Using All The Parts.

My Mennonite grandmother didn't waste a thing. She kept a milk carton under the sink to collect kitchen scraps and then composted them in her nearly one acre garden where she grew enough vegetables and fruit to stock two full freezers for the winter and feed her family. I grew up turning out lights, not running water, using the least amount of toilet paper possible, wearing hand-me-downs, sewing on buttons and mending sleeves, cleaning my plate, and inadvertently, making a smaller impact on the environment.

But the Mennonite and Amish, farmers since their formation in the 16th century, have always been low-impact members of society. Now their green ways will be encouraged by a grant to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture which is aimed at promoting special and organic crops. Kentucky has a large Anabaptist community and the grant in some ways recognizes Mennonite and Amish agricultural contributions.

They were green when green wasn't cool. Finally environmentalists and government may be catching up.