Summer 2025

Clearing The Path 

When Tate Hausman reached out to me this winter with a special request, I knew we had something meaningful ahead of us. His son Lincoln's grandfather Bob had one simple holiday wish: a family camping trip at the site of the former Flying Cloud. There was no place he'd rather be than returning to this special place that had shaped so many lives.

After clearing the administrative hurdles, I was fortunate to join the Hausman family for what became a beautiful demonstration of how "work is love made visible."

The Journey In

The entry to the site remains as challenging as ever, accessible only to large trucks without significant risk. The Hausmans courageously navigated the numerous dips and potential bottoming-out sections in their Toyota Sienna. While they made it through, Mike the Logger later reported that the cover for the oil pan had been sacrificed somewhere along the trail on their way out—a small price paid for this meaningful pilgrimage.

Three Generations, One Purpose

What struck me most about this visit was the beautiful level of intention present throughout our time together. The trip consisted primarily of clearing brush from the numerous trees downed by ice and wind storms over the past 24 months, along with sweeping out and tidying up the Round House.

Bob Hausman, who served as Flying Cloud Director from 1966-67, exemplified this intentionality perfectly. While clearing a path, he made sure it was wide enough for a counselor to walk side by side with a camper. As he explained, "It's about more than getting from A to B, it's about having the conversations." Even in this maintenance work, the educational philosophy as a Director shone through.

The family shared stories that brought the site's history to life, including tales of "The Great Leap Backwards" in 1968—led by Bob's brother—when the feeling was things had gotten "too high tech".  This change was primarily about getting rid of the noisy generator to pump water, but donkey also got the boot!

Learning from Experience

Lincoln shared valuable insights about the practical realities of camp operations that will inform our future planning. One detail that surprised me: a pile of brush as tall as my head will likely all be used in a single day. It's easy to underestimate such quantities when you haven't lived the camp experience.

He also showed me the circle where obsidian chips were historically found and turned into necklaces and other crafts—a tangible connection to the land's deeper history and the hands-on learning that defined Flying Cloud.

Former Executive Director Len Cadwallader also hiked in to join our efforts, adding another layer of institutional memory to our work.

Looking Forward: Damage Assessment and Future Plans

The winter storms left their mark on the outhouse infrastructure. Two KYBOs took hits from downed trees. The KYBO above the trail near the Meeting area sustained repairable damage. However, the Drumming KYBO's fate was sealed when a massive tree, downed by lightning, fell directly upon it. A new era will indeed bring a new KYBO.

As I looked ahead to programming returning to this clearing in the woods in 2026, I asked Bob about the ideal capacity. I was surprised to hear "40-50" as a perfectly manageable number of campers. While we'll likely start with about 32-36 maximum for the new program, it's encouraging to know we have room to grow.

The Road Ahead

We're targeting Memorial Day weekend 2026 for a work crew of 24-30 people to camp and prepare the site for the first sessions the F&W Base Camp program of 2026 summer season. This will likely  include constructing that new KYBO and addressing the various maintenance needs we identified during this visit as well as... clearing brush!

If you're interested in being part of this site preparation effort, please click here to fill out the survey to help us plan for the Memorial Day weekend work session.

This family visit reminded me that Farm & Wilderness's greatest strength has always been its people—the connections formed, the lessons learned, and the love for this special place that spans generations. 

About the Family Members: 

Bob Hausman: TL camper '53-56, TF 57-58, TL staff 59-64,  FC Director 65-66.

Rick Hausman: TL camper 55-59:  TF 1960;  Counselor Apprentice (CA)  at TL, 1961;  counselor at FC (under Brother Bob’s direction), 1965;  FC director, 1968-70; F&W Board Member in the 1970s and 80’s; [Editor of the Interim, ’69-70; helped establish Camp Seaforth, 1970;  Ninevah Foundation Board Member. 

Nate Hausman: TL 90-'91, FC camper '92-'95, FC counselor '99-'04, FC co-director '04-'06.

Tate Hausman: Went to camp as Dan Hausman: TL 86-91, TF 92, TL staff 94.

