Attended the Cooking with Fire adult program this year and I learned so much about acorns, different cooking methods with foraged ingredients, and got to taste some amazing foods including pineapple smoked jerky! The Wild Earth team accommodated lots of dietary needs for everyone and we all got to choose which techniques we learned throughout the day! It was awesome!
Wild Earth is intentional and creates an amazing space for land & community connection. The work comes from the heart.
Wild Earth is great! Our family attended summer camp this year and had an awesome experience! All-outdoor programs are so needed for kids to be able to connect.
A truly dedicated and thoughtful organization. I love supporting an organization that provides opportunities for youth and adults to connect with one another in nature. It's a great group to be a part of.
Had a lovely time at the Arrowood Farms party for Wild Earth. Happy to support this staff and their nature education programs for Hudson Valley residents.
Had a great time at the field trip the other day! I helped out and worked alongside staff with the field trip class, and everyone had a really great time and learned a lot!
I recently chaperoned a 5th grade field trip with Wild Earth and this organization is amazing! Program instructors are so kind and patient with students. Wild Earth instructors really take time to help students learn about their social and emotional skills and the impacts of what they say and do. Students got to learn new skills like building shelters or how to collect materials to start a fire. It gave students a sense of empowerment and was a big introduction to some students to outdoor skills. This organization has a strong impact on its participants and I hope they stay around for a long while.
The team at Wild Earth really goes the extra mile to make sure people feel cared for when spending time outdoors. At The Acorn Gathering on Oct 15th, we kept warm around the fire with mulled apple cider and tea. We also tried many different foods that featured acorns - acorn clementine cake, acorn “jelly” (like tofu) with an arugula and pepper salad, and acorn apple crumble! Can’t wait for next year’s gathering!
I’ve been a part of Wild Earth since 2013. I started as a camper, and was always intrigued by the vase opportunity of skills they offered. The sense of community that Wild Earth fosters is beyond any group I’ve been part of. Now, as someone who works for wild earth, I’m able to facilitate the same experience for a new crowd of kids. Wild Earth is fulfilling, meaningful, and supportive. They provide a safe space for kids to express themselves and go above and beyond to provide access to disadvantaged kids. I’m very proud to be associated with Wild Earth, I’ve made my best friends there, had the privilege to work with insanely talented instructors, and made lifelong memories doing what I love. Thank you Wild Earth!
Our daughter attended Wild Earth during the summer of 2021. She loved every minute of it despite the stormy conditions that week! Ranks it as her fave so far and she was 13 and a life-time camper since 5. Thanks Wild Earth!
I admire this organization so much. Thank you. I’m just really glad I get to spend a part of my summer away from technology and interacting with other kids my age. Can’t wait for year round ropes!
Wild Earth is providing a much needed community resource - a deep commitment to getting all kids outside. From bringing kids out into the woods to playing with kids at recess and afterschool programs, Wild Earth meets kids where they're at to build nature connection and leadership skills. We all need Wild Earth!
Wild Earth works tirelessly to provide safe and supportive environments for children in the Hudson Valley! Their work in the Kingston and Ellenville school districts has equipped students with tools to handle conflict resolution while developing healthy relationships with the earth and their peers!
Wild Earth staff are so helpful and welcoming whenever I have interacted with them! They do great programs for kids and adults in the Hudson Valley and are very inclusive.
Wild Earth has moved beyond all expectations. They have taken their summer camp skills of nature connection and moved into local school to provide nature experiences to those with few opportunities. They are really making a shift to support our communities.
Wild Earth is doing amazing work to realize their mission and provide children with access to wild places, strong mentors, and programs that build courage and character.
They get kids outside and playing. They ask parents to pay whatever they are able. Wild Earth is exceptional.
My son participated in 2 summer programs and one full year program with Wild Earth and thrived in every way possible. We actually believed in their program so much that I drove.2 1/2 hours North 1 weekend a month so that my city boy could find his grounding and be free to explore and be among the wild. The staff is really attuned to the children's needs while holding them accountable for their own responsibilities and limit awareness. They hold space, create sacred ritual and share the beauty and magic of the natural world. Still to this day when we are out in nature my son will step away to find a sit spot and sit still and feel the world around him. I am really grateful for this program, their dedication to.our children and their community.
