Dear Friends,
While the days are getting longer, it’s still very much winter here in Plymouth as we put this issue of the Interim to bed and send it out.
You can see the full Interim HERE
In this issue of the Interim, we’ve included stories of growth, of creativity, and resilience. We share an inside look at how camp staff innovated and persevered to give campers engaging, enriching summer experiences in 2021, from hiking to harvesting wild materials to managing invasive species. It was my first camp season at F&W, and it was beautiful, humbling, overwhelming, and inspiring all at once!
You’ll meet Helen Thorgalsen and Bonnie Clement, F&W grandparents, who share why they are committed to ensuring their granddaughter Chloe has her own camp experience. You’ll meet Wyldon Fishman, a former IB, Tamarack Farm, and Family Camp participant who returned ten years ago as an employee and parent. You’ll meet the new and improved Tamarack Farm, which will offer skill-building and project-based immersive experiences to teen campers in 2022!
I am excited for you to read about our conservation efforts and how F&W and our affiliated conservation organization,Nineveh Foundation, protect and care for our special patch of Vermont and how our campers enjoyed our land and lakes this summer. You will also read about adventures such as a backflip off the rope swing, making a spoon, and a goat solo in “Profile of a TL’er.
We start 2022 with a refreshed mission ...
Joyful play. Purposeful work. Rugged Outdoor Living.
Our camps and conservation efforts teach timeless skills and kindle the spirit within.
And we start 2022 with values that speak to who we are and strive to be AND the impact we want to make as an organization. As you read, you’ll learn about our goals for building partnerships with new organizations (and strengthening our current partnerships) to build a more inclusive camp community that represents the socio-economic, racial and ethnic diversity in our country. You’ll learn more about our plans to attract and prepare a committed and dynamic team of camp staff for 2022, and how you can get involved in growing the F&W family.
The generosity of our community continues to fuel our efforts. A giant thank you to all who gave to the annual fund in 2021, and I hope you see the impact of your gifts in all we do.
I’ll leave you with this blessing by Bridit Anna McNeill, which a friend shared with me this morning.
May the stories of the old ones, the ancient ones, the land and the trees, the plants and the earth be whispered to you.
May you warm your toes by the hearth side as the land starts to speak in the cold and old icy voice of winter, the voice that appears when we pass the mid winter mark; the voice that talks in stories of growth, of becoming, of new slates and brand new mossy gateways.
May you be comforted by the fire that can be lit inside your body, by the light you hold inside, the light of love, forgiveness and passion.
Rest well dear one, warm your bones and listen in the silence, in the cold, for the rustling of truth telling that comes from the earth and the air, the rustling of the newness that springs from the compost of the old.
In peace,
Frances McLaughlin
Executive Director