Prescott Farm Environmental Education Center on White Oaks Road in Laconia welcomed nearly 30 volunteers from the Lakes Region Rotary Youth Leadership Program for a spring clean-up day.

Lakes Region Rotary Youth Leadership is a program for area sophomores who are seriously interested in leadership, providing the students with the opportunity to meet and work with one another, examine leadership characteristics and increase their self-confidence. The students cleaned up the Natural Playscape, helped construct raised beds for the learning garden, and mulched. On the team to clean up Prescott Farm this year was:

From Laconia High School – Steven Poliquin, Maci Howland, Cassandra Sousa, Nicole Turpin, Tyler Richter, Ryan Dee, and Ayden Duncan.

From Moultonborough Academy – Noah Robinson, Zoe Norton, Stephen Woods, Patrick Finnegan, Jessica Bakas.

From Inter-Lakes High School – Aria Shufelt, Jasmine Morrissette, Rachel Taggett, Branden Taggett, Becca Leberman, and Christian Sayegh.

From Gilford High School – Timothy Gentile, Shannon Gately, Reise Jacques, Joshua Testa, and Hunter Wilson.

From Belmont High School – Hannah Leclair, Alexa Rolfe, Kaitryn Gagnon, Rebecca Camire, Cody York, Sana, Sayed, Lars Major, and Mercede McIntyre.

“Our mission is to open the doors to the natural world for youth and people of all ages, and volunteerism is a wonderful way to allow them to make connections with nature and the environment in a true stewardship role,” says Jude Hamel, Executive Director of Prescott Farm. “As a Rotarian myself, I am always pleased to welcome our Youth Leadership to Prescott Farm.”

Leadership is an especially ripe topic for Prescott Farm as it rolls out its new Leadership in Training program for 13- and 14-year-olds attending WildQuest Summer Camps this year. WildