“It’s a pickle!” That’s how most kids identify cucumbers on the farm so pickles became the inspiration for our second year of summer camp. We call camp Can You Dig It?!, but you could call it Camp Cucumber.

Campers eating cherry tomatoes fresh from the vine.

Here’s what we wanted camp to include: teach a practical kitchen-related life skill, make a craft to take home, eat lots of farm-fresh vegetables, and have lots and lots of fun.

Master Gardener and E.A.T. South volunteer Charlene helps pour hot brine into pickle jars.

Practical kitchen skills translated into recipe reading and pickling vegetables. Making a jar of fresh pickles became the craft, and children harvested fresh cucumbers and dill as well as ate cherry tomatoes and other vegetables on the farm. We grown-ups tend to think pickling is fun, but just in case we also organized field games, relays and water balloon fights. Of course, everyone who wanted to could hold a chicken.

June is hot! To keep kids cool, we made sno-cones. We pushed a small Kitchen Aid sno-cone maker to its its ice grinding limits every day. (If anyone out there has a good used snow cone or shave ice machine that may want to donate…) So in addition to pickling, we taught kids how to make simple herbal syrups. Yes, you can make your own snow cone syrup at home flavored with mint or lemon grass or fruit juice. Homemade syrup is a tasty and budget-friendly way to flavor cool drinks and teach about herbs. Lemongrass snow cones were the favorite, and each camp day ended with sweet icy coolness.

A good example of how we create partnerships to serve our community, summer camp at E.A.T. South brought together our recreation centers, Big Cedar Education Foundation, and this year, the United Way. Our Parks and Recreation Department transported children to and from the community centers; provided us with extra tents, coolers, cups and gatorade to keep kids cool and hydrated; and provided part time camp staff. Big Cedar Education Foundation provided the seed money for E.A.T. South to create and staff the program, and this year, the United Way brought children to us, too. As with all of our programs, volunteers donated their time making pickles, organizing games, and creating a safe and fun camp atmosphere.

For summer camp to continue, we need your support. Foundation funding for summer camp ends this summer. We need donors and sponsors to cover materials and time to organize and staff summer camp. Will you consider a contribution to allow children to continue to enjoy farm fun in the summer time?