Lincoln  (Wolf) Hausman: TL '18-23, FC 21-23, TF 24-25

(There are more Hausmans, this is who made it on the trip!) 

A message from Alisha Carberry, Clerk, F&W / FWC Board of Trustees :  

Dear F&W Community,

I hope this message finds you well as we move into what promises to be an exciting 2025 at Farm & Wilderness.

It is with tremendous joy and excitement that I announce, on behalf of the Board of Trustees, the appointment of Jay Kullman as Executive Director of Farm & Wilderness and Farm & Wilderness Conservation.

Many of you already know Jay from his 17 years of dedicated service to our organization. He has worn many hats during his time with us—leading our farm and facilities development, spearheading conservation projects, and most recently serving as Interim Executive Director since November. Throughout all of these roles, Jay has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership, unwavering dedication to our mission, and a deep commitment to the values that make Farm & Wilderness special.

Jay truly lives our mission of joyful play, purposeful work, and rugged outdoor living. He has been a supportive colleague, a respected member of our broader community, and a friend to many. The Board considers ourselves incredibly fortunate to have him leading us forward.

Please join me in congratulating Jay and wishing him well as he steps into this important role. I'm confident that under his leadership, Farm & Wilderness will continue to be a place where young people can grow, discover themselves, and develop a deep connection to the natural world.

With gratitude and excitement for what lies ahead,

Alisha Carberry
Clerk, F&W / FWC Board of Trustees

"I am so grateful for the goodbye I received this past summer at Timberlake. It’s helping me through this transition. I had a chance to throw an epic final banquet, feel the energy of songs, contemplate deeply during silent meeting, and receive overwhelming appreciation from the community. I’m so glad I had such a great final summer at TL."

As part of our ongoing efforts to ensure Farm & Wilderness's long-term sustainability and keep summer camp tuition affordable the Board has decided to eliminate some key leadership positions including the Director of Camps role as a standalone position. Following discussions about potentially restructuring the Director of Camps role to combine it with Timberlake Director responsibilities, W has decided to pursue other opportunities and his last day at Farm & Wilderness was December 31, 2024.  W plans to do contracted work for F&W including onboarding new the new TL Director after the position is hired in February.  

W’s impact on Timberlake over the years has been profound. Farm and Wilderness hopes you will join us in celebrating W and sharing your messages of gratitude. Please share a message with W in the form at the bottom of this page . These messages will be collected and put together a special tribute package for W.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to Tulio at tulio@farmandwilderness.org or Jay at jay@farmandwilderness.org.  

W's Reflections on his time at Timberlake:

"You might be surprised to know my very first summer was in 2007 as an Arts counselor for Tupelo and Foxes cabin. I’ve been around so long my former campers’ former campers’ former campers’ have worked for me – making me a camp great great grandfather. I’ve held almost every role there is to hold at TL and worked under two directors before I took over in 2019. I’m proud of my work over the years, and I appreciate you indulging me as I share just a few: 

• Creating a more diverse Timberlake. My staff have consistently been around 50% or more staff of color and we have increased the number of non-binary and queer staff. I firmly believe that every camper deserves a champion, and I worked hard to find the staff to and nurture a camp culture to make that a reality; 

• Bringing best practices from the classroom to camp, creating firm routines and rituals across camp. It reduced behavioral issues, improved the morale and skill of my staff, and created more epic summers. We were better able to see more of each TL camper and help them create their own magic; 

• Working to tell the story of F&W in a way more folks could hear it through the creation of the first camp-based Instagram, our podcast, many YouTube videos, our TikTok, and countless fliers and posters. I was also a key writer in creating the current F&W mission and values.  

Through all of these accomplishments, I’ve consistently believed in the power of Timberlake to transform the lives of our campers. To create spaces for kids to believe anything is possible, to learn that everybody counts, to just get it done and achieve great things. Campers learn they have agency to make a dent in this world, to grow their sincerity more than their sarcasm, and that they are interdependent with the world around them. I used to say greatness await – it still does for our campers as they experience big work, big fun, and big feelings.