Actualización sobre el programa más nuevo de Antfarm: Nuevo Futuro

Nuevo Futuro celebro El Dia de Los Muertos el 30 de Octubre en colaboración con la biblioteca Estacada y Todos Juntos. Aproximadamente 22 familias se presentaron con sus hijos. Este evento fue un recorrido con una feria de recursos. Libros en español fueron regalados a los niños, y tuvimos un evento increíble. Cada adulto y cada niño recibió una caja de zapatos para hacer su ofrenda junto con un kit que incluía un marco de fotos, pintura de un mascara de calavera, vela de te’ y una flor de papel de seda para hacer una caléndula mexicana. Los niños estaban emocionados de llevarse a casa una bolsa de dulces. Al final hubo una rifa con 3 premios. Este fue un evento increíble ya que pudimos ver a los niños vestidos con sus disfraces.

El Dia de Los Muertos no es una fiesta triste o aterradora; es una celebración alegre de la vida, los recuerdos y la familia. El Dia de Los Muertos se remontan a las tradiciones de los nativos aztecas de Mexico. Las Familias decoran un altar de los seres queridos fallecidos, se colocan velas, un plato o bebida favorita y se colocan flores en el altar. Una flor especial llamada cempazuchitl se coloca en el altar conocido como la caléndula azteca. Los altares o ofrendas deben mostrarse ande del 31 de Octubre.

Nuevo Futuro ha estado trabajando en la vacunación clínica enfocándose en la comunidad Latina y enfocándose en las siguientes locaciones: Sandy, Estacada, Canby y Molalla.

AntFarm colaboro con El Programa Hispano en los apartamentos de Sandy Vista. Aproximadamente 35 familias, incluyendo niños fueron vacunados. Champurrado, tamales, meriendas y agua se les doi a toda persona que asistió a la feria de recursos de la clínica de vacunación, incluido un incentivo de $50 para quienes recibieron la primera y segunda dosis.

El Viernes pasado Canby tuvo una vacunación clínica en Aurora Farms. AntFarm colaboro con Neighborhood Health Center y Bridging Cultures aunque  niños no fueron vacunados tuvimos un buen grupo de adultos que se vacunaron.

La próxima vacunación de clínica será el 4 de Diciembre en Estacada. Se proporcionara un incentivo de $50 para quienes se vacunen con la primera o segunda dosis. Vacunas contra Covid -19 Pfizer niños de 5 o mas años y J&J. Todos los que asistan a la feria de vacunación/recursos de la clínica recibirán un delicioso champurrado echo por Socorro de AntFarm y un pan dulce.

    • Nuevo Futuro esta planeando actualmente un vacunación clínica en Canby y Molalla.
    • Nuevo Futuro se ha enfocado en traer talleres, eventos para jóvenes y padres en la comunidad de Sandy y Estacada. Actualmente estamos tratando de encontrar una instalación en Estacada para ofrecer clases de Ingles.
    • Nuevo Futuro esta trabajando actualmente en traer un músico de guitarra para enseñar a los jóvenes a tocar la guitarra.
    • Nuevo Futuro ha proporcionado a la comunidad Latina con recursos de días festivos. Angels in the Outfield, The Giving Trees y los servicios de Wrap Around.
  • Para Diciembre el plan es celebra y hacer una posada, piñata casera y comida culturalmente.

 

EHS Outdoor Leadership Program

The Might of One. The Power of Many.

Often programs find success due to multiple organizations partnering to bring their individual strengths or resources together. Or in other words, the might of one becomes the power of many. The pilot of the new Outdoor Leadership Program exemplifies everything AntFarm stands for. Three different organizations fostered a relationship that ignited a program to create a new opportunity for the high school youth in Estacada.

It all started with an idea.

During the Summer of 2021, the Directors of Adventures Without Limits reached out to Chris, the Estacada Community Manager from AntFarm. They had an idea. The idea was to create a program where high school students who do not have access to outdoor programming due to economic status or other limitations, could have the opportunity to learn about and explore the nature in their region.

In this pilot, the AWL directors suggested three main activities: backpacking, rock climbing, and an environmental project. While AWL had the grant money, the gear, and the idea; they did not have access to youth in Estacada, though they knew that Estacada held the biggest need for such a program.

