Summer camps and volunteer work parties have filled Willow-Witt Ranch with vibrant community and nature-loving energy! These programs are a wonderful way to connect kids and adults in the Rogue Valley to the magic of the Ranch.

Nature Day Camps

Nature Day Camps have been a blast so far! Twice a week, campers participate in a “Tasting Table,” led by Lanita Witt. The kids sample veggies grown at Willow-Witt Ranch like kale, basil and tatsoi. Tasting veggies straight from the garden is a fun and delicious way to make connections between food and where it comes from.
 
Details:

• 1 week sessions
• June 21 through August 27
• 9am – 3:30pm, Monday – Friday
• Childcare offered until 5:30pm
• Turtles (ages 6-8)
• Owls (ages 9-12)
• $320 per camper per week. Full and partial scholarships available.
• Campers will receive a free box of organic produce each week.
• Transportation provided via charter bus from Medford, Talent, and Ashland up to Willow-Witt Ranch.

Week 4 of 10 begins on Monday, July 12. Don’t miss out on adventures at Willow-Witt Ranch – sign up today!

Get more information.

Upland Stewardship Corps

Willow-Witt Ranch work parties: Thursdays @ 10am
Vesper Meadow work parties: Saturdays @ 9am

The Upland Stewards who have helped us this summer so far are rocking it!

In just a few weeks, we have removed several hundred pounds of invasive Flag Iris from the turtle pond and planted more than 100 willow starts in the wetland streams. We are so grateful for our volunteers’ enthusiasm, company and work.

Volunteers can participate in weekly events or as many times as they are able. Everyone is welcome!

Sign up for info about future work parties.

Thank you to our
AmeriCorps member Laurel!

The Crest is saying goodbye to our wonderful AmeriCorps member, Laurel Cheever at the end of July. Eleven months have flown by.

The Crest has grown so much this year thanks to her hard work. She fearlessly spearheaded Outdoor School in a crazy COVID year and established the  restoration volunteer program that has brought so many wonderful community members to Willow-Witt Ranch.

She is staying on part-time with The Crest and will be kicking butt elsewhere in the Rogue Valley world of education. Join us in wishing her well!

Apply here to become the new AmeriCorps member at The Crest.

Environmental Education Supports Conservation Goals

As part of the eeWorks project, the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) highlights concrete research that shows the benefits of environmental education.

Researchers at Stanford University analyzed 105 peer-reviewed studies to assess environmental education’s effects on conservation outcomes. The research review offers compelling evidence that environmental education contributes to conservation and environmental quality in five key ways:

1. Building knowledge, skills, and intentions to adopt environmental behaviors
2. Adopting pro-environmental behaviors in participants’ personal lives
3. Taking direct environmental actions during the educational programs
4. Building community conservation capacity
5. Measurably improving the environment

The Crest is proud to be a part of the environmental education movement that supports important conservation goals underpinning the health of ecosystems like the ones at Willow-Witt Ranch.

Find more of this research at NAAEE eeWorks.