetite!

Directions: Take 40/440 into Raleigh get off at 401 South (exit # 298A), take 401 into Fuquay, go left onto 55 East (Sheetz & Kangaroo gas stations), go right at first traffic light onto Old Honeycutt Rd. (BP gas station), go right at first intersection into Willow Creek subdivision, go left at second intersection onto Fuquay Springs Rd, go left at first intersection onto E. Greenbriar Dr. His is the second house on the left.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007
It is with sadness that we commemorate the death of Dietrich von Haugwitz (July 14, 1927 - June 26, 2007), TVS member and internationally known animal advocate. You can read our president Dilip Barman's notice of Dietrich's death and view/sign an online obituary.

Wednesday, July 4
4th of July picnic (vegan food only, please)
Celebrate Independence Day with a vegan picnic at Lake Wheeler Park, organized by Tony and Linda Tanaydin. Feel free to bring your canoe/boat (for a daily fee) to cruise around the Lake. We will hike through the trails of Lake Wheeler between 3:30 and 4:00pm and meet at our reserved shelter #7 at 4pm.

The picnic, at Lake Wheeler Park Shelter #7, is from 4:00-8:00 pm - we'll plan to start eating around 5:30. Bring your plates, serving utensils etc. with the list of ingredients (and your recipe if you desire) of your dish, lawn games, musical instruments, or anything else that strikes your fancy if you want to! Linda and Tony have asked that all food please be vegan (plant-based). They will have a "vegan grill" that has never had animal products on it; feel free to bring something to grill as your potluck offering (if you decide to do so, please let Tony and Linda know in advance).

For those who wish, we may try to go as a group to see fireworks afterwards, but Tony and Linda also invite folks to enjoy a vegetarian-related film (such as "Why Dogs Smile and Chimpanzees Cry", "The Greatest Diet on Earth", "Diet for a New America", "Fast Food Nation", "An Inconvenient Truth", "Dead Foods, Living Foods", or a film of group consensus) with their homemade tea and dessert afterwards at their home for any folks who wish to relax with them and remain past 8:00 pm.

To get to the picnic shelter, take I-40 exit 297 (Lake Wheeler Rd) and go south, away from Raleigh; pass Tryon Rd, Penny Road (on your Right) and eventually Simpkins Rd {which connects to Lake Wheeler Rd on your Left}; the park, about 4 1/2 miles from I-40, is on the Right; stay on the winding road to the waterfront (Lake Wheeler Park can only be accessed via Lake Wheeler Rd); Left just before the main office parking lot to Shelter #7 parking lot. There is no car access from the main parking lot by the office! You can contact the Tanaydins at 919-772-1132 or drt@lsixsigma.com.

Thursday, July 19-Monday, July 23
Animal Rights 2007 National Conference
The world's largest and oldest animal rights conference returns to Los Angeles this year. See the conference website for more information.

Saturday, July 21 - 7:00 pm
Restaurant Review, Twisted Noodles
4201 University Drive #112, Durham (see a map)
489-9888
Twisted Noodles' cuisine is Thai and Thai fusion, and their menu is on their website, twistednoodles.com (click on the Order Here link and click on the pdf link to see the full menu and not the categories at the top of the page). They claim that all entrees can be made vegetarian or vegan.

If you plan on attending, please let us know by 10pm on Friday, July 20 so we can provide a final count to the restaurant. You can let us know by email to restaurantreviews@trianglevegsociety.org or by phone at 919-208-7391 (relatively new number). If you are confirming for more than yourself, please tell us how many. It is also good if you can provide an alternate method of contacting you such as a phone number in case of a last minute change in schedule. Those who have confirmed by the end of Thursday will be sent a reminder email on Friday. If you don’t receive the reminder email by Saturday morning, please contact us to make sure we received your confirmation.

Saturday, July 21 - 6:30 PM
Vegan Potluck Dinner (non-TVS event)
Solterra Community's Common House, Durham
Bring a dish to serve at least 4 times the number in your party (the more, the better) , made with no animal derived ingredients, and a list of the ingredients or the recipe. Basic drinks (water, tea) and re-usable utensils, drinkware and plates are provided (after dinner clean- up help is appreciated).

Solterra Community is off Randolph Road near Erwin. If Mapquesting, e.g., you can start by looking up Solterra Way in Durham. Go right at the entrance and follow that road around to the Common House. If you have any questions or need further directions, please contact Sue at andresen.sue@gmail.com or call me at 919-489-8162.

Wednesday, July 25-Sunday, July 29
32th Annual Vegetarian Summerfest
Annual Conference of the North American Vegetarian Society
University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown (it seems to be about an 8-hour drive from the Triangle)
This conference has a wide variety of speakers and fantastic food. You'll meet great people and have fun learning more about vegetarianism if you attend! Questions? See contact info.