AntFarm, on the other hand, had connections to Estacada youth and already had programs established in the Estacada school district and the general community. With Chris, AntFarm’s Estacada Community Manager, having both worked as an outdoor guide and teacher, AntFarm became the implementation tool of the program.

Now that the program had the monetary backing, resources, and the implementation actions to move forward, the last piece to this partnership came from the Estacada School District. The school district offered AntFarm and its programs a space to utilize free of charge. This room in the high school is meant to make it easier for students to access AntFarm’s resources, allowing AntFarm to support youth academically and through extracurricular activities after school. This partnership allows AntFarm staff to integrate themselves within the community of youth. By giving this room and having a mutual trust of support, the district has allowed itself to utilize homework clubs, study skill curriculums, and much more for its students.

Each one of these partnerships complements the others, allowing the Outdoor Leadership Program to reach its full potential.

The nuts and bolts of the program …

So, what is the Outdoor Leadership Program? It is a nine-week program split into three weeks segments to cover each of the main activities; backpacking skills and gear, rock climbing fundamentals, and an environmental project encompassing regional needs. Each week, students attend a two-hour course that integrates topics, lectures, games, and other activities to engage them and excite them on that particular activity.

At the end of each topic, students are taken on an excursion where they are able to implement the skills taught and practice with the gear discussed within the class in a safe and supervised environment. For the backpacking trip, students will do a full-day hike and mock camp set up along the Salmon River on the flanks of Mt. Hood. For the rock-climbing excursion, students will attend a two-day trip to Smith Rock State Park where they will climb both days and camp overnight. The last series will have students connecting with a local environmental organization that will allow them to give back to their natural space, keep it healthy and retain the quality of space they enjoyed in a specific one-day project.

We are excited about the prospects this program presents and we are already seeing great results. If you are interested in partnering with AntFarm to continue the impact on Clackamas County youth, reach out to info@antfarmyouthservices.com. Community starts with you.

Harmony Community Learning Garden

When Chris sat down with Jenny and asked her to dream big about the needs of youth in Estacada, it did not take long for the conversation to veer towards empty spaces and how youth programs could interact with those spaces.  Within minutes, the two were brainstorming how to create Harmony's backlot into a community-learning garden. To understand Harmony Bakery and AntFarm's partnership in-depth, one needs to spend time looking at the history of the space.

Jenny Beaudoin of Harmony Bakery and Chris Stanton, AntFarm's Estacada Community Manager

  In April 2019, Jenny Beaudoin and Corey Lawrence, her husband, began a discussion with Jenny's aunt about taking over Harmony Bakery.  Jenny, born and raised in Estacada, saw Harmony Bakery as more than a business opportunity, but a chance to save a legacy she admired and greatly valued.  Harmony Bakery was started by her aunt when she was only three years old.  She grew up in and around this space watching the artists work on the mural for the first time and seeing the connections between the bakery and the community.  Her father demonstrated the need for outreach as he volunteered and worked for the local Food Bank.

   Jenny's values were formed in connection with the services and time around Estacada, and specifically the food in the bakery and the food bank.  However, she did not envision herself as a bakery owner.  This was her aunt's; Jenny wanted to support social justice and create change in the world.  She graduated and worked as a licensed social worker for many years. Within the timeframe of Jenny's aunt considering the sale of Harmony Bakery, Jenny read an article that expanded her paradigm.

The article spoke of a woman that went to Chicago to be a social worker and make huge changes for the people of her city; she herself was from a small town in another state.  But after some time the woman realized that she needed to go home to her hometown, that the work she needed to focus on was within her original community.

As the article spoke to Jenny, she discovered a need to come back and work within Estacada as her social focus.  She knew that the Bakery could be an avenue for change in Estacada.  Food has a way of moving people and gathering people. So, on January 1, 2020, Jen and Corey officially took over the ownership and trajectory of Harmony Bakery.  Immediately, Jenny looked to see how she could use this new template to create conversations and bring social needs to the table of Estacada.  One such issue was the youth and the opportunities that this town's infrastructure has to offer.  Like so many of our stakeholders in Estacada, they saw the same need within the community as AntFarm:  youth need something productive to engage in and supportive, encouraging adults to support them within those opportunities.

