Anya Rose, an alumna from a 2009 Wilderness Crew, recently sent a letter to VYCC Headquarters recounting her experience.
Here’s an excerpt:

“Looking back on my experience, I realize it was the most empowering summer of my life and gave me much of the confidence and self-understanding that propelled me to pursue other adventures.”

After her summer with VYCC, Anya was inspired to apply to an international High School program through United World College in Wales.  She graduated last year and is currently a freshman at Swathmore College.

Are you an alum with a story to share?  We’d love to hear from you:
Send us a note at alumni@vycc.org, and Like us on facebook – a great way to see what VYCC alumni are up to!

As much as they would like to be outside enjoying the bluebird sky, Farm Apprentices Oliva and Will are in the West Monitor Barn honing their spreadsheet skills as they calculate prices, row feet, germination rates, and harvest yields on everything from arugula to zucchini.

That’s right, the Farm Team is developing the crop plan for 2013. Careful thought and attention to detail now can mean hours and hours of saved labor during the busy summer.

Olivia and Will are also making plans for apprentice “Trial Plots.”  New this year, each of our ten farm apprentices will be responsible for a portion of the 1-acre Pick-Your-Own garden.  In these plots, Apprentices will experiment with new varieties of vegetables and fruits while engaging in more labor intensive practices than traditional row cropping.

Mid-winter planning is also critical to produce the 300 “Health Care Shares” that will be donated to families in need.  Please join our efforts and sponsor a family this year!  For details, please contact Olivia Bulger at 802.434.3969 ext. 145

The VYCC has a long history working with Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park and this summer the Conservation Program was able to send two crews to Woodstock to work on the Faulkner Trail. Leaving from Faulkner Park and making its way up gentle grades to the South Peak of Mount Tom, this trail meanders through big trees, beautiful stonework, and many benches. The design of the Faulkner Trail is accessible to walkers of all fitness levels and abilities.  While these trails have held up well over the past 70+ years, they face several threats, primarily due to the deterioration of tread over time and the encroachment of roots and rocks.

Two VYCC crews repaired and constructed new sections of trail, in adherance with ADA guidelines to increase access to a variety of users. Power wheel barrows enabled the crew to lay close to a mile of new tread surrface to the trail.  They also constructed a 70 foot crib wall and a double lane switch back wide enough to allow two wheelchairs to pass one another on the trail. Completing the trail after many weeks of work was rewarding for the Fall Crew.  This project will enhance visitors’ experience in the Marsh-Billings-Rockefellwer National Historical Park for years to come.

For more information on this and other Conservation Program projects, contact Chris Ricker at 802.434.3969 ext. 140.

At the VYCC, our mission is to teach young people to take personal responsibility for all their actions.  The High School Leadership Program‘s goal is more specific:  to teach young people to take personal responsibility for their education.  Active, hands-on learners thrive in our program. Students who aim to make meaningful contributions to their community have the responsibilities of building, teaching, harvesting, restoring, constructing, and even cooking for their community.  Please enjoy the following “highlight-reel” of the first full week back to school at the VYCC!

U-32
Students are caring for over 200 chicks who moved from our brooders to the pasture last week.  This lesson in animal husbandry focuses on caring for the chickens and seeing the entire process from pasture to plate.  At the end of the unit, students will deliver frozen chickens to food shelves in Chittenden and Washington Counties.  Students, therefore, learn that any chick lost results in one less family fed, a great lesson in the importance of taking responsibility for one’s actions.

Mount Mansfield Union
MMU Students are also working hard on the farm.  Their focus has been on how to keep food costs down without sacrificing nutrition.  The use of farm-fresh vegetables is an important strategy!  In September, students harvested a variety of delicious vegetables and used them to make sauerkraut at the West Monitor Barn’s full commercial kitchen.  When the sauerkraut is fermented and ready in about a month, students will enjoy it at their overnight in October.

Center for Technology, Essex
The CTE crew is in the saddle at New Moon Ranch. Students are working diligently on trail maintenance with tools such as: hazel hoes, McLeods, bow saws, rock and grass rakes, and timber carriers.  They are building, clearing and maintaining over a mile of equestrian trails on the property. Students are gaining valuable trail experience, but they’re also learning about equine care.  They will be rewarded for their quality work with lessons from one of the ranch owners.  Partnerships like this also put students in contact with hard-working, successful professionals.

For more information on the High School Leadership Program, please contact John Woodward at 802.434.3969 ext. 136.

The Crew known as “Summer 7” has its own story to tell.  Stationed in the southern range of the Green Mountain National Forest, the eight Corps Members of Summer 7 had the opportunity to work with the United States Forest Service constructing and hanging bat boxes in areas surrounding the Manchester Ranger Station.  The purpose of the project was to secure habitat and homes for Vermont’s plummeting bat population. The bat population’s decrease stems from white nose fungus which has negatively affected bats around the country.  Learn more about bats on the USFS’s website.
The crew worked in the USFS’s Carpentry Workshop where they measured, cut, and constructed a dozen bat boxes. After they gained a fair bit of carpentry experience, Corps Members used GPSs to find the pre-determined locations where the bat boxes were to be hung.  At the end of the project, Corps Members were quite proud.  As Corps Member Joe Bedford put it, “It is a fulfilling feeling to have been a part of doing some good work for the community.”

If you’d like to help the bat population, you can build your own bat boxes or count local colonies.

For more information on bats, spiders, or other creepy crawlies, please contact our in-house specialist,
Chris Ricker at 802.434.3969 ext. 140.

Groton State Forest, established in 1919, was largely built by the Civilian Conservation Corps. (CCC), a government work program during the Great Depression of the 1930s. 

Perry Merrill, the head of state forests and parks from 1919 to 1966, had a cabin on the shore of Ricker Pond.   Merrill is known for his success in securing funds and workers through the Civilian Conservation Corps when it started in the 1930s. George Aiken, a former governor, once said, “His was one of the first cries in the wilderness for conservation—and particularly, for conservation education.”

With history in mind, it’s fitting that the Women’s Park Restoration Crew is completing a three-week project at Merrill’s cabin.  These six women have constructed a handicap accessible path to the cabin’s front door, among other improvements to the cabin’s exterior.  The path requires the construction of a substantial rock wall to create a gentle slope per ADA requirements.  By making this historic landmark accessible to all visitors, these Corps Members have learned ADA regulations and put them into action.  This crew is funded with the support of the Vermont Women’s Fund.

For more information on the Women’s Park Restoration Crew, contact Lisa Nelson at 802.434.3969 ext. 132

A Fundraiser for the Farm at the VYCC
Providing local poultry to Vermont families in need

Mark your calendars:

Live music, dancing & family fun
August 5th 5-8pm
Farm fresh finger food
Supervised kids’ corner

The purchase of tickets supports our food security efforts and helps make a substantial positive impact on hunger and food access issues in Vermont.  Partner with us to include locally-grown pastured poultry in our Health Care Shares.

To reserve tickets, please call or email Olivia Bulger at 802.829.9436 ~ Suggested donation of $10 per person and $25 per family.  Tickets will also be available at the door.