I've been involved with Wild Earth for many years, since it was a small group of families, trying to get their children to be outdoors, closer to nature, learning how to make friction fires, build shelters out of leaves and other natural materials, identifying animal tracks and animal behavior related to those tracks, birds and bird behavior, the list goes on. My daughter was one of the early instructors. I saw it morph from that small organization to the one it is now. Doing the same activities and so much more, bringing their programs to public schools, to inner city schools, opening up possibilities to families who could otherwise not afford these programs, and summer camps. The list goes on. They are truly an organization that teaches by example, and for that reason the children they serve and the staff that teach shine.
I am so fortunate that this program is close to my home. It has provided my children with a deep connection to the wilderness, an understanding about themselves, and a tribe of community members that think deeply and connect meaningfully to each other and the world.
My two kids have gone through Wild Earth programs since they were in elementary school, and most recently completed the intense Rite of Passage ceremony as teenagers. I can truly say that it is the best financial investment I have made in my children, as it has built their character, endurance, appreciation and awareness, which in today's tech-filled world is challenging for our youth to experience. I'm so proud that they will both be working for Wild Earth and gaining early job experiences in this amazing setting with supportive mentors this summer.
My kids have been part of Wild Earth for the past eight years. They're now counselors and in the teen program. They have learned so much and become more aware, connected and self sufficient.
Our daughter has participated in Wild Earth's summer camps and weekend offerings during the school year. She has loved Kestrel camp and Mystwood. Both programs have been full of caring instructors who are warm, creative, and enthusiastic about kids and their ideas. Through Wild Earth she has become a fearless explorer and a careful observer.
Our daughter is a city kid, so time in nature is particularly special and rare. The skills she brings home from Wild Earth are the kind of life skills that can only be taught experientially, and in an environment where children are encouraged to be deeply present with their environment, the people around them, and with their own thoughts and feelings. One day we were walking across town she noticed a snail on the sidewalk. She paused to help the snail find its way into a garden bed around a street tree so it wouldn't get smushed by the next passerby. Little moments like this make me aware of the value of Wild Earth's programs, how they help children be truly present with their surroundings, and give them a sense of agency to make a change in the world, even if that change is as small as helping a lost snail.
Our family loves Wild Earth and we are really proud of the work they are doing in the Kingston public schools as well as in their camps and weekend programs. Wild Earth's belief that every child can benefit from being in nature and noticing the world around you is something we support 100%.
My kids have been going to Wild Earth for 8 years, and it's an incredible place--I wish I could go to this camp! Sometimes I actually get to: it's nature exploration, survival skills, a beautiful community, and just sheer fun, all rolled into one. They also go the distance to make sure ALL kids get to experience nature, some kids are out in the woods for the first time ever! Wild Earth is an incredible organization!
Wild Earth has been an organization that we have been involved with for over 10 years. My sixteen year old son started attending their summer sessions when he was 6, and continued going every year as a camper until he started to work as a counselor the past several years, and continues to do so this summer as well. I was a participant in a women's workshop program, "Inner Compass' for nine months where we stayed and camped out in nature as a way to learn about it, as well as ourselves.
My husband and I also partner with Wild Earth in an Edible Landscaping class for adults, where we teach intensive classes on growing food. We have seen and experienced how this wonderful non-profit has given us lots of opportunities to be in nature, and we have been supporters of the organization and what they do for our local community.
My son has been enjoying wild Earth summer programs for a handful of years now. He once mentioned that he wished it could be his school year round. He would highly recommend it as would I. I also take programs when I can, the last one being a wildlife tracking excursion that I will repeat as soon as its offered.
Wild Earth is a top notch outdoor school and day camp. The people, the mission, and the vision all combine to give a fantastic experience for our child time after time. We're also huge supporters of their outreach campaigns. Wild Earth walks the walk! We plan to come back year after year.
