Hilltown Families 
GIVEAWAY: Gift Basket from the Old Creamery Co-Op
Old Creamery Co-Op Gift Basket Giveaway!
Enter for a chance to win a gift basket from the Old Creamery Co-Op in Cummington, MA (valued at $150). A great gift for yourself, or someone you love. Deadline to enter to win, Dec. 24th by 12noon.
This fall the Hilltowns became home to another community co-operative grocery store in Western MA: The Old Creamery Co-Op in Cummington, MA!
To celebrate this new beginning, Hilltown Families and the Old Creamery Co-op have partnered up to offer one of our readers a gift basket (valued at $150), abundant with a collection that is representative of what you will find when you visit this Hilltown gem! Details on how you can enter for a chance to win are below!
VISION OF THE OLD CREAMERY
The Old Creamery is a small country store cultivating a big vision: “…to make the world a more just, loving, and environmentally sustainable place, starting in our own neighborhood, through the vehicle of a vibrant, community-oriented retail store.” Alice Cozzolino and Amy Pulley purchased the Old Creamery in 2000 and have since helped transform it into a vibrant community hub in the heart of the Hilltowns, transitioning to a community owned co-op last month!
Alice and Karen Doherty, the co-op’s new general manager, have put together a list of great gifts you can find at the Old Creamery Co-op, gifts that reflect the co-op’s values & vision, some of which will be found in our Gift Basket Giveaway:
List of 20 Gifts You Can Find at the Old Creamery Co-op
- Two mugs from our crafts gallery and a bag of locally roasted Indigo coffee.
- Vermont-made wooden toys from sustainably harvested timber.
- Tessier’s maple syrup, in a variety of sizes. The quintessential New England gift!
- The book World Enough and Time by local author Christian McEwen.
- Les Costes Extra Virgin Olive Oil, the richest-flavored, most delicate, buttery olive oil I have ever tasted. For an extraordinary gift, pair it with Eiswein Vinegar with Quince from Germany, unique among the vinegars I’ve tasted.
- Nitty Gritty Grain Co. of Vermont bags of regionally grown cornmeal, grains, and flour.
- Lotus Foods heirloom rices, supporting farmers from many countries in their efforts to grow delicious and nutritious heirloom varieties using environmentally sustainable growing methods.
- Sap House Meadery’s assorted flavors of meads in exquisitely beautiful bottles. I enjoy the aroma as much as the flavor.
- Bug Hill Farm Black Currant Cordial to drizzle on ice cream, to mix into seltzer, or flavoring in a cooking sauce.
- Faber Castell environmentally sustainable beeswax crayons and colored pencils.
- One of many really cool, well-engineered kitchen tools.
- Assorted chocolates from all over the world; many are organic and fair trade. Put a selection together in a small basket.
- A colorful African Market Basket from Ghana.
- Beautiful bamboo kitchen towels and sustainably produced bamboo wooden kitchen spoons and spatulas.
- A book about canning, canning jars, labels, and a canning funnel.
- Wise Ways locally made herbal medicines, and skin-care and personal-care products with a book on medicinal herbs.
- Locally made Ooma Tesoro’s marinara sauce, and other Mediterranean condiments.
- Maggie’s socks, from a regionally owned company.
- A member-owner share in The Old Creamery Co-op.
- And the very last of the old-style Old Creamery T-shirts, sweatshirts, or baby jumpers.
Alice also suggests that folks think about giving nontraditionally this holiday season too! “Give the precious gift of your time,” she suggests. “Offer to accompany your friend/family member on walks in the woods, cook a meal for someone you love, or offer to teach something you know, like knitting, cooking, bicycle maintenance, or furniture repair. Take the time to write a card (make your own or buy one of our many cards by local artists). Invite your gift-recipient to accompany you to one of our many local arts venues (theater, music, dance) or to your favorite restaurant.”
The Old Creamery Co-Op is located on Route 9 in Cummington (445 Berkshire Trail Road). As you approach the Old Creamery’s white turn-of-the-twentieth-century building the first thing you notice is the sizable statue of a cow on the front roof overlooking Route 9. The cow connects us with our roots. In 1886 this building housed the Cummington Cooperative Creamery, the co-op of local dairy farmers. These co-op members brought fresh cream from their farms to be churned into butter here. At its most active, 145 dairies produced 20,000 pounds of butter per month. Find out more at www.oldcreamery.coop.
