It’s Summer Time!
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.
What Are We Up To?
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!
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!
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.
Take Action, Learn More
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:
- Building knowledge, skills, and intentions to adopt environmental behaviors
- Adopting pro-environmental behaviors in participants’ personal lives
- Taking direct environmental actions during the educational programs
- Building community conservation capacity
- 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.
Izzy
If you visit Willow-Witt Ranch, Izzy will most likely be one of the chorus of dogs who greet you with barks and wagging tails. They are all just so excited to see you!
She is the 12 year old companion of Lanita and Suzanne. She isn’t technically a working dog, but she does her part to greet visitors and get belly rubs. She is a sweet presence and everyone who works for The Ranch and The Crest has a spot in their hearts for her.
Say hi to Izzy when you next visit Willow-Witt Ranch!
Bigleaf Lupine
The lupine at Willow-Witt Ranch is blooming in the wetland meadows and behind the farmhouse these days.
There are over 200 species of wild lupine, most of which are native to North America. Lupine is a beautiful member of the mountain ecosystems in the American West, including the Western Cascades.
You can identify lupine by its purple spikes of flowers and deeply lobed green-silver leaves. Visit this month to see the blooms.
