Jin Dalsin has always considered herself as an advocate for those without a voice. While Jin had previously spent much time and passion in the field of animal rights, it was soon after her transition into veganism in which she wanted to find new connections. In her search to meet like minded individuals, Jin came across CAA several months ago when she was searching for groups using the Meet-Up social website. Here she became invovled with events such as the Summer Camping Trip and Vegan After Darks.

It was during CAA Meet-Up events when Jin met Dee Hanson. Jin and Dee soon became friends and were both interested in taking on some volunteer roles with CAA. Jin and Dee mutually decided that taking on a volunteer role would be much more enjoyable and much less stressful if they worked together.

Jin enjoys spending her free time with her pug, socializing at events, cooking, reading and is possibly considering taking up snowshoeing this winter!

Dust off your Tofurky basters and fire up that oven because CAA's annual Vegan Thanksgiving Potluck is less than one month away! This years potluck will be held at Matthews Park on Saturday, November 20th from 3:30PM-6:30PM. We encourage you all to exercise your amazing cooking and/or baking talents and come with dish in hand. If you truly doubt your skills, no worries, just bring along a non-alcoholic (vegan) beverage to share.

Entertainment will be a buzz with our raffle (tickets are $1 each) and spoken word. All in attendance are welcome to share a story, poem, song or any other form of spoken word which captivates the thankful essence of this holiday.

If you are interested in bringing a dish, please contact Angela (this way we can keep track and make sure we do not end up with 100 Vegan Pumpkin Pies…although as a fan of pumpkin pie, I would not be all that disappointed).

If you are unsure what to bring, there are plenty of helpful vegan cooking sites out there that offer fantastic recipes. Here are just a few to mention:

• VegWeb
• VegKitchen
• NYTimes Recipes
• Vegan Bits
• Mercy For Animals

Should you have any further questions regarding the event, volunteering or what have you, contact Danielle. We look forward to seeing you all there!

We are at our halfway point for VegMonth, with plenty of activities yet to come. So far we have had our Kick-Off event, a Sanctuary Tour, a Vegan After Dark, a Cooking Class and our Speaker event with Isa Chandra Moskowitz! Check out our CAA Pictures to see all the fun that was had.

If you have not signed up to take the pledge, you still have time and can pledge for one or two weeks yet. If you have signed the pledge, make sure you come to one of our awesome events to pick up your pledge card. Events taking place next week include:

• Dine-out at Evergreen on Sunday the 17th at 7PM: Evergreen serves a wide variety of Chinese dishes, including Cantonese, Taiwanese, and Hakka specialties. They have a LOT of vegetarian and vegan options, including many different mock meats, which are prepared using a separate cutting board and wok.
• Religious Panel at Harriet Church on Thursday the 21st at 7PM: This panel will focus on the connection between Judaism and animal rights.
• Vegan After Dark at Thom Pham's Wondrous Azian Kitchen on Friday the 22nd at 8PM: Come get your wok on at Thom Pham's Wondrous Azian Kitchen! Enjoy a cool drink or a sizzling platter of mock duck straight from Thom Pham's famous kitchen!
• See all VegMonth 2010 events

At 6pm on Friday, volunteers started arriving at University Baptist Church to set up for the VegMonth kick-off, the World of Veg Tasting Event. By 7pm, the food was out and the first attendees began trickling in. The dishes included breakfast biscuits, curried chickpeas with brown rice, Thai basil eggplant over jasmine rice, two varieties of sushi, spanikopita, missing egg salad, strawberry tofool, chorizo-y-migas, naan, falafels with hummus and cinnamon rolls.

Over 50 people were in attendance and everyone was raving about the unique and delicious dishes being served. Even though the food disappeared within the hour, people hung around for the welcoming atmosphere and the good conversation.

Money raised from this event will go towards our our Isa Chandra Moskowitz speaking event on Wednesday, October 13th. Isa, a renowned vegan chef and cookbook author, will be presenting and signing books afterwards. The event starts at 7:30pm and is located at the Coffman Memorial Theater.

Check out the pictures and recipes from the 2010 VegMonth Kick-Off Event!

Are you looking for a great way to help out animals? Have you heard about our Volunteer Staff positions? CAA Volunteer Staff play an essential role in making a real difference for animals with one of Minnesota's most active and exciting animal advocacy non-profits. Volunteer Staff members are considered part of our staff and as such are entrusted with coordinating a variety of important projects, programs, and events.

Volunteer Staff members must be reliable, responsible, and flexible. You will gain experience and develop a variety of skills, including leadership and organizing, and will receive hands-on training from experienced activists. We ask that all staff members commit to a set of regular hours for the duration of the position.

Joining our Volunteer Staff is a great way to learn important skills, build your resume, and be a part of a compassionate community, and have a lot of fun, all while working for a cause that you believe in. All Volunteer Staff positions are unpaid.

We are looking for a variety of positions, but especially three fundraising positions: a Foundation Coordinator, a Fundraising Coordinator, and a Fundraising Communications Coordinator. All of the positions will advance the mission of advocating for farm animals and will give you the opportunity to learn communication and marketing skills. Please apply today.

If you've participated in one of our many leafleting events, you've probably met Kimisha Collins. Growing up, Kimisha has always been an advocate for the rights of others. In 2008 she became interested in animal rights. By 2009 Kimisha adopted a vegan diet and was looking for more ways to get active within the movement. Dylan Mulenberg, an active CAA volunteer, told her about CAA. Kimisha has been active with CAA in many areas but most recently she has become the Leafleting Co-Coordinator. Kimisha enjoys volunteering with CAA for many reasons, "most of all though, I love to know that I am making a positive impact in something I am so passionate about."

In her down time, Kimisha likes to spend time with friends and family, read, try out new recipes, bike, explore the great outdoors, play instruments, and sing. Kimisha is also an active volunteer with the organization Feed My Starving Children.

Make sure to say hello to Kimisha at the next leafleting event or CAA gathering!