Saturday, August 11 - 6:00 pm
Potluck Dinner (Potluck FAQ)
Zeigler Family's home
5118 Whippoorwill St, Durham, 27704 (see a map)
471-4464

Friday, September 7 - 7:00 pm (rescheduled from August 25)
Restaurant Review, Suchi Indian Cuisine
748-K East Chatham St, Cary (see a map)
www.suchicuisine.com, 466-7273
Suchi Indian Cuisine's menu is on their website and it explicitly marks the dishes that can be made vegan. Directions to the restaurant are on the home page.

If you plan on attending, please let us know by 10 pm on Thursday, September 6, so we can provide a final count to the restaurant. You can let us know by email to restaurantreviews@trianglevegsociety.org or by phone at 919-208-7391 (relatively new number). If you are confirming for more than yourself, please tell us how many. It is also good if you can provide an alternate method of contacting you such as a phone number in case of a last minute change in schedule. Those who have confirmed by the end of Thursday will be sent a reminder email on Friday. If you don’t receive the reminder email by Saturday morning, please contact us to make sure we received your confirmation.

Saturday, September 22 - 7:00 pm
Joint potluck with Ethical Culture Society (Potluck FAQ)
Durham Friends Meetinghouse
404 Alexander Avenue, Durham (See a map and directions)
After the potluck, three TVSers and three ECSers will be on a panel to discuss their views of ethics. This has been an exciting event the last ten years! See a summary of panelists' views from our 2003 event as examples of topics that have been discussed in the past.

Friday, October 5 - Sunday, October 7
Becoming the Change: The 22nd Annual Compassionate Living Festival
Sheraton Imperial Hotel and Convention Center
4700 Emperor Boulevard, Durham
Please join us for the 22nd annual International Compassionate Living Festival, featuring esteemed authors, academics, activists and artists united for positive change on behalf of animals worldwide. The conference will feature leaders from many areas of animal activism, from grassroots to national campaigns, focusing on how everyone can “become the change” the world’s animals urgently need. For more information, see the conference website.

October, 2007
Joint potluck with Triangle Interfaith Alliance
This event has been canceled. Sorry to have to again cancel a joint potluck with the Interfaith Alliance. We have been unable for ten years to setup a joint event that didn't have to be cancelled. Please visit their website for more about their fabulous goals of "Providing a positive and unifying influence in shaping the nature of our society and building better community. Listening to all perspectives and exploring all aspects of an issue. Breaking down barriers by people joining together in a safe environment, engaging in thoughtful, reasoned, respectful discussion, to search for and work together for the common good." In particular, their Ethical Framework is well worth reading.

Sunday, October 7 - 1:00 pm
Brunch and talk on Ayurveda by Tom Mitchell
Tom and Lisa Mitchell's home
5908 Bayberry Lane, Raleigh, 27612 (see a map, directions are below)
848-9709
Ayurveda is a medical system focused on both prevention and cure, recognizing the key importance of a vegetarian diet and integrating plant-based foods and herbs as essential aspects of health. Ayurveda is an "old (approximately three thousand years) system of health care, refined and still actively and, many say, effectively practiced, available that respects the environment, is vegetarian, and does not require introducing toxic chemicals to the body."

Timed so that you can enjoy the Compassionate Living Festival which ends at 12:30, come on over to a potluck brunch at 1:00. After we eat, TVSer Tom Mitchell, who has been practicing Ayurveda for years, will present a 30-45 minute talk on the basics of Ayurveda, the importance of plant-based diet, and how Ayurveda can be used in your own life.

From the beltline, take the Glenwood Avenue exit, and take Glenwood Ave west towards Crabtree Mall. Get into the far right lane and turn right onto Lead Mine Rd, just after the BP station. Take Lead Mine about 1 mile all the way to Millbrook Rd. Take a left at the Millbrook traffic light. Go about 1/2 mile to the Kingsmill Village subdivision. Turn right onto Hedgmoor at the Kindgmill sign. Go until Hedgmoor dead-ends at a T, and take a right onto Basil. Go 1 block and take a left onto Bayberry Lane. Look for the 4th house on the right, 2-story gray house with black shutters.

Directions to the pizza party:

The address is 122 Hillcrest Rd, Apt 3, in Raleigh (map).

From Durham via US 70:

Take US 70 to downtown Raleigh.(US 70 turns into Glenwood Avenue.) Follow Glenwood Avenue to Hillsborough St. Turn right on Hillsborough. Turn right onto Hillcrest Rd (should be after an IHop, but before the Republican party headquarters. The street sign is a little hidden). We're in a white house with large columns on the right. You can park on the street, or in the small lot in the back of the house.

From Chapel Hill and Durham via I-40:

Take I-40 E toward Raleigh. Follow the signs for the Wade Avenue Exit in Raleigh. Continue on Wade Ave past the I-440 interchange. Turn right at Faircloth St. Turn left at Hillsborough St. Turn left at Hillcrest Rd (the street is a little hard to find- it's after the Rep. Party Headquarters, but before the Ihop. It should be roughly across from the Velvet Cloak Inn. You can park on the street, or in the small lot in the back of the house.