Excellent programs for kids and adults teaching and supporting traditional skills and nature connection.
I attended Wild Earth programs and eventually became an instructor. I worked for Wild Earth for six years and loved every minute. The work being done is so crucial. Wild Earth works to expose young people to the natural world and grow appreciation and connection for nature. This is more important now than ever as we live our lives more and more segregated from the outdoors.
I started attending programs offered by Wild Earth when I was eight years old that forever changed how I interact with the outdoors. Growing up in a strong and vibrant mentoring community facilitated by wild earth allowed to me grow into a confident and grateful human being. Each moment outside with Wild Earth has altered and directed the course of my life. I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to be a part of this organization as it grows and changes the lives of everyone it touches.
We love Eild Earth!
Both of my children have been attending Wild Earth wilderness summer camps since they were 5 years old. They have gone to other camps in the area, but Wild Earth is their favorite, and is special. My daughter’s favorite days are when it’s raining. She loves getting muddy and building fires. I got to experience Wild Earth too as a mom. We attended a mother/daughter program for 2 years in a row. This was a great bonding experience for us The instructors empower everyone and are really creative and skilled in the wilderness.
Wild earth came to my daughter’s middle school and led programming for all of the 5th and 6th grade. Kids that would not normally be in nature were immersed in it and were really inspired.
Over the years Wild Earth has spread its wings and for this my family is grateful. Our community is very lucky to have this amazing not-for-profit build confidence in our youth.
Wild Earth is surely one of the very best nonprofits to which I've ever had a connection. Both of our school-aged children attend Wild Earth programs -- especially summer camps but also year-round programming on the weekend. My wife and I also take part in Wild Earth programming for adults and families. The vision of Wild Earth is tremendous and transformative. Its participants explore and play in nature -- in the woods, in fields -- year-round, without the goal of hiking a daunting number of miles, without most traditional camp games. Instead, the participants feel comfortable learning how to be resilient in nature. They learn how to identify plants, how to track, how to build debris huts, and most of all how to engage in creative, joyous play without butane or plastic toys or connected electronic devices. Wild Earth leaders run one of the most thriving and functional local nonprofit organizations I've ever seen. They treat their workers fabulously. And the camp staff who run the programs are among the best I've ever seen. These are amazing young adults who are taking exceptional care of our youth. The difference between how children are treated by their camp counselors at Wild Earth versus most other outdoor summer camps is night-and-day. Keep up the fabulous work, Wild Earth!
There are rare opportunities in our children's lives where irrepressible joy, education, community, creativity, and a deep emotional attunement come together to create a life-long remembered experience. And, to boot, in nature! This is Wild Earth.
Our two boys, now 6 and 8, are members of the Wild Earth family, and will continue to be part of the Wild Earth family. They have been learning to honor the earth and honor each other; to bring nature awareness with them wherever they go. This is Wild Earth.
As parents, we are treated with care, love and respect, and honored as if members of a special tribe. How the programs work and are explained reflect an organization with supreme integrity and knowledge. This is Wild Earth.
And because Wild Earth does so much for community, its generosity keeps expanding and extending to new programs -- to bring Wild Earth to everyone young and elder, with and without sufficient financial means to benefit from such vital goodness. Farther and farther reaching. This is Wild Earth.
Wild Earth's presence is a gift to the Hudson Valley in how it encourages all of us to "bloom where we are planted," by stepping outside and into the incredible richness of our landscape, and to remind us that the earth is where we all live.
More than any other nonprofit in the area, Wild Earth roots a sense of community, as its many programs span the lifespan and spark joy! We feel privileged as a family to be growing with this organization, and so appreciate how they continue to reach out to urban communities and to people from diverse economic backgrounds.
Both of my children have benefitted from the simplicity of being in the woods with Wild Earth's skilled and supportive leader/mentor/witnesses. In particular, for the past two years my daughter has participated in the monthly Artemis Moon program - she looks forward to nothing more than these days outdoors with all girls and women where she can play, explore, and learn skills, and to return home shining.
I have seen first hand the positive influence and change Wild Earth offers in my granddaughter's .
