For over 30 years our year-round environmental education center with a small working farm has been dedicated to On every acre, in all we do, we plant seeds for a lifetime of active engagement with the natural world, and we do this through our school field trips, adult lectures, family programs, children’s classes, and our summer camp.
Our beautiful 102-acre property located in West Redding was once the home of our founder, actress Carmen Mathews. It provides us with an outstanding array of outdoor classrooms which include woodlands, wetlands, an evolving scrub and shrub area, a pollinator meadow, and rolling pastures.
- Our Native American programs are enhanced by an authentically-recreated encampment.
- Our astronomy buildings are home to monthly programs as well as being the field station for Joel Barlow High School’s Astronomy classes.
- Our vegetable and herb gardens are featured in our programs.
- Our farm programs take place in our barns, which house milking cows, sheep, chickens and roosters.
- Our barn-like Learning Center with its classroom and spacious meeting areas has been the site of art shows, adult lectures, barn dances, and more.
In 2007 we were designated a Connecticut Dairy Farm of Distinction. People visiting our Dairy Annex may purchase freshly pasteurized milk and yogurt.
In the summer we host a small and personal Summer Camp where we bring together children from the surrounding area. Together these youngsters form friendships, develop an understanding and appreciation of one another as individuals, and have a marvelous time discovering the many wonders of the property.
We look forward to seeing you in our programs and we would welcome your support of this wonderful environmental center. Please contact us if you have any questions!