   That is when AntFarm stepped into the picture. Chris, our new Estacada Community Manager, sat down with Jenny and asked her to dream big. With the same passion, they dreamed of how they could take this empty space and shape it into something where a community could flourish.

Chris immediately began working on a community garden design that would integrate the already placed rocks and wood.  Jenny offered a shell of a shed to become the tool shed with slats reclaimed from her mural renewal project.  Calling farmers for donations of plants, soil, seeds, and other needed items; each step forward enhanced the other person's stoke for the project.  The dream started taking root.

   With the start of school and the coming of rain, the project will begin to transition into its second stage.  AntFarm will begin to cultivate and create the designed garden by using local students from our CommunityConnect Program.  Each week students will be invited to come to Harmony Bakery after school on Wednesdays.  As the garden takes form and seeds/plants are put into the beds, the process of life and learning will begin.

  Come spring, Harmony Community Learning Garden will harvest its produce.  Students will have the chance to see it then delivered to the local Estacada Food Bank and the circle of seed to table completed.  From June to September, Jenny will be hosting a Farmer's Market within her parking area.  During this season, students will be able to learn basic entrepreneurial skills as they harvest and plan to sell the produce within the Farmer's Market right at their garden.

    We can't wait to show off this space to you all!  Chris and Jenny are all smiles about this partnership and the relationships that will be built and deepened within the time spent in this space.  Green spaces are rarer these days within city limits and offer tranquility often not felt in other settings.  The work is much, volunteers are needed, but the dream and potential are unlimited.  Jenny, as well as many other local businesses and stakeholders, are so excited to see AntFarm enter Estacada, with the services and support it brings, as well as a new community center currently under construction.

Community starts with you. If you are interested in joining our efforts, give us a call, and together we can build a better community!

My Time at AntFarm

A Journey of Love

Hello AntFarm!

My name is Claudia, and I have been with AntFarm for around 18 months. I arrived in the U.S. March 13, 2020 a few hours before they closed the borders and will be heading back to Germany at the end of September. I want to take some time to share what it means to work at AntFarm.

AntFarm is a family with a vision to see all people healthy, live with purpose, and contribute to community well-being. At AntFarm, every day looks different. As we have so many different locations, programs, and people, we are constantly in a process of movement and change. While I am checking emails, or joining a zoom meeting or webinar, I am also meeting with my colleagues to plan our next events or youth program. If community members show up, we will be there to chat with them and support them right away. In crisis, everybody at AntFarm steps up and helps each other. Due to the pandemic the possible in person connections were limited, and still, every connection that was able to be made was great.

As I am originally from Germany, I can only compare my job at AntFarm with previous positions in Germany, Europe. As an Occupational Therapist, I worked in clinical settings at times, and I believe that AntFarm's concept is the true way of practicing Occupational Therapy to help our youth to become healthy and contributing members of our community.

During my time at AntFarm, I was entrusted with the position of the Youth Services Manager. During a worldwide pandemic, that meant shifting from in person connections to Google Classroom and Zoom to support the youth of our community in the best possible way. This year we were able to go back in person and successfully carry through our Summer Work Program, which taught 62 youth about work readiness skills through hands on training and curriculum. Being able to see how these youth benefit from the experience and leave this program with more knowledge, skills, and new meaningful peer connections is the best part of this work.

Besides that, I developed and facilitated the Sandy Prevention Network as the Local Project Coordinator to prevent Youth Alcohol and Marijuana Use in Sandy. Our Vision is to create an inviting atmosphere for all youth and a healthy environment filled with valuable activities and opportunities. To achieve this goal, we started working with the members of our community and developed a variety of strategies and activities for the youth in Sandy.

As an Occupational Therapist, I always believed in opportunities for the youth that consist of hands on experiences in a real-life setting. AntFarm is a unique setting where youth are being seen from a holistic perspective and uses an approach that supports their individual needs and interests. Instead of separating, AntFarm is inclusive and always seeks to connect the youth with our community.