Born and bred in the City, being in the woods is out of my comfort Zone.
However, when I'm with my granddaughters their comfort level is astounding.
I see how confident they are;the knowledge they have of the variety of trees and berries is second nature to them. Truly making them aware of their surroundings and being present in the moment. That's a gift to learn at such young ages.
In addition, the confidence and pride on their faces when they learn a new skill to sustain themselves in the woods is priceless
This program instills all the values one wants children to have( confidence, character, strength and respect.
The friendliest group of staff I have ever had the pleasure to interact with. They make it their mission to make everyone feel included and help bring the great outdoors to all. Wild Earth is not just a non-profit organization, they are a family helping to unite individual.
Wild earth is a great nonprofit, am soo proud to be a donor. And witness how many life’s transform as a direct result from the programs they offer. Great staff, great mission, great accomplishments.
Wild Earth touches the hearts of all the children it serves. Through connection with nature it strengthens and grounds the individual, builds a strong community and richer family ties. My daughter, who is now 16 spent many years involved with Wild Earth and it was definitely one of the highlights of her childhood. It has helped to form her into the young woman she is today and provided her with the tools to stay grounded in this hectic world. Experiential programming like this is the way to lead our children to a more sustainable future. I have been touched deeply by the work that wild earth does and believe so much in the mission that I recently joined the board.
I began my experience with Wild Earth as a parent. Having the pleasure of driving my daughter and a car full of kids to summer camp. Fun is driving with a packed car of kids singing the whole way, all wet and dirty. There was something so right about it. Since then I have watched my daughter grow through the program and as a person. I have seen her display true courage that she learned out in the woods. The courage to take on challenges even though you are scared, even though you are not confident it will go well, even though your body shakes. She developed this because she learned from nurturing mentors, fellow young people and the woods themselves.
Thank you Wild Earth
Although Wild Earth offers an exceptional camp experience for my children, my favorite part about sending them to Wild Earth is hearing their stories when they get home. My kids are now more observant, engaged with nature, and creative than ever before. Wild Earth is an experience that my kids, my wife, and I will never forget.
Wild Earth summer camp was an incredible experience for my kids. It is the happiest I ever see them. They truly get to be just kids and get dirty and explore and do what kids do. The land is beautiful, the program is structured by not too structured, the instructors are generous and nurturing and get to know each child as an individual, and the ability to create a connection to nature and to their own spirit is inspiring. I recommend Wild Earth to everyone I know.
And, as an adult, I have participated in Wild Earth programs too and feel equally grateful for the experiences Wild Earth has given me.
The mission and the programs, the staff and the philosophy, it all fills a hole that is too often left empty in our contemporary, modern, fast-paced world. Slow down. Notice nature. Be kind and be grateful. These are important lessons from Wild Earth.
I have donated money, been a parent of participants, been a participant myself, and now serve on the Board of Directors. I believe in what Wild Earth is doing, both for my children and many other children (and adults) in the Hudson Valley.
I have been working for Wild Earth for the past 5 years and couldn't love it enough. The amount of learning opportunities that are given to those who are seeking connection with the natural world is profound. I would love to see Wild Earth and similar organizations blossom and grow throughout our country.
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I love Wild Earth for the work that it does — for the positive effect that it has on my community and for the greater world at large. By facilitating nature connection for children and adults, so many beneficial outcomes result: personal growth and integrity, social well-being, and ecological health. Additionally Wild Earth creates much needed local jobs. Its existence enriches the cultural experience of our region and I am truly grateful for it!
Wild Earth is a deeply caring, dedicated and thoughtful organization doing incredible work in our community. They are reconnecting our children and adults to the natural world, and therefore more deeply to themselves and each other. I've been involved with Wild Earth as a staff member in it's early years, and as a parent of participants more recently, so I can speak from much experience with them. They are doing beautiful and incredibly important work in our community!
