Newspaper Page Text
Bringing home a
‘baby’ of my own
Inside: Relay for Life ahead Fri.-Sat. — page 3C
June 2,
2010
4 4T PR0MISE with aM
I my heart to give this
A special Cabbage Patch
Kid my love and care and in every
way possible be the best adop
tive parent in the whole world.”
With this pledge, Arthur Holden,
joined the Gary
family. I was
at the grand
opening for the
new Babyland
General
Hospital in
Cleveland
Mother's Day
weekend and
fell in love with
Arthur Holden.
Looking at
a table of the Lullaby edition of the
babies, my eyes kept going back
to Arthur. Most of the babies were
bald but Arthur Holden had a head
of bushy black hair and big green
eyes, just like me! I grabbed him
and was soon reciting the pledge
to make the adoption official.
Nurse Sue filled out the paper
work and after a few photos, we
joined the festivities at the grand
opening celebration. It was such
a fun day with collectors from
across the country in attendance.
Adopting one of the babies is
a real treat for adults and chil
dren alike. Visitors to the hospital
can also watch a “birth” in the
fun interactive gift shop area.
Collectors lined up around the
hospital to wait their turn to meet
with creator Xavier Roberts to
get their new baby autographed.
Meeting Xavier was a real treat.
He was gracious as he signed
the baby's bottom. It was the
first signing he has done in a
while and it made grand open
ing an even more special event.
Fans of the Appalachian style
babies waited at the new hospital
in Cleveland, a 70,000 square foot
facility with huge white columns out
front, the Saturday before Mother’s
Day with one or more “babies”
to get Roberts to autograph.
It was a festive day with thousands
of people on the grounds to celebrate
the opening of the new Babyland
General Hospital. Games and
activities for children, as well as free
snacks, were part of the celebration.
Roberts arrived in a vintage car
as part of a motorcade that featured
costumed characters. Dressed all
in black, including a black cow
boy hat, he waved to the crowd
as the car pulled up in front of the
new hospital. He hugged people
and shook hands as he made his
way to the podium out front.
Officials from White County
and Cleveland declared the day
as Xavier Roberts Day and
thanked the artist for all that he
has done for the community.
Since Roberts made his first
creation more than 30 years ago,
more than 120 million of the kids
have been adopted worldwide
and they continue to be popular
with children and adults alike.
It was in 1978 when Xavier
first opened the doors of his little
hospital in the mountain commu
nity of Cleveland. The new 70,000
square foot facility is situated on
650 acres of land and is much
larger than the first hospital.
Inside this Southern style
home, the fun and fantasy of
Cabbage Patch Kids comes to life.
Admission is free. Solid, eight-
foot, mahogany doors with beveled
glass are open wide to welcome
visitors into the exciting world of
Cabbage Patch Kids. Mountain
views are available from 72 win
dows from all sides of the house.
The new “Fathers' Waiting
Room” contains historical archives
showcasing some highly col
lectible Originals, independently
valued at $15,000 to $30,000 or
more. Polished floors lead up to
simple double doors, recreating a
sense of a former turn of the century
medical clinic. Nurseries are lined
with cribs filled with hand-sculpted
Preemies and Lullabye Babies. One-
of-a-kind displays include a spectac
ular Cabbage Patch under the Magic
Crystal Tree with real crystals and
geodes embedded in the “ground.”
This is the only place in the world
to witness the “live” delivery of
a Cabbage Patch Kid. Hundreds
of kids are playing throughout
the hospital in the Fantasy Forest
and Clubhouse tree house.
With almost
continued on page 2C
0 The Jackson Herald
friends
Jana Adams Mitcham,
Features Editor 706-367-8760
jana@mainstreetnews.com
Section C
Qi*mnlv Fc Vi The Veggie Patch
OllllUiy X 1 Coll at Bouchard Farms
BY JANA A. MITCHAM
N OW IN ITS second
year, The Veggie Patch
at Bouchard Farms is
close to home - just down the road
in Commerce.
That means the vegetables pro
duced there and put on the veg
etable stand for sale at the farm on
Nunn Road or sent to restaurants in
Atlanta or Athens travel less than
150 miles to a kitchen plate.
That’s a far cry from the norm
— according to the “Simply
Fresh” website for the Nunn Road
farm, the average vegetable travels
1.500 miles before it reaches the
consumer. Bouchard Farms — a
Certified Naturally Grown Farm
— wholesales to Destiny Organics
in Forrest Park, is a plant supplier
for Farmer D Organics of Atlanta,
is at the Athens Farmers Market
every Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon
and is open to the public from 9
a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through
Friday and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
on Saturdays.
The farm is now owned by
James L. Bouchard, who bought
the land from Mr. and Mrs. Ernest
Nunn, and said on the “Simply
Fresh” website that a 20-year mas
ter plan for the development of the
mixed-use property begins with
the “Veggie Patch.” Spanning 500
“To provide locally grown, vine-ripened produce for healthy living.”
Farm manager Scott Prospect is shown at the Veggie Patch at Bouchard Farms, Commerce. The
certified organic farm produces vegetables and herbs for local customers, as well as for restau
rants and organic suppliers near Atlanta. Above are shown some of the farm’s produce, including
peppers, squash, tomatoes and cilantro. Photos by Jana Mitcham
acres, the farm has 300 acres in mixed-
use and pasture/farmland.
VEGETABLES GALORE
Tomatoes, tomatoes and more toma
toes.
The farm produces some 39 (and
counting) types of tomatoes, both
hybrids and heirlooms, ranging from the
little cherries up to the larger and more
acidic Rutgers popular for canning. In
fact, the farm will offer “you pick”
for Rutgers when they are in-season,
around the end of June or early July.
“We are specializing in cherry toma
toes —purple, white, yellow and green,”
said farm manager Scott Prospect, who
relocated with his wife and young
daughter to the farm from Florida six
weeks ago and is one of eight staff
members. “We even want to do one
that’s a ‘garden peach,' and it actually
has a little frizziness to it.”
The Veggie Patch also produces yel
low squash, zucchini, a variety of pep
pers, cucumbers and herbs such as basil
and cilantro. Come July, the farm will
have summer vegetables, such as com,
okra, watermelon and beans.
“We have three different types of
beans — purple, cranberry and yellow
wax,” Prospect said. “This area has
fencing, but we do use an all-natural
deer repellent.”
Prospect has found no resistance to
the idea of organic farming from more
traditional farmers, although he admits
some are concerned about the cost.
“But all farming before World War II
was organic,” he said. “(The loss of
those farmers is) a loss of knowledge,
and we are trying to get that back.”
continued on page 2C
A plastic covering keeps weeds out and moisture in at
the gardens at the Veggie Patch at Bouchard Farms.
Plants were transplanted from the greenhouses to the
field about a month ago.
Growing Organic: A Tip
To organically keep pests
under control in the gar
den, mix one tablespoon
of vegetable oil or dish
soap with one gallon of
water. Spray the mixture
on garden plants. One
tablespoon of baking soda
added to either the oil
or soap will help prevent
plant disease.
During the winter, plants are started (above left) and grown to full-size (above right) or to seedlings to be transplanted come
spring and summer. Bouchard Farms off Nunn Road in Commerce has five hoop houses and one 1,800-square-foot green
house for production of vegetables and herbs.