Growing season: summer camp on an organic farm. (snapshots).(Hawthorne Valley, New York)(Brief Article)

Located in the rolling hills of upstate New York, Hawthorne Valley is a 400-acre biodynamic farm that houses 60 head of dairy cattle and an organic market garden, as well as a dairy processing plant, farm store and commercial bakery. Hawthorne Valley Farm also plays host to a variety of educational programs, including an annual summer camp for kids. Nick Franceschelli, director of the camp program, has been involved with Hawthorne Valley, off and on, for almost 30 years.

"I came here on a field trip as a high school junior in 1974 and returned as an apprentice in `78," he says. "I worked full-time on the farm for a year in 1980. Fifteen years later, they offered me a job with the children's camp program, and I've been here ever since."

Hawthorne Valley's camp program, Franceschelli says, stresses community and respect for all living things. "We try to take care of the animals well, and we try to take care of the earth well and make plants as healthy as possible without using herbicides, synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. The camp for kids, age 9 to 11, isn't taught in an abstract way. It's a hands-on, living education."

camp basics. We want childhood to be honored, which isn't always the case in our hurried world. The idea is to let younger children develop the inner forces of imagination and creativity without constant outer stimulation--other than what Mother Nature provides.

food philosophy. Eating is a sacrament. We eat together as a ...