Incredibly engaging and supportive organization that both builds community while supporting people reach their individual potential through nature connection. Seeing my children come home with mounds of clay they snagged from a stream bed so that they could make some awesome sculpture, or dragging several feet of cordage twisted from sedge they gathered, or casually singing some enlivening song they learned are just a few of the sweet and heart-warming scenes we've grown accustomed to with Wild Earth. The magical stories are literally countless. They create magic across all ages as well. Their teen participants possess a presence and self-confidence that inspires and gives hope that this crew of kids will bring so much of their goodness to the world. They've also become a model organization that others in the area look to for support and guidance, which is great, but nothing beats those clay streaked faces and shiny eyes of all who are so deeply connected to nature, each other, and themselves.
Wild Earth is a one-of-a-kind organization and its impact is profound! The programs and fully integrated and serve a wide range of audiences while instilling consistent values and instilling a deep sense of connection to nature in all participants. The facilitators bring vast experience, knowledge, energy and creativity to all that they do. Wild Earth programs are truly fun, educational, and transformational. They are amazing all around!
I love that wild earth gives my children grounded earth loving role models that they love and look up to. My kids get a great counterbalance to the influences of commercialism and materialism - spending whole days out in nature splashing in streams, playing in dirt, building with sticks, making fires and having fun in kind gentle company. Thank you WildEarth. The right influences at the right time to help keep our family connected to the earth and each other!
My family has benefited from the kindness, skillfulness, and strong vision of Wild Earth's team for nearly a decade now.
We cannot even keep up with the array of tremendously valuable programs that the organization makes available throughout the year.
During lean times, when we could not afford to pay full tuition for our sons to attend camp, they have made it work for us. When we became a Fresh Air Fund Family, Wild Earth gave Daniel a scholarship and he was able to have a must unique experience that he talks about all these years later.
Of all the activities our children enjoy, they speak non-stop about Wild Earth Camp, the thrill they get being in nature, and the bonds they forge while doing all of the exciting things.
The counselors are present, committed and fascinating. Our sons fall in love with them every year.
I cannot say enough about Wild Earth and it's celebrated prominence in our community. I can only imagine the wonderful implications of a world where there is a farther reaching Wild Earth and a greater number of inspired, healthy and connected kids.
Thank you.
Absolutely the best nature connection for children, families and communities. My kids have been involved with Wild Earth for a few years now and I just can't say enough about the regenerative, thoughtful approach they take with all of their programs. The kids get home from a long day in the woods with Wild Earth and immediately run outside to continue carving, playing and building in nature.
My family & I are so lucky to have WIld Earth. My 6 yr old has been doing summer camp & various other programs with them since he was 3.5 yrs old. I am also grateful that I get to experience their programs. We learn so much about ourselves and the natural world. The staff is wonderful, the kind of people you want to spend a lot of time with. It is truly a gift.
My son has found his joy in wild earth. Wether in the after school program at High Meadow, the spring break camp or his beloved summer camp program, Noah comes home tired, dirty and beaming with happiness. He has gained confidence and maturity, he is doing what children should be doing- exploring this beautiful earth, playing in the Forrest, getting dirty. I have no doubt Wild Earth will be some of his fondness childhood memories- he even hopes to be a counselor one day! What a lovely program, great group of people and amazing experience for my children.
My kids LOVE Wild Earth. We have been to many day camps, some good, some just "eh." But W.E. Is truly the best. Counseler are all Super sweat. And the program really teaches kids to feel a love of and respect for our planet. Consider this review a rave one!
Wild Earth is a great community. It is so much more than a couple of programs to send your kids off to; it is a supportive and wonderful network of people who beyond anything else want to uphold and appreciate each other and the planet that we live on. In today's society, this is incredibly needed. As we become more dissociated from each other and our surroundings such an organization works to make us realize the beauty around us, to pick our heads up from our phones.
I am overjoyed that my kids get to spend day after day in the most stunning locations in the woods under the caring guidance of Wild Earth. There is so much more to this organization than meets the eye. I am especially impressed by the instructors, many of whom are former campers themselves, who are outstanding role models for our young and growing children. The instructors are knowledgable, respectful, inclusive, and above all... fun and silly -- and the result is that kids can really be themselves and feel supported by their peers. My kids come home covered in mud each day, with smiles on their face, and a whittled stick in their hands, feathers in their hair, games and riddles in their heads, and all kinds of stories at the dinner table. Good pure fun. The way childhood should be.
