AMHERST – If it isn’t down to a science, it’s close.
The employees of Everything in a Jar+ stood on one side of a table lined with ingredients. One scoop of this, a teaspoon of that.
“I think it’s great, “ said Greg Seymour. The client of CANSA was commenting on the job – his first. Since the award-winning enterprise began, he’s added Esso employee to his resume, and he also volunteers with the YMCA service club.
Award-winning because Everything in a Jar+, which is a catchy name for dry ingredients and a recipe sold in a jar, is one of nine (they came second) regional winners of the Nova Scotia Lieutenant Governor’s Persons with Disabilities Employer Partnership Award. The honour will be officially bestowed next month in Halifax.
The small group gathers once a week – twice at peak times – in the basement of Highland AMF Church on Church Street. They assemble the jars of ingredients by hand, offering products such as cookies and biscuits, brownies and ‘breakfast cake’.
Val Currier the CANSA employee who co-ordinates the project, said they’ve had repeat orders from Gables Lodge, and are a regular fixture at the Farmers’ Market on Fridays.
“I’ve even bought a few myself,” said Gerald Cliffe, one of the aproned workers.
The seed of the idea came from a magazine article found by Cliffe’s colleague, Bernice Vance. The article was the source of some of the recipes the group’s using. Others were found online.
The business has a Facebook page.
“I created it at least a month and a half ago,” said Crystal Stiles, a CANSA client. She said orders have come through the social media page.
Currier said they found out about the award last week. Tickets to the dinner are expensive, but she wants everyone to attend.
“We’ll make it happen,” she said.
esparling@amherstdaily.com
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