Event

Report from ^camping 2011 in Ohio

Feeding the chickens
Steve and Mel Montgomery’s wonderful hospitality began the moment we pulled in the driveway of their lovely 65-acre farm and only grew over the three days of ^camping is not optional. A beautifully restored, three-story white house stands guard at the top of the hill over acres of pastures and woods. As an educational space overseen by the Montgomery family, along with a board of directors and a group of core partners, Lamppost Farm is a place of teaching and conversation around faith as an everyday way of life — a perfect dovetail for a co-sponsored event with *culture is not optional.
Highlights of the weekend included:

  • Talking and relaxing around the campfire.
  • Learning how to slaughter and process grass-fed Lamppost Farm chickens and having good discussions about life, death, meat and normative behavior.
  • Watching Drew Montgomery’s baseball team win their Friday night game.
  • Playing corn hole with minimal scoring and maximum coach-talk cliches.
  • Reuniting with old friends and meeting some new ones.
  • Cooking and eating fantastic meals with meat and produce raised (and even butchered) right at the farm.
  • Playing with farm pets, including Misty and her new kitten.
  • Sharing the joys and struggles of running small, start-up non-profit organizations and wrestling with issues like health insurance and retirement savings in the context of a life of faith and risk-taking.

For a visual account, check out our photos of the event. We hope for the best as the Montgomery’s and their partners continue to cultivate the mission of the farm and look forward to our next visit. Our time there really whet our appetites for this summer’s second ^camping event at Maple Tree Meadows in Three Rivers — registration is open now!

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Event, Fundraising, Organization, People

Future Festival 2011 + Three Rivers camping

Join us on July 30 for the Second Annual Huss Future Festival! This year’s event will include live music, food from the Triple Ripple Community Garden and the Three Rivers Area Faith Community, an art and art supply sale sponsored by the Three Rivers Artist Guild, a used clothing sale … and more! We invite you to drop by to get a glimpse of the vision for the Imagining Space at Huss School.
On July 28-30, we’re also partnering with Maple Tree Meadows to host a ^camping is not optional event in Three Rivers. This beautiful farm is only ten minutes from Huss School, making it an ideal place to stay if you’re coming into town for the Future Festival. Our camping events are very informal, but provide plenty of opportunities for sharing good food, stories, farm chores, songs and more. If you’d like, you could also volunteer for the Festival while you’re here; just send us a note to let us know you’re interested. We have limited space available, so register early!

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