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Hawlemont Hosts H.A.Y. Conference


Raindrops on window pane

Conference to be held at local elementary school

Have you ever thought about raising your own worms at home?

It would be fun and you could save the environment by recycling your food scraps. You could learn how to do this if you attend, “Worm Composting in the Classroom and Home,” by Amy Donovan, just one of the workshops being hosted at the first ever H.A.Y. conference this year on Saturday, April 30 at the Hawlemont Elementary School in Charlemont, Massachusetts.

The event will be starting at 8:30 a.m. and lasting until 3:30 in the afternoon and lunch will be provided.

There are over 20 workshops available for the public to come and enjoy and each will have four different sessions that last an hour and fifteen minutes each.

There are workshops designed for children such as “Solar Ovens” by Amber Tulloch, “Soft Pretzels” by Susan Wood, and “Making Salve” by Claire Pearson. Other workshops are for the general public such as “Let’s Make Cheese,” by Sheila Litchfield and “Apple Tree Grafting,” by Chip Hager. Workshops cost $15 per session or $50 buys a ticket for the whole day.

Hawlemont is the only agricultural based public elementary school in the United States and it is doing extremely well. “At Hawlemont, we provide an innovative elementary education through hands on experimental learning that combines agriculture and community involvement with traditional curriculum.”

The Carpentry, Electrical and Landscaping Programs from F.C.T.S. have all contributed by building the barn and the nature trail used in the event.

All of the money raised will be going towards the H.A.Y. program which stands for Hawlemont Agriculture and You and this program is where the main involvement with the animals occurs.

For any more information or registration you can contact the school at 413-339-8316 to talk with Jean Bruffee – Agricultural Educator at jbruffee@mohawkschools.org or Wayne Kermenski - Principal at wkermenski@mohawkschools.org

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