By Anne Custer

The Vegetarian Resource Group was represented at the Vegetarian Festival in Richmond, Virginia this past weekend. The thirteenth-annual festival held in Bryant Park sparked quite a crowd. VRG interns Ivy Grob and Anne Custer held down the booth with long time volunteer Elsa Spencer, PhD. Our table was situated towards the entrance under a shady tree so we attracted a lot of visitors on the hot, sunny day.

We had the pleasure of speaking to various attendees, answering questions about our group and our resources and engaging in conversation about different topics such as gluten-free diets, vegan seafood, and scholarships we offer. Many visitors picked up a copy of our journal and signed up for our newsletter. We handed out coloring books to children, educating future generations about veganism and animal rights. It was a rewarding experience being able to talk with fellow vegans and vegetarians in different walks of life. One woman told us she was vegan until she went abroad and couldn’t find anything to eat. When she returned to America, she didn’t go back to eating vegan, but was now looking to transition back into veganism. We were able to direct her to our website for the resources we provide on eating vegan while traveling. (http://www.vrg.org/teen/#travel)

Intern Ivy and I had an awesome time at the festival not only talking to people, but indulging in delicious vegan food from local vendors. Ivy had lentil salad with white bean soup and a vanilla coffee cupcake for dessert while I ate a quinoa bowl with black beans, cabbage, and avocado from Goatocado and an Oreo cupcake! We also tried vegan clam chowder from a cooking demonstration that was perfectly seasoned and hearty. For more information on vegetarian restaurants in Richmond, visit: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/Virginia.php#c21.

If you would like to volunteer at VRG booths, contact Nina at [email protected]
If you would like to intern at VRG go to: http://www.vrg.org/student/index.php
If you would like to support VRG outreach, donate at: www.vrg.org/donate
To join VRG go to: http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php
If you are attending the Animal Rights Conference in Washington, DC July 31st- August 2nd , please stop by the Vegetarian Resource Group booth.