Weekend events just plain cheesy

Published 10:06 am Sunday, June 26, 2011

Sarah “The Cheese Lady” Kaufmann, a nationally recognized cheese sculptor, will present cheese sculpting demonstrations and kids’ activities at the Martin’s Super Market in Stevensville. Photo submitted

The newly opened Martin’s Super Market at 5637 Cleveland Ave. in Stevensville will host a three-day series of cheese-carving events on June 24, 25 and 26 as part of the store’s grand opening celebration. All cheese-carving events will be held in the store’s deli area.

Sarah “The Cheese Lady” Kaufmann, an artist specializing in sculpting, will kick off the fun today.

Kaufmann is a nationally recognized cheese sculptor. She received a degree in commercial art in Madison, Wis. and worked for the Wisconsin dairy industry for 16 years. She also served as manager of creative services for Jungle Jim’s International Market, a nationally renowned specialty food market, in Fairfield, Ohio.

Since 1996, “The Cheese Lady” has received hundreds of commissions for her cheese creations, which have appeared in print and on radio, television newscasts, talk shows, food shows and sportscasts.

Beginning at 1 p.m., Kaufmann will host a one-hour cheese carving demonstration on the “Mammoth, a 300-pound wheel of Wisconsin Cheddar Cheese.”

At 2 p.m. she’ll begin the three-day task of carving the mammoth with a theme of “Summertime Fun at Lake Michigan.” The carving will reflect images like beaches, cookouts and lighthouses, along with general summer activities that are favorites in the area. Kaufmann will continue carving the Mammoth from 9 to 11 a.m. on both Saturday, June 25 and Sunday, June 26.

One-hour kids’ carving classes will take place on both Saturday and Sunday, beginning at noon each day.  Advance reservations are required. Parents of children age 6 to 12 can sign up now until class times at the store’s customer service office. A total of eight class sessions are available. Cost is $3.99 per child payable in advance, and includes a cheese chunk for carving, a reserved class seat, access to kid-safe carving tools and personal instruction on cheese-carving techniques from Kaufmann.

More information on Kaufmann is available at www.sarahcheeselady.com.