The 2015 American Cheese Society Conference was in Providence, Rhode Island this year (the 32nd annual conference). NECS almost always has a sponsor’s table , so we can meet cheese makers and retailers, attend sessions and participate in fun activities. If you haven’t been to one of these fabulous conferences, check out next year’s in Des Moines, Iowa and stop by our table to say
Pictures of Ricki’s Gardens
This summer Ricki was invited to be one of the featured gardens in the Franklin Land Trust’s 24th Annual Farm & Garden Tour. This was a great honor and Ricki worked hard to prepare for the event in the days preceding the tour. On the day itself, there were over 200 attendees! The description of her place on the Land Trust’s website reads: A one-of-a-kind
Ricki’s Amazing Bead Art
Ida, Angie, April, Sarah, Ricki, and Kathy Many folks don’t realize that our Cheese Queen is an artist (see previous article). She has worked with all kinds of media, but in the last few years, she has been making mosaics from stones, glass beads, jewelry, pieces of mirror and mardi gras beads. This winter, she has been holed up in her basement for days at
Pictures of Our Veteran’s Appreciation Day, 2014
Ricki Carroll (The Cheese Queen) We owe a great deal of our success as a business to the help of a VA program called the Compensated Work Therapy Workshop. All around the country, this program provides jobs for veterans and help for businesses like ours. In 2010, we had a rapid growth spurt in our business. This was great, but we didn’t know how long
PART 3 – The Cheese Queen’s Story: The Early 1980’s
Phenomenal Growth! This is the third in a comprehensive series about the history of New England Cheesemaking Supply Company. We hope you will enjoy reading about our challenges and our triumphs. If you haven’t read them already, check out Part 1 and Part 2. By 1981, making cheese was still a big part of Ricki and Bob’s lives. They acquired a Jersey cow, Nellie, while
Ricki’s Demo for High School Students
We have recently expanded our mission at New England Cheesemaking Supply Co: To inspire young people to learn the art of cheese making. It is, after all, an important “back to basics” skill and it makes an excellent science project. Ricki (the Cheese Queen) paid a visit recently to a local high school to give a brief presentation about making cheese. The Director of Special
Launching the Massachusetts Cheese Guild
Barbara Hanley, President of the Guild welcomed us warmly. We’re looking forward to getting to know her better. The word “guild” comes from medieval times when craftsmen and merchants formed associations to maintain standards and to protect themselves in the marketplace. There is an aspiration of political power with a guild (unlike a club), so they are usually state-wide (at least). There are currently
Pictures from the ACS 2013 Convention
Almost every year, for the last 30 years, since she helped found the American Cheese Society, Ricki has been attending the annual ACS convention. It’s held in a different part of the country (or Canada) each time and this one was located in Madison, Wisconsin (a repeat location to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the organization). Next year it will be in Sacramento, California,