A Precious Gift - Musings From A CoalCracker In The Kitchen

 

 Musings From A Coalcracker In The Kitchen

By Lori Fogg

The musings, below are all from a post from A CoalCracker In the Kitchen.  After her death, her blog was removed from the internet.  As I've worked to preserve her recipes (eventually I'll have a free pdf file you can download, containing all of the recipes from her blog) I've realized that it's important to save her words, not just her recipes.  

"My late husband, James, and I have been designated organ donors for a long time, but I’m not sure we really gave it much thought in our daily lives.

I hoped that he could still help someone when he passed January 24th even though his heart had caused other organ failure.

I got a letter yesterday from the organ recovery organization in Pittsburgh (PA) telling me he was able to donate skin and tissue that will help burn victims or others needing it and his corneas will help two people who were at risk of totally losing their vision.

Through the blinding tears for his loss, my heart embraces the knowledge part of him lives on . I hope somehow he knows it, too.

[Photo no longer available, I'll replace it when I find a copy]

In Loving Memory

James David Fogg

December 1962 – January 2021

Over 110,000 people across the nation are waiting for a life-saving transplant. One person can save the lives of as many as eight people. One individual can improve the lives of as many as 75 people through tissue donation."

be a hero.

CORE Center For Organ Recovery and Education

Find Your Local Organization

https://www.organdonor.gov/awareness/organizations/local-opo.html

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Index Of Coalcracker Recipes on This Blog
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2023/12/a-coalcraker-in-kitchen.html

From Lori's now archived blog:
What is a “Coalcracker” and what the heck are you doing in the kitchen?
“Coalcracker“: Affectionate term for a resident of Northeastern Pennsylvania, but particularly of the Anthracite (coal) Region (Scranton to the Lehigh Valley to Schuylkill County).

With the expansion of the mining and railroad industries. English, Welsh, Irish and German (the “Dutch” (Deutsch) in Pennsylvania Dutch) immigrants formed a large portion of the population, followed by Polish, Slovak, Ruthenian, Ukrainian, Hungarian, Italian, Russian and Lithuanian immigrants.

The influence of these immigrant populations is still strongly felt in the region, with various towns possessing pronounced ethnic characters and cuisine. Throw in some influence from the Pennsylvania Dutch of the Schuylkill County and Lehigh Valley areas and you have a sampling of Coal Region comfort foods!

The Coal Region is a historically important Anthracite (“hard coal”) coal-mining area in Northeastern Pennsylvania in the central Appalachian Mountains, comprising Lackawanna, Luzerne, Columbia, Carbon, Schuylkill, Northumberland, and the extreme northeast corner of Dauphin counties.