HOW TO WIN
We’re putting together a BUCKET LIST of things to do and places to see in Western MA with the family this winter, post-holidays (January-March). Recommend your favorite attraction, must see or must do family winter activity in Western MA, and be entered to win a gift basket from the Old Creamery Co-Op (valued at $150), filled with gift quality items and artisanal & local foods you can find at the co-op, including several from the list above. To enter to win simply:
- POST YOUR RECOMMENDATION AS OUTLINED ABOVE IN THE FIELDS BELOW (one entry per household) and be sure to tell us your
- FULL NAME (first/last) and where you
- LIVE (TOWN/STATE) must include your town to be eligible.
- ACCURATE EMAIL (we never share your email address).
- CONSIDER SHARING ON FACEBOOK by selecting the Facebook icon below.
- We’ll randomly draw a winner and will share the results below.
IT’S THAT SIMPLE! — Deadline is Monday, Dec. 24, 2012 at 12noon (EST).
Congratulations to:
Dory has won a gift basket from the Old Creamery Co-Op (valued at $150), filled with gift quality items and artisanal & local foods you can find at the co-op, and should email us at hilltownfamilies@gmail.com for details on how to claim her basket.
Thank you to everyone who participated by making a recommendation for our Bucket List of Winter Activities in Western MA for Families!
Thanks to the advice of reader here, we’re looking forward to renting a cabin at Mohawk Trail State Forest. Amy Meltzer, Northampton
The things I most enjoy, riding around Florence and Northampton to view the Holiday lights, going to Look Park, seeing the lights and visiting the Garden House to see the trains; going ice skating on Ashfield Lake and DAR; going sledding on the Ashfield Golf Course. My family and I live in Ashfield, MA
I would love to someday see the trains and little miniature village. Thanks for the great giveaway. Merry Christmas and God Bless.
Ice skating at UMass Mullins Center, snow shoeing to the Chocolate Pots at Northfield Mt, and pond hockey and sledding wherever we can!
(amherst, ma)
My 3 and 5 yr old daughters and I LOVE to warm up inside the Smith College greenhouses! The bulb show in March is refreshing and vibrant.Its fun to be in the humid greenhouses while its a winter wonderland outside.
Live in Goshen MA: check out our library, all welcome; visit DAR for trails and roads to explore, snowshoe and cross-country ski; everyone who can walk can snowshoe! Make snow cream: mix 5-6 c. fresh fluffy snow with cream and maple syrup, add vanilla, stir well–and enjoy!! Enjoy what only winter can offer, put a smile on your face, and spring will come sooner.
Holyoke has done a great job making over Community Field. They’re supposed to have ice skating and hot chocolate in the winter. Check the parks and rec. site for details.
Christa F-Holyoke
Lene Mc Lean said,
December 21, 2012
January 5, 6:00-9:00 P.M. Old Country Road “Old Time Bluegrass” at The Blackburn Inn, Worthington, MA.
If you have dogs, or just like them, walking around the unofficial “dog park” in Northampton is great any time of year. Well-trained pooches can go off-leash, and it’s a great way for humans and dogs alike to get out of the house & get some exercise. Enter by the community gardens off Burts Pit Rd & follow the path through the woods. I’m in Greenfield.
Always a perfect spot to go sledding behind C T Plunkett Elementary School in Adams. A trip up to Greylock Glenn in town and hike and explore while there.
The Springfield Museums always have a family friendly exhibit!
Be sure to visit the Peace Pagoda at 100 Cave Hill Road in Leverett. The Pagoda itself is pretty amazing and so is the view to the south.
Local library has some great events, in Monson, MA a science club on Thursday afternoon once a month. Lego club, book club and many more. http://monsonlibrary.com/ look under events and activities
Cross country ski at Stump Sprouts. Hot chocolate at Mocha Maya’s. Ice skate or broom hockey! Bake a batch of cowboy cookies and cozy down for an indoor snow day with a good book or a movie. Invite friends for pancakes on Sunday. Snowshoe the neighborhood on a snow day. All fun things we do in winter! –Dory Pelletier, Belchertown, MA
The banks of the Westfield River when the ice begins to break up. It’s so awesome to see the different kinds of ice layered in massive chunks stranded on the banks. (Deanna Scarfe, West Chesterfield)
The Syr Arena is one of my families favorite places to go in the winter. They have ice skating sessions open to the public and very affordable. And you can bring your own skates or rent some there. It is located in Forest Park in Springfield, the same place as Bright Nights. I live in East Longmeadow, Ma
The Syr Arena is one of my families favorite places to go in the winter. They have ice skating sessions open to the public and very affordable. And you can bring your own skates or rent some there. It is located in Forest Park in Springfield, the same place as Bright Nights.
