A Grenville-sur-la-Rouge summer camp with a purpose is having a Picnic with a Purpose on Sunday, September 3.
Four chefs from Montreal are making the trip to Camp Amy Molson to prepare a full course farm-to-table meal to raise funds for the camp’s Young Roots Farm program, which aims to make nature accessible and provide a land-based learning experience for marginalized youth so they can develop a deeper connection with the earth and appreciate the nourishment it provides.
Camp Amy Molson is a place for marginalized, urban youth to enjoy fresh air, fun, and friendship.
“We are designing the event to be fun, delicious and eye opening for those who join. In addition to the meal, we’ll have farm tours, live DJ, bartenders, and lake swimming/boating,” Farm Coordinator Ana Castillo said.
The meal will include in-season vegetables along with a pig roast, and goat roast. Boats will be provided for anyone wanting to enjoy some time out on Lac McGillivray.
Young Roots Farm is in a clearing in the woods, just to the west of Camp Amy Molson’s buildings. Camp staff, with the help of campers, grow a variety of vegetables for use in the camp’s kitchen. The items are also sold as a fundraiser throughout the season at farmer’s markets around the region. At the farm, campers get to try cooking with the various items grown there in an outdoor kitchen which includes a clay oven made from clay along the creek which flows through the camp property.
“We give them a lot of independence, we let them cook and explore,” Castillo said of the campers at the farm.
Cooking at the camp is part of teaching campers how to eat healthy with minimal ingredients.
“It’s teaching them how to make something good out of not much,” Castillo explained.
There are also animals at Young Roots Farm, but they are for the enjoyment of the campers. Pigs Kiwi and Mango have spent the summer there along with a rabbit simply named Bunny Rabbit.
The Picnic with a Purpose at Camp Amy Molson takes place from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, September 3 at Camp Amy Molson, which is located at the corner of chemin Scotch and Concession Boyd in Grenville-sur-la-Rouge. Tickets are $100.00 for adults and $30 for children ages seven to 13. The price includes the meal, farm tours, and activities at the lake. A cash bar will be offered separately. Tax receipts for ticket purchases will be issued as the camp is a registered charity. Tickets are available at https://campamymolson.com/fundraiser.php. ‘
Young Roots Farm at Camp Amy Molson photos by James Morgan
