February 10, 1997

Nell and Paul Newman contribute $30,000 to Farm and Garden's Apprenticeship Program

By Jennifer McNulty

Food is a family matter for actor Paul Newman and his daughter, Nell, an Aptos resident whose organic pretzels and chocolate have made her name a household word, too.

Nell, founder of Newman's Own Organics, recently contributed $15,000 to a training program for organic farmers at the UCSC Farm and Garden. Her contribution matches a $15,000 grant from her father, who channels all of the profits from his successful Newman's Own line of salad dressings and pasta sauces to nonprofit organizations. Nell Newman and her business partner Peter Meehan also donate all after-tax profits to nonprofits, particularly organizations that support the environment.

"She was familiar with the program and challenged her father to match her $15,000 contribution--and he did," explains Ann Lindsey, coordinator of the Farm and Garden's Apprenticeship in Ecological Horticulture, a seven-month intensive training program for 40 apprentices that combines hands-on field work with lectures and classroom preparation.

The grant will fund salaries for assistant trainers in the apprenticeship program--a small number of graduate apprentices selected each year to stay on at the Farm and Garden after the course ends in October. The assistant trainers help operate the Farm and Garden during the winter months and serve as assistant instructors when the new class of apprentices arrives in April.

"This funding is critical to the success of the program, because the assistant trainers play a key role in the educational process," says Lindsey. "It also gives the trainers exposure to the full cycle of farm work, from soil preparation and propagation to cultivation and harvest. The grant will support what has become a key dimension of the apprenticeship program."

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