Sheila could not get enough of camp…

After five years as a camper at RHA’s Farm Camp, Sheila knew the ins and outs of daily life on a working farm: how to care for the animals, how to grow vegetables in an organic garden, how to make delicious foods from the harvest. So it was only natural that Sheila would volunteer as a junior counselor once she was old enough.

“I decided to come back to farm camp as a counselor because of all the fun I had in years past as a camper. I simply couldn’t get enough of the camp!” said Sheila, 14, a freshman at Bernards High School. “It was also fun to pass on my experiences to younger campers.” The annual Farm Camp is held at Pleasant Valley Mills Farm, owned by Harry and Joannah Wilmerding, located along the North Branch of the Raritan River.

“Some of my favorite parts of camp were cooking with ingredients that were grown in Mrs. Wilmerding’s organic garden,” said Sheila. “I found it so interesting that a simple vegetable could be turned into something so delicious! I really enjoyed learning how to make red velvet cupcakes, incorporating shredded beets for coloring and sweetness!”

Sheila’s experiences at Farm Camp gave her a greater awareness of the environment and inspired her to join the Science and Green Teams in middle school. “It also influenced my choice for a Girl Scout Silver Award,” added Sheila. “For my Silver Award, our troop restored a memorial garden at the Matheny School in Peapack. If it wasn’t for farm camp teaching me what I know about gardens and the water, we probably wouldn’t have been able to do this award as well as we did.”