A recent project I was a part of was our Latino Festival on Saturday 09/25 at Sandy Vista Apartments. As part of the Sandy Prevention Network and in cooperation with my dear colleague Cristina Diaz, who is leading our Nuevo Futuro Latinx program, we planned a festival in honor of the National Hispanic Heritage Month. This festival contained music, free food provided by AntFarm Youth Services, free games and books for the kids, and so much more. It was a great success and showed me again how we can bring the members of our community together in a united effort to create something beautiful. The Might of One, The Power of Many is what this event proved to me again!

I am proud and grateful that I was able to be part of such a great movement. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to work at a unique organization like AntFarm Youth Services. I've learned a lot during my time here: about myself, about other cultures, and about new ways of helping our communities. I will never forget my time here in Sandy, Oregon, and I am excited to see what the future holds for AntFarm Youth Services.

Actualización sobre el programa más nuevo de Antfarm: Nuevo Futuro

Nuevo Futuro celebro El Dia de Los Muertos el 30 de Octubre en colaboración con la biblioteca Estacada y Todos Juntos. Aproximadamente 22 familias se presentaron con sus hijos. Este evento fue un recorrido con una feria de recursos. Libros en español fueron regalados a los niños, y tuvimos un evento increíble. Cada adulto y cada niño recibió una caja de zapatos para hacer su ofrenda junto con un kit que incluía un marco de fotos, pintura de un mascara de calavera, vela de te’ y una flor de papel de seda para hacer una caléndula mexicana. Los niños estaban emocionados de llevarse a casa una bolsa de dulces. Al final hubo una rifa con 3 premios. Este fue un evento increíble ya que pudimos ver a los niños vestidos con sus disfraces.

El Dia de Los Muertos no es una fiesta triste o aterradora; es una celebración alegre de la vida, los recuerdos y la familia. El Dia de Los Muertos se remontan a las tradiciones de los nativos aztecas de Mexico. Las Familias decoran un altar de los seres queridos fallecidos, se colocan velas, un plato o bebida favorita y se colocan flores en el altar. Una flor especial llamada cempazuchitl se coloca en el altar conocido como la caléndula azteca. Los altares o ofrendas deben mostrarse ande del 31 de Octubre.

Nuevo Futuro ha estado trabajando en la vacunación clínica enfocándose en la comunidad Latina y enfocándose en las siguientes locaciones: Sandy, Estacada, Canby y Molalla.

AntFarm colaboro con El Programa Hispano en los apartamentos de Sandy Vista. Aproximadamente 35 familias, incluyendo niños fueron vacunados. Champurrado, tamales, meriendas y agua se les doi a toda persona que asistió a la feria de recursos de la clínica de vacunación, incluido un incentivo de $50 para quienes recibieron la primera y segunda dosis.

El Viernes pasado Canby tuvo una vacunación clínica en Aurora Farms. AntFarm colaboro con Neighborhood Health Center y Bridging Cultures aunque  niños no fueron vacunados tuvimos un buen grupo de adultos que se vacunaron.

La próxima vacunación de clínica será el 4 de Diciembre en Estacada. Se proporcionara un incentivo de $50 para quienes se vacunen con la primera o segunda dosis. Vacunas contra Covid -19 Pfizer niños de 5 o mas años y J&J. Todos los que asistan a la feria de vacunación/recursos de la clínica recibirán un delicioso champurrado echo por Socorro de AntFarm y un pan dulce.

    • Nuevo Futuro esta planeando actualmente un vacunación clínica en Canby y Molalla.
    • Nuevo Futuro se ha enfocado en traer talleres, eventos para jóvenes y padres en la comunidad de Sandy y Estacada. Actualmente estamos tratando de encontrar una instalación en Estacada para ofrecer clases de Ingles.
    • Nuevo Futuro esta trabajando actualmente en traer un músico de guitarra para enseñar a los jóvenes a tocar la guitarra.
    • Nuevo Futuro ha proporcionado a la comunidad Latina con recursos de días festivos. Angels in the Outfield, The Giving Trees y los servicios de Wrap Around.
  • Para Diciembre el plan es celebra y hacer una posada, piñata casera y comida culturalmente.