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This is our fourth year sending our 3 children to Wild Earth programs. Year round, our children are exploring the wilderness and exploring and pushing the edge of their own boundaries. They have the opportunity to interact in truly meaningful ways with a wide age-range of participants and mentors. They leave each program with joy in their heart, adventures on their mind, skills in their arsenal, and a fair amount of mud in my car. Wild Earth is an important part of our children's lives, and has had a real impact on our community. How lucky we are to have such a terrific organization in the Hudson Valley.
Wild Earth provides the best youth (and adult) nature programming in the Hudson Valley. Their incredible staff helps people of all ages connect with the Earth and themselves. I cannot recommend this nonprofit enough!
Wild Earth is impacting the future in profound and meaningful ways. By helping children and adults connect to the natural world, they are insuring that every participant will treat the Earth with love and respect. At a time of such great uncertainty about the future of our climate, love of nature is an essential ingredient to making sustainable and impactful decisions with regard to the environment. Like a pebble thrown into tranquil waters, the work of Wild Earth ripples out into the local community, the country and the world at large.
Wild Earth is a truly unique and incredible organization. It's child centered approach, stellar communication, and positive approach to all weather and challenges makes Wild Earth an unmatched educational program. Kids and adults are learning, playing and working together in a long forgotten, yet deeply familiar way. One of the greatest resources our children, communities and land have in this area!
Wild Earth Is the best non-profit agency that i have ever been a part of in my life and I have worked with various non-profits over the last 15+ years. I've been fortunate to take some of their workshops for adults. The staff and instructors are such wonderful people who are committed to the vision of Nature connection for ALL! The programs that are being run are, in my opinion fantastic and are only getting better and more diverse. Whoever gets the opportunity to participate should definitely go to camp or take a workshop that is offered at Wild Earth Wilderness School.
The vision of Wild Earth and my participation in that vision has brought healing on my path. The community that it creates amongst a scattered world of modern disconnect has brought a stronger sense of purpose in my life. I truly believe that connection with ourselves, the natural world and each other is what our world needs in these times. I thank wild earth for all that they do to bring forth change in this world.
It has been and honor and a gift to be a part of Wild Earth. It has given my children a love for nature and a confidence in themselves. This is something that I and Wild Earth wish for all.
I can't imagine where I would be now if it weren't for Wild Earth. This organization helped uncover the path of my young adult life through growing my relationship to the natural world, my connection to young people, my sense of belonging to a community and uncovering the self that I wanted to bring forth. Even though I no longer work with Wild Earth the relationships that sprouted there are ever lasting.
Before doing the apprenticeship program through Wild Earth, there were certain things I simply didn't affiliate with myself. I was so detached from this realm that it didn't even occur to me that I may be lacking a particular kind of magic and mystery in my life. Immersing oneself in nature throughout all four seasons is deeply empowering. Knowing that I could not just survive but feel an acute sense of being alive - this is the gift that the woods have to offer. Wild Earth sublimely and unwaveringly brings us close to the mysteries and challenges of the woods, helping us discover the tools we will need to thrive, and the planting the seed of desire to return to it, again and again.
Wild Earth is making a huge difference in the lives of people and the community by connecting them to the natural world and developing their sense of joy, appreciation and responsibility to the planet. In addition, Wild Earth provides people, young and old, a chance for mentoring relationships that integrate experiences in the wilderness with contributions to the community at large.
I have witnessed hundreds of of people learn and grow through the life-changing experiences they have had in Wild Earth. I see children, teenagers and young adults keep returning to, and really love, Wild Earth's challenging programs that develop courage, trust, resilience, appreciation, and new skills. It's amazing how it gives them more capacity to stand up for themselves, be responsible, care for the community, and encourage self regulating healthy choices among their peers. I have also seen many adults of all ages, including elders, have experiences that challenge their edges, their fears and their limited views of themselves. So often I see among adults the transmutation of grief into purpose, joy and freedom.
