Let’s Plant More Kids in Nature!

**THANK YOU to everyone who has already donated to Slide Ranch this year and for all gifts received in response to our matching gift campaign - we couldn't do it without you!**

Which came first - the chicken or the egg?

That’s a question we get asked all the time by the children in our programs. “Well a chicken comes from an egg and an egg comes from a chicken…” we say “…and although we’ll never really know which came first, they are linked.” It is this connection to food, questions about how life begins and where our food comes from, that fills a child with joy and wonder when they come to Slide Ranch.

Please consider making a gift to support Slide Ranch’s inspiring programs today!

Thanks to the support of donors like you, we’ve already given 1,978 children this year the chance to connect with animals and nature, learn about sustainable farming, and develop an understanding of what it means to eat healthy and live a healthy, active life. By the end of the year, we'll have reached more than 4,000 kids!

By making a donation today you will make an immediate impact, which means we can reach even more children, like Aaron.

Aaron recently visited Slide Ranch with his school. After a jam-packed day at Slide Ranch, he went home and wrote us a letter. We receive hundreds of letters from children each year. To us, every letter is precious - it reaffirms that Slide Ranch has had an impact. We’ve awakened their curiosity and made a difference.

In fact, Aaron’s letter really says it best...

“It was a new experience for me to be on a farm, and the trip makes me think that there is a lot out in the world for me to see.”

Since our founding in 1970, Slide Ranch has worked hard to connect people of all ages and diverse communities to our programs. By making a donation today, you help us ensure that children from across the San Francisco Bay Area have access to this essential nature-based education.

When you see the face of a child light up as they eat food they harvested themselves from the garden, milk goats, go on a hike or see the ocean for the first time, you know you've made a connection. Aaron learned a lot on his day at the ranch, even conquering his fear of chickens and feeding them from the palm of his hand.

Words alone cannot describe how memorable and magical a visit to Slide Ranch is for a child, and we couldn’t provide this life-enhancing environmental education without the support of champions like you. We are so grateful for your friendship.

On behalf of all the children who you will help “plant in nature,” thank you for your generous support.

Leadership Donor Thank You Day - May 31, 2014

Almost 100 of Slide Ranch's most generous donors and their families, joined our staff and Teachers-in-Residence for a fun-filled family farm day, on May 31.

First stop at our annual Leadership Donor Thank You event was the "Welcome Circle". Overlooking the ocean, our teachers welcomed all of our guests and took them through the three essential components of a Slide Ranch experience: learn something new, get dirty and have fun! They rounded off the welcome circle with one of Slide Ranch's songs - a tribute and pledge to love and respect the land and all life.

Teacher-in-Residence, Elena, leads the group in song!

Following the Welcome Circle, guests took part in an array of activities that gave them a chance to plant and harvest food, make salsa, create their own flower crowns, learn how to grow an urban garden, and more. 

Friends of the Slide Ranch, Marshall Monroe and Zach Ostroff, provided the mellow musical backdrop to lunch. Everyone enjoyed a wholesome meal catered by Small Blue Planet Events, with vegetables for the burritos and salad greens picked fresh from our garden. Wine was generously donated by Cynthia Lohr of J.Lohr Winery and Suzette and Jeff Clarke.

All in all it was a wonderful day and it gave everyone a chance to meet their fellow Slide Ranch supporters. Thank you to all of our donors! Without your generous gifts, we wouldn't be able to "Plant Kids in Nature" and inspire the environmental stewards of tomorrow.

**Update: when you make a gift to support Slide Ranch’s inspiring programs by July 15, your gift will be matched dollar for dollar! 

If you have any questions about making a major gift to Slide Ranch, please contact Executive Director, Marika Bergsund at Marika.Bergsund@SlideRanch.org or call (415) 381-6155.

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West Marin Farms Development Day

Last month, our teachers-in-residence and farming staff took part in a West Marin Farms Development Day to learn about a variety of organic and sustainable farming practices, get insights on different business models, and be inspired by successful, local organic farmers. 

The first stop of the day was at Paradise Valley Produce. Husband and wife team, Dennis and Sandy Dierks, have been farming organically on their 15 acre Bolinas property since 1972. Dennis shared his knowledge about soil health and fertility, covering nutrient cycles on the farm, soil amendments, soil-feeding techniques, as well as best practices for cultivation, tilling, and cover cropping. Dennis also talked about how to make various brews that contribute to a well-balanced compost tea, such as mycorrhizal and lactose (which the group found very interesting!).

Then it was off for a tour at BN Ranch owned by Bill Niman, a long-time Bolinas rancher located up on the Mesa. Bill has run a high-end beef operation since the 1970’s, and is the original founder and past owner of Niman Ranch. The team learned about BN Ranch's sustainably and humanely raised meats, where animal welfare is put first.

