Registration now open for Sowing Seeds Summer Day Camps

Summer vacation days are normally filled with discovery, adventure and exploration for kids of all ages. Now, the fun of those days can also include an educational component as the Vail Valley Foundation's Youth Foundation, Brush Creek Elementary School and Edwards Elementary School are teaming up to host the third annual “Sowing Seeds Summer Day Camps”.

Scheduled for three separate sessions at each school, based on the age of the participants, the five-day sessions will include interactive activities, including harvesting, making garden snacks, garden caretaking, garden crafts, Cook with a Chef and investigation of the natural world.

Chef Kelly Liken works with kids during Sowing Seeds.

Children ages 4-7 are invited to attend the Garden Sprouts camp, while students ages 8-12 can participate in the Garden Stewards programs. A maximum of eight campers can be accommodated in all Garden Sprouts sessions, while a total of 15 campers can participate in each Garden Stewards program.

Each session will be filled on a first-come-first-served basis, with registration for Garden Sprouts priced at $90 per child, while registration for Garden Stewards is priced at $150 per student.

“The Sowing Seeds Summer Day Camps are a great way to not only provide some fun activities for our children,” explained Susie Davis, Vice President of Education for the Vail Valley Foundation, “but to also to connect them with their environment. Under the direction of Sandy Story, our Sowing Seeds director, children will be immersed in the natural world through games, experiments, crafts and gardening.”

The Sowing Seeds Summer Day Camps will be led by gardening expert and program director Story, who has worked tirelessly since the inception of Sowing Seeds in 2010 to provide leadership for running a working greenhouse and gardens, while also working closely with the Eagle County School District to create a collaborative curriculum that is implemented during the school year.

“There is so much to explore and do at Garden Camp,” offered Story. “We offer a schedule of activities and guide the kids toward it, but ultimately, they decide together what the moment calls for and we go for it. It's exciting to see their imagination taking charge of the day, whether it's spending time with farm animals, harvesting and eating the vegetables, making soap, watering the garden or just lying on the grass and looking at the clouds.”

Brush Creek Elementary School camps are slated for June 18-22 and July 9-13 for Garden Stewards, while the Garden Sprouts session is scheduled for August 6-8. The Sowing Seeds camps at Edwards Elementary School are scheduled for June 25-29 and July 23-27 for Garden Stewards and August 13-15 for Garden Sprouts. All camps run from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Created in conjunction with Chef Kelly Liken of Restaurant Kelly Liken, the Sowing Seeds program involves a greenhouse project at Brush Creek Elementary and a raised garden project at Edwards Elementary, where students plant and care for their own gardens. The program not only connects children to their environment, but also fosters an understanding of the origin of food and teaches responsibility through stimulating hands-on activities.

To register a child for a Sowing Seeds Summer Day Camp session, contact the VVF's Youth Foundation at (970) 777-2015 or Lauren DesCombes at ldescombes@vvf.org.

Sowing Seeds and the Sowing Seeds Summer Camp Days are projects of the Vail Valley Foundation's Youth Foundation. For additional information on Sowing Seeds or the Foundation, visit www.vvf.org.