My daughter is pretending to be a teacher teaching Spanish and French right now to her imaginary “campers.” I couldn’t have imagined how these experiences would have shaped her or the other other children, and especially myself. And I hope, through the language, art and crafts and recipes we’ve shared this summer, the memories and enriching experiences continue for our summer camper friends and their parents.

Each month of summer, starting in May, my daughter Hazel and I hosted up to 12 campers at our home to explore the world…from what’s growing in Lancaster County to the far east Asian countries, Mexico, South America and France.

Through cooking, art and language we’ve learned about different cultures and made a lot of fun memories with friends along the way.

Parents have shared sentiments of their children talking about their experiences which has been so heartwarming. Here’s some of what folks have been saying about Hunting & Gathering Summer Camp.

One dad dropping his daughter off said, “It’s like a magical wonderland for kids here.”

“Truly my girls won’t stop singing ‘camp is fun!!!’ Thank you for providing such a fun experience to the kiddos! I’ll say it again, but, LANCASTER IS SO LUCKY TO HAVE YOU!” -Katie Keister

“Ella had such a great time yesterday!  And, she said she loved the ratatouille so much, she wanted it for supper!  Can’t wait to try this at home.” -Jamie Nace
“Maisie really enjoyed ‘trying different foods’ as she put it which is truly something she lives to do and hopefully always will! She enjoyed the outside and inside opportunities and I had the sense everything was paced well for little ones with enough time but not too much time in any one activity. Very little kid friendly!!!  Again, I appreciate your gracious hospitality to open your home for enrichment. I felt that Maisie–probably all the kids–were more at ease feeling they were ‘at home’ very unique for a summer camp! I enjoyed the chance to mingle with other moms as we eased the kids into the morning as well.” -Evelyn Lisi

“Thanks for the inspiration. We made the Portuguese stew for supper and tres leches cake for dessert. Yum!” -Jamie Nace

It’s a bittersweet end to the summer, but the season’s change inspires new opportunities to gather again.

We had many more friends who wanted to join us this summer and requests for more programs with moms and kids of all ages are fueling ideas for more fun in store this year, so stay tuned!

*Save the date for back-to-school season thinking outside the brown bag lunch ideas September 27th. (Mommy and me cooking class for all ages.)

*Save the date to celebrate fall and Mexican culture Dia de los Muertos style with a Halloween party October 25th and debut those costumes for spookatcular fun with friends! (Mommy and me for all ages or drop off age 3+.)

*Save the date November 15 for a holiday crafting gathering.

For now, we’ll say au revoir to summer, but only farewell for now to our friends.