Today at work, I noticed a jar of Trader Joe’s sauerkraut
someone had in the refrigerator. The jar was $4 or $5. In my freezer is a quart
of sauerkraut that I paid only $3 for and which was made with so much love,
history, cultural knowledge, family, and dedication that it’s actually
priceless. There are men and women around Texas who are going above and beyond
to not just maintain, but actively pass on Texas Czech food traditions….
farmers, bakers, sausage makers, picnic coordinators, and other heroes. My
second cousin, Susan Netardus, is one of these people. Susan gives six weeks of
every summer over to fermenting sauerkraut at her house, so that it can be
served to at least 600 parishioners and visitors at St. Matthew’s Catholic
Church’s Czech Day (always the third Sunday in July.) The church is in
Jourdanton and Susan is in her second term as mayor of the town of a little
more than 4,000 people… mayor of the town she was born in in 1964. The majority
of attendees are actually from…
family + history + food = me