After lunch they headed to Star Route Farms - the oldest continuously certified organic grower in California (certified since 1974). Star Route Farms were pioneers in the then fledgling organic industry, adopting production and post-harvest technologies such as precision planters and hydrocooling equipment in order to insure top quality produce for the consumer. The founder/owner, Warren Weber, has long been active in the organic industry as a past president of California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF), co-founder of the Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), president of Marin Organic (MarinOrganic.org) and past vice-president of Marin Agricultural Land Trust (MALT). Today, the 40 acre property in Bolinas is managed by operations manager, Annabelle Lenderink (who also runs their farmers markets, restaurant and store sales). The team learned some valuable information about the best way to build soils, conserve water, maintain habitat, and nurture productive farmland. 

The last stop of their packed education day was Gospel Flat Farm – a beautiful and inspiring vegetable, fruit, meat and dairy farm by the lagoon in Bolinas run by Mickey Murch and his family. This four generation farm (originally ran by Mickey's father and mother, Don Murch and Sarah Hake, since 1982), is a wonderful melting pot of food, education, culture and art, and is a community hub in Bolinas. The team toured the farm and learned about Mickey’s non-staffed Farm Stand that just relies on customers using an honor system for purchases (a business model that works very well for them!). Read Mickey's blog.

All in all it was a very important and memorable day for our staff and teachers-in-residence. We are incredibly grateful to all of the farmers and farms involved for making room in their busy schedules to share their wealth of knowledge with our team.

From the Army to Farming - Angela's Story

We recently said thank you, goodbye and good luck to Angela Leyba, a military veteran, who graduated from our first Farming Internship with San Francisco Foundation and Farmer Veteran Coalition. Angela's family and friends joined the Slide Ranch team and staff from San Francisco Foundation and the Farmer Veteran Coalition for the graduation celebration, where we looked back at Angela's time here and presented her graduation certificate.

Angela, a former U.S. Army Apache helicopter mechanic, has done tours of duty in Korea, Bosnia and Afghanistan. After the Army, she attended culinary school. Last August she became a farming intern here at Slide Ranch through our partnership with the San Francisco Foundation and the Farmer Veteran Coalition, a national organization with the mission to mobilize veterans to feed America.

Nicknamed “the chicken whisperer" Angela, was an amazing fit here at Slide Ranch right from the start. From learning how to care for our animals and manage farm chores, to learning about sustainable farming practices and participating in a full farm season from seed to table, Angela has left Slide Ranch with a wealth of knowledge and practical experience that she can apply to her next role. And she also spent time teaching us – training our staff in basic tractor and farm vehicle maintenance.

Emily Cohen, Program Director at Slide Ranch, opened the graduation ceremony: "We are proud and honored to take this opportunity to celebrate Angela’s time at the ranch." Emily went on to say: "What you might not know is that in spite of our familiarity with this format, Angela honestly blew us out of the water from day one. She brought an amazing work ethic to the team, showed strong leadership and a had a wonderful sense of humor throughout." 

Francesca Veitor, Program Director for the Environment, Public Policy and Civic Engagement at the San Francisco Foundation also attended the ceremony. Francesca was a long-time board member and supporter of Slide Ranch, and was a key player in making this special and important collaboration happen. Also in attendance was Michael O’Gorman, Executive Director and founder of the Farmer Veteran Coalition, and Jeff Macloud, 25 year US Air Force veteran and COO of Farmer Veteran Coalition. Michael shared his amazing story about starting the organization out of the back of his truck after being involved with very large scale farming, and Jeff kindly photographed the event. Thank you all!

So what's next for Angela? Well, Angela was recently interviewed for an article in Edible Marin & Wine Country and told the magazine, “When I got to Slide Ranch, I thought, ‘Where have you been all my life?’”. She now wants to help other vets have the same experience and also hopes to open a farm-to-table restaurant. Read the article here.

Many of you know that Slide Ranch is a nonprofit educational farm that connects kids with nature and teaches them about sustainable eating and living. But, many people don't know that Slide Ranch was an early leader in the food sustainability movement and our mission was built around a concept of training new farmers and teachers about sustainable farming, education and environmental stewardship. We were founded in the same year as Earth Day, and have been training the trainers since 1970! We hope Angela is the first of many military veterans to experience and benefit from this collaborative Farming Internship Program.

Congratulations, thank you and good luck Angela.

Photos by Jeff Macloud, Farmer Veteran Coalition.

Slide Ranch in the Huffington Post!

Local writer and photographer, Kathleen Buckstaff, recently visited Slide Ranch. She generously volunteered her time to take photos of the farm and wrote a fantastic article about her experience in the Huffington Post. Learn why she looks at eggs very differently now and read about her memorable day at Slide Ranch.

A Subtle Mother's Day Prayer: Remembering Where We Came From and Saying Thanks