Memories of Chicken Camp

Chicken Camp Memories -- by Emma Brown, Prairie Crossing Learning Farm Intern

What I loved most about being a part of Chicken Camp and leading some of the chicken activities was seeing how excited the campers were about the various activities related to our flock. Collecting the eggs was always an exciting experience, especially when there were hens in the nest boxes who didn't want to give up their eggs! It was great to hear the campers say "yeah, they might peck you but it doesn't hurt!" I was happy to see that the kids wanted to be a part of tending to the chickens and, even if they don't understand it yet, they are acting as a part of our community food system. That's something I think everyone should be aware of, and these campers started learning about it at Farm Camp!

One of the best memories I have of Chicken Camp is about a particular young camper. He loved the chickens, and the only thing he loved more than the chickens was feeding them mulberries from the tree near the chicken yard. Every time we went over to the chickens we picked mulberries from the tree and also the ones that fell on the ground. He would feed the chickens from his hand and by the end of the day his hands would be covered in sticky purple juice.

The day of our celebration, which is always the last day of each camp, the camper's mother shared with us that when he came home from Chicken Camp the previous day, he stated that it had been "the best day of his life!" We were so moved and so happy to hear that he had such a great time. I will never forget him and his love of the Learning Farm chickens and feeding them mulberries!