Oops forgot to say In live in Greenfield/Bonnie Beth Pierce/Love to snowshoe at Northfield Mtn.
Snowshoeing at Northfield Mtn.
Helene Leue and family of Ashfield, Ma likes to go and see the flowers at Smith College’s Botanical gardens.
Visit the Windsor Library – there are always new books. I can’t keep up with the Librarian’s wonderful choices! (Windsor, MA)
Meltdown Family Music and Book Bash!
Multiple stages of bands, authors, puppet shows, plus a circus, bounce house and so much more. Best of all: FREE admission!
https://www.facebook.com/rivermeltdown
Looks like I forgot to mention I live in Northampton – oops!
Fill up a thermos with hot soup and go cross country skiing at Notchview with the family.
The brights nights in Springfield have ice skating and many 150,000 lights open until Jan. 5th. it is a must see.(I’m from Chester MA). We are going on Christmas eve.
There are so many great winter activities in western Mass to choose from! Here a few of my favorites: Indoor: escaping to Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory and sampling first run of the year maple syrup at a sugar shack. Outdoor: hiking at Mt Tom or cross-country skiing a trail in the woods. (I live in Holyoke, MA.)
I live in Plainfield and love to visit the Great Falls Discovery Center in Turners Falls. Here you can learn about the Connecticut River Watershed’s rich natural, cultural and industrial history. See more at their website: greatfallsma.org.
Find any snowmobile trail and follow it! (Regardless of whether or not you have a snowmobile.
Go see a frozen waterfall. Check out your favorite summer spot and see all the cool ice formations.
http://www.newenglandwaterfalls.com/massachusetts.php
Maxine Oland- Belchertown
Walking from our house (downtown Northampton) to the Smith Greenhouse and then going to share a pot of tea at a coffee shop.
A trip to Yankee Candle never gets old, especially for young kids. We go about once a month in the winter. We walk around the whole place (great for tiring out toddlers), smell candles, and visit Santa’s workshop. In Santa’s workshop they have a train table for kids to play at and it’s always a big hit with our two little ones. (Kristen Estelle, Goshen, MA)
Come shopping in Shelburne Falls. Holiday lights strung across Bridge street. Galleries with Local crafts, Walk along the Bridge of Flowers, Have Lunch or Dinner in one of the fine restaurants.
Sledding at the Worthington golf course hill — and after that if you’re still ready for more winter fun — across the street is ice skating on the pond – maybe a pick up ice hockey game for little ones … Being a thermos of hot cocoa to keep toasty !
( hinsdale MA)
We like to cross country ski at Notchview in Windsor, MA. It is a great family activity and good for working off those unwanted Holiday pounds! We live in Cummington.
We live in Windsor, Massachusetts, and we love to go to MassMoCA, especially with our two sons. You can always count on seeing at least one thing that is 1) beautiful, 2) thought-provoking, 3) fascinating, 4) inspiring, 5) hysterically funny, and 6) gross. The sixth is always the boys’ favorite. 😛
We love cross-country skiing at Stump Sprouts in West Hawley or just going for a local walk in the woods with the dogs.
Jane Riley
Williamsburg, MA
Leslie is from the town of Chesterfield, MA
Walk the Chesterfield Gorge; walk from your home to the next town or two; ski on a full-moon.
Berkshire East Ski area in Charlamont MA has great deals for families and young ones, very safe and fun, with many levels of skiing available. Ski programs from Deerfield, Williamsburg, the Center School and lots of others have great winter sessions there! Night skiing, almost never a line, fun and affordable!
Attending a UMASS hockey or basketball game is cheap and fun! Also- stopping by the Yankee Candle Flagship store down the street is always a good time with PLENTY to do, see and buy!
– From Duxbury, MA
Oops I forgot to include my town ……South Hadley, MA.
Catching a Springfield Falcons game or a Springfield Armor game at the Mass Mutual Center is always a fun family outing.
Saturday varsity hockey games at Amherst College. Free, fast, fun entertainment. Start at 3 pm. End in time for dinner and bedtime.
Snowshoeing anywhere in the Hilltowns! The beauty of the woods in the winter is something everyone should experience!
