Bee Buzz from a Beachwood Beekeeper ccording to Greenpeace* The honeybee, responsible for 80 percent of pollination worldwide, is disappearing globally. If we lose bees, our way of life and our food system will be endangered. From this awareness, as well as from a deep amazement and gratitude for the honeybees, HoneyBeeLocal and HoneyBeeJewish have sprung. Founded by Beachwood resident Amalia Haas, these two companies were developed to help sustain our community’s natural environment and help the hive to thrive through honeybee advocacy and education. “Starting HoneyBeeLocal and HoneyBeeJewish is definitely the result of a personal and professional journey for me. My training is in music and Jewish education with a strong emphasis on nature,” Haas told us. “After working as Hillel director for about a decade, I expanded into general and Jewish environmental programs, and was very active in the Jewish gardening movement when it was first starting nationally.” When asked what motivated her to become a beekeeper, Haas mused, “When you become passionate about health and organic gardening, you cannot help but notice the forgotten pollinators. Hardly a plant on earth would bear fruit were it not visited by a bee.” “The devotion of the honeybees to their calling and the complexity of the hive inspire humility and amazement. Those girls are always hustling,” she says. “I have six children of my own, including a set of twins, but my bees are always working harder. They don’t stop!” A Honeybee Facts: Haas practices what she preaches a multitude of “data” from inside by being a treatment-free beekeepand outside the hive. n Bees collect nectar and process it er to help keep bees healthy and With a proven talent for creating into honey. produce the purest honey available. fun programs, Haas is often hired n Hives produce honey, pollen, Haas is packaging and selling to entertain at birthday parties. propolis, beeswax, royal jelly varietal, locust, apple, bamboo and “I dress up as Buzzy the bee, and and bee venom. (Haas views bring props to teach the kids about blueberry honey for the Jewish holthe hive as a “flying pharmacy” idays. She also sells gift baskets and different jobs in a beehive.” packed with health-inducing beeswax products. and maintaining Additionally, her possibilities. companies provide n Bees use honey hive-removal and for insulation swarm-collection against extreme services. She encourtemperatures as ages individuals to call well as for food. her office instead of n Honeybees don’t spraying the bees. hibernate. By Through education, vibrating in a Haas hopes to inspire cluster around a movement to plant their queen, native plants that are they keep their supportive of the pollihive a warm 80 nators in Beachwood. “I degrees. They would love to develop a raise the hive ‘beestravaganza,’ or festemperature to Amalia Haas and her son Ilan, 11, examine the bees and hon- tival where people can 90 degrees in learn about bees and January to start eycomb from their beehive. raising young bees for March flowers. n A colony has 1 queen, 95% workers (females with stingers) and 5% drones (males, without stingers). n Bee stings are life-threatening to 1% of humans, but may be beneficial to the rest of us. Bee-venom therapy is practiced widely abroad and in the U.S. for treatment of Arthritis, MS, colitis and auto-immune diseases. n Much like a cell in our bodies, a single bee cannot survive. A colony of bees is a super-organism, a highly organized social community continuously responding to “We generally don’t realize all the gifts the bees give us, including a majority of the food we eat every day,” Haas said. Bees are endangered because of their forage, or the food that’s available to them. When land is developed, habitats available to honeybees are diminished, and they fall prey to disease and malnutrition. “One of the best things we can do is plant a variety of flowers,” Haas said. “The more perennial plants we have on our property, the better. As a community, organic maintenance is the way to go since pesticides can easily kill off an entire hive in a day.” do fun arts and crafts projects right here in Beachwood.” Previously, Haas has been a mover in the Jewish organic-farming movement and co-founder of a kosher, pastured poultry company called The Green Taam. She is currently working towards her Master Organic Beekeeper certification. For more information or to purchase honey, please contact Amalia Haas at honeybeelocal@outlook.com, honeybeejewish@gmail.com or 330.552.8BEE (8233). * Greenpeace is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) charitable entity created to increase awareness of environmental issues. LEATHER FRAMES Now in Stock! CHOOSE FROM PHOTO FRAMES OR CUSTOM FRAMES FOR YOUR ARTWORK OR MIRROR Why settle for ordinary when you can have extraordinary? Our expert staff will help you select the perfect frame! 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