Celebrate Mom with Fresh Air, Good Food, and Farm Hospitality
Celebrate Mom with Fresh Air, Good Food, and Farm Hospitality
Dig Deeper Blog
Interview: The Inn at East Hill Farm - Year-round Farm Fun Plus A New Farm School Program Just for Kids
Scottie Jones
4 min read
Jennifer Murray, of The Inn at East Hill Farm in Troy, NH, recently told us about East Hill Farm's new Farm School. We were intrigued by the idea, so we emailed Jennifer some questions about the farm, inn, and their many agritourism endeavors. Here's the interview.
1. Could you tell us a bit about East Hill Farm?
JM: The Inn at East Hill Farm offers a vacation atmosphere coupled with a unique farm-oriented educational experience. Year round activities for the whole family include indoor and outdoor swimming, hiking, cross country skiing and snowshoeing, cow milking, egg collecting, hay and sleigh rides, horseback riding and a children's recreation program. Three home-cooked family style meals are served daily.
2. Your farm has so many different programs ... you host farm vacations, senior programs, sleigh rides, dances, and more. How do you do it all? And how does it all fit together?
JM: East Hill Farm does offer many experiences. At the heart of it all we are a family vacation resort with a working farm. For many years we have offered families a relaxing vacation on the farm. Guests are encouraged to interact with the animals and farmers as much as they like. The cows and goats need to be milked each day and eggs need to be collected. We have horseback riding lessons and trail rides as well as wagon rides and sleigh rides.
Over the years we have expanded our offerings in order to remain viable and to stay open all year long. We have developed ways to draw visitors through a variety of programs. Whether someone is coming for an all-inclusive resort vacation, a senior bus tour, a dance weekend, farm school or a business conference, everyone is encouraged to experience part of farm life.
East Hill Farm donkeys
3. You just started a new program called the Farm School Program. Could you tell us about it? What inspired you to start the program?
JM: East Hill Farm School gives middle school students, grades 5-8, with a meaningful, hands-on farm experience. Students will join the East Hill Farm farmers and naturalists for a 3-day program where students will play an integral role in running our farm.
On our 150 acres, we raise heritage breed cows, goats, sheep and pigs along with horses, chickens and other farm animals. Through our school program, students will help us run the farm, from milking the cows to fixing fences to helping manage the fields and surrounding woodlands. By caring for the animals and gaining a stronger appreciation for environmental stewardship, the farm will begin to feel like a home away from home. Schools can customize the program by choosing from a variety of workshops that best align with their curriculum or students' interests.
Pig Crossing, East Hill Farm
4. What has been the response to the Farm School Program so far?
JM: We have had positive feedback from the schools that have visited us. The students enjoy working on the farm and learning about farm life. The students have participated in projects that have improved the farm, such as helping to create new signs for various barns and helping with seeding the fields.
5. Are there other programs like this at other farms that you know of?
JM: The Farm School in Athol, MA has a similar program. They have been providing farm-based education for children and adults for years. We continue to network with and learn from other farmers and programs and have recently joined the Farm-Based Education Association. www.farmbasededucation.org
6. Which of your programs would you recommend most to other farms looking to diversify?
JM: I think anything farmers can do to expand on educational opportunities is wonderful. There is a trend toward reconnecting with our food supply and eating locally-grown produce and meats. Building connections with local schools and organizations to provide food products and settings for place based education are also important. It is wonderful for students to participate in farm based education right at their local farms!
2. Your farm has so many different programs ... you host farm vacations, senior programs, sleigh rides, dances, and more. How do you do it all? And how does it all fit together?
JM: East Hill Farm does offer many experiences. At the heart of it all we are a family vacation resort with a working farm. For many years we have offered families a relaxing vacation on the farm. Guests are encouraged to interact with the animals and farmers as much as they like. The cows and goats need to be milked each day and eggs need to be collected. We have horseback riding lessons and trail rides as well as wagon rides and sleigh rides.
Over the years we have expanded our offerings in order to remain viable and to stay open all year long. We have developed ways to draw visitors through a variety of programs. Whether someone is coming for an all-inclusive resort vacation, a senior bus tour, a dance weekend, farm school or a business conference, everyone is encouraged to experience part of farm life.
East Hill Farm donkeys
3. You just started a new program called the Farm School Program. Could you tell us about it? What inspired you to start the program?
JM: East Hill Farm School gives middle school students, grades 5-8, with a meaningful, hands-on farm experience. Students will join the East Hill Farm farmers and naturalists for a 3-day program where students will play an integral role in running our farm.
On our 150 acres, we raise heritage breed cows, goats, sheep and pigs along with horses, chickens and other farm animals. Through our school program, students will help us run the farm, from milking the cows to fixing fences to helping manage the fields and surrounding woodlands. By caring for the animals and gaining a stronger appreciation for environmental stewardship, the farm will begin to feel like a home away from home. Schools can customize the program by choosing from a variety of workshops that best align with their curriculum or students' interests.
Pig Crossing, East Hill Farm
4. What has been the response to the Farm School Program so far?
JM: We have had positive feedback from the schools that have visited us. The students enjoy working on the farm and learning about farm life. The students have participated in projects that have improved the farm, such as helping to create new signs for various barns and helping with seeding the fields.
5. Are there other programs like this at other farms that you know of?
JM: The Farm School in Athol, MA has a similar program. They have been providing farm-based education for children and adults for years. We continue to network with and learn from other farmers and programs and have recently joined the Farm-Based Education Association. www.farmbasededucation.org
6. Which of your programs would you recommend most to other farms looking to diversify?
JM: I think anything farmers can do to expand on educational opportunities is wonderful. There is a trend toward reconnecting with our food supply and eating locally-grown produce and meats. Building connections with local schools and organizations to provide food products and settings for place based education are also important. It is wonderful for students to participate in farm based education right at their local farms!
Related Articles
Why We Are Heading to Scotland This June (And Why You Might Want to Join Us)
This June, we’re packing our bags and heading to Aberdeen, Scotland for something pretty special.
Where Hospitality Comes Naturally
Across the country, farms are welcoming guests in growing numbers, from short visits to longer stays, offering a close look at everyday farm life. It’s an invitation to see where food comes from and to experience farm life. Those who have chosen to do this have done so thoughtfully. There is no performance or theme, but instead a form of welcoming, a chance to share the land and introduce the families who care for it. From the outside, visiting a working farm can feel a little unexpected. The farmer has laden the breakfast table with jams they made and eggs fresh from the chicken coop. You step outside your door to pick fresh fruit from the orchard, or maybe you’re invited to try your hand at milking a dairy cow or holding a bottle of warm milk for a calf. The lights are on for your late arrival, and a friendly note on the table welcomes you to the farm. This is a visit to a family’s home in the countryside. At Farmstay, we work with farms and ranches across the country that welcome guests in many different ways. Some are just beginning their hospitality journey. Others have been opening their gates for decades, shaping hospitality through lived experience rather than any single formula. This is a small glimpse of the many farms that do this kind of hosting especially well (the first three farms on our list were early U.S. pioneers in farm hospitality, welcoming guests as far back as the 1950s).