Most definitely Magic Wings, ESPECIALLY in the winter. The warm, tropical, climate and atmosphere will make you feel oh-so-much better on cold winter days. It’s like a butterfly fairy-land, complete with quail running around underfoot, reptiles to gawk and wonder at, and incredible vegetation to admire.
Jennifer Page, Amherst, MA
A tranquil, fine for beginners and old-hat’s alike, and free family snowshoe trek is at Savoy Mountain State Forest. It is really lovely.
Carrie Healy
Shelburne, MA
If anyone from out of town visits us from February through April, a trip to a local Sugar Shack for Sunday brunch is a must! Other winter fun time staples OHITH (out here in the hills) is anything played in the snow and extra sets of snow pants, boots, hats, and mittens are an absolute necessity.
Kara Kitchen
Plainfield, MA
Cross-country ski at Notchview in Windsor, go sledding at JFK, and in late winter, have breakfast at a maple sugar shack in the hilltowns.
We head out for sledding at Hospital Hill in Northampton. We also can’t wait to check out movie noir in Easthampton this year. I have heard it is excellent food and the movies are free with membership.
I know it doesn’t count for Jan-Mar. but we stop by the Creamery every year( after getting out tree at Justamere Tree Farm in Worthington) for a wonderful lunch and I sneak around for the best stocking stuffers ever.
Jaimee, Westampton, MA
Look park in a definate stop in the winter. I also love lunch at the Creamery with friends. They make a fantastic Mac and Cheese. umm Also you can pick up stuff for a picnic and sit buy the river on a nice day and just listen. I do this often my self when i get to the hilltowns.
Catherine Salisbury Plainville, Ma
Sledding at Look Park, behind JFK, Hospital Hill, or on the dike off Pomeroy Terrace!
Northampton
Sledding at Look Park, behind JFK, Hospital Hill, or on the dike off Pomeroy Terrace!
Visit the Holyoke Children’s Museum on those days when it is too cold to play outside! Shannon Dillard, Holyoke MA
Hi, I’m from Shelburne, Ma. I have 4 must do activities. 1. Pot Hole Pictures in the Shelburne Town Hall, Loony Tunes air for a Friday and Saturday night during the winter. 2. Shelburne Falls Bowling Alley, candle stick pins, and you can bring your own pizza. 3. Northfield Mountain Cross Country Ski Area, rentail equipment available and lessons, it is awesome. 4. Greenfield Ice Rink, public skate, it is a must that my kids learn to skate, that’s what makes us New Englanders!
Make a batch of Hot Cocoa to go, pack some snacks & sleds and head to the closest hill with a group of friends for a sledding party!
Hi, Lorena added ~ I am from Colrain, MA. I entered it in the form, but it didn’t show up.
My reccomentatios for a winter activity would be bright nights and visting Look park for the train display/ cookies and cocoa.
A family could visit Windy Hill Farm Sugar House, Sam Hill Road in Worthington. Go sledding at Look Park in Leeds, or at Hospital Hill in Northampton. ( provided there is snow! )
If you aren’t a member of one of the best spots in the Berkshires- you are missing out! We join the Berkshire Museum for $75.00 as a family and Grandma and Grandpa can bring our grandchildren there all year for free. We have 6 grandchildren and they love the aquarium, the digging for bones, natural history, Native American dress-up, vacation plays or feeding times for fish, discounts on all things charged and the gift shop.
As another benefit you will be given a list of hundreds of museums across the country to enter free with this membership- such as NY museums, the Boston science center and SO many other gfreat things. Join- support the area and take advantage of SO much.
Pack up your cross-country skis AND your ice skates and head to the DAR State Forest in Goshen. Once you’re there you can judge the conditions and see which activity suits the day. Sometimes we do both!
Plus, no fee in the wintertime!
Hi, I don’t know if this counts as an attraction. I would recommend stargazing together on a blanket, or a trampoline in a field or fairground. Or, a snowshoe hike from one friend’s to another with a hearty sup to follow. But, if it has to be an official kind of place – I would recommend a family trip to The Shelburne Falls Art Garden…Make Art together!!!
or Stump Sprouts Ski Touring Center in Hawley!!! You can get your own tree while you are at it. Suzanne and Lloyd are salt-of-the-earth and stellar folk.
Visit the trains at Look Park! Meet Santa, look at the miniature village, and ride the train around the park to see the holidays lights. (Alyssa Pratt, Easthampton MA)