Wild Earth has been successful at reaching a goal of making our programs "assessable to all" by providing financial assistance to *anyone* who needs it. That's a 100% track record. In addition, we have raised money to provide such life enriching experiences to children in economically disadvantaged communities.
Given the state of the planet, and the human interactions that have brought us to environmental destruction and wars, humans need programs like Wild Earth to help us connect to what's important and how to learn resilience for ourselves, responsibility for each other and care of the planet.
The Foundational Values of Wild Earth:
With gratitude for all that nurtures and supports us, we continually strive to be in peace with the environment and in harmony with all human beings. Wild Earth recognizes that all life is an interconnected web, and so, it is for our greatest good that we take great care of ourselves, each other, the Earth and all its inhabitants. With this in mind, we strive to uphold the following age-honored values as foundational to all that we are and all that we do at Wild Earth:
*Gratitude, Respect and Reverence: for ourselves and our bodies, for our peers and community, for the environment and its inhabitants.
*Earth Stewardship: All entities of the Earth are essential to life, and everything dwelling on and within Mother Earth is mysteriously, wondrously interconnected. Our livelihood is inseparable from it, and so, to sustain ourselves, we must steward our home.
*Positive Role Modeling: Aware that our actions ripple out and have known and unforeseen effects, we strive to role model our values and aspirations at all times as to affect positively those we are guiding, our peers, our elders, and the vibration of the planet.
*Wellness: Acknowledging that continually seeking a nourishing lifestyle on a personal, communal and organizational level will promote a positive standard of health and vitality essential to the well-being of all.
*Self-care: first and foremost, to promote an atmosphere of personal wellness. If we cannot take care of ourselves, then we cannot be available to serve others in a genuine manner.
*Community: promoting love, care, and open communication in our relationships.
Wild Earth is an incredible organization to work for. I especially love seeing how empowered children and teens feel after sleeping outdoors in our overnight programs. In addition to superb programs offered for kids and adults, Wild Earth helps to build community and has become a place where many people meet life-long friends.
I knew the first time I saw my children return from a Wild Earth experience, that this organization was offering up some pretty powerful stuff. The kids were absolutely glowing. Covered in mud, the kids were absolutely glowing. They were truly alive. They had gotten close to nature and loved it. Wild Earth is an antidote to our crazy,sped up, tech obsessed world. It helps guide participants through experiences in nature that will enrich their lives forever.
We have always appreciated being outside love learning about nature. But to have a program for kids of all ages that one can really truly immerse themselves and connect to nature and wilderness is amazing. My son has been involved with Wild Earth since he was 8 years old. In the summer and in the winter, connecting with others while discovering, playing in, and paying attention to nature has been such a beautiful gift. Now at 14 he hopes to be a W.E. counselor soon, and to be a mentor to a younger person like others were to him. Wild Earth has absolutely enhanced our lives. It is a rich and beautiful organization so valuable on so many levels. We especially appreciate how there are funds available for families who might need them so that anyone can attend. The joy, experiences, and growth Wild Earth programs (and the people involved) have brought us and others is so special.
Being involved with Wild Earth has been transformative for our family. Our kids have grown up feeling truly connected to nature. They are developing a sense of self and have forged incredible friendships. The adult and family programming is great too -- a wonderful antidote to our screen-centric busy lives.
Wild earth gives back to the community like no other organization. It gives adults, children, an elders in our community the opportunity to spend time fully engaged with each other and the natural world.
Wild Earth is a vitally important wilderness education for children that is beyond teaching just wilderness skills. It teaches children sense of connection to nature and provides a deep centered feeling that is so desperately needed with the pace of technology. It is so beautiful to witness the young children grow up through wild Earth camps and become mentors and leaders to the younger children. The mentoring is profound and reaches into the greater community by now including children from lower income families and marginal lifestyles.
David Brownstein is an amazing leader with all of his staff, they continue to further their education and inspiration and share with all the other upcoming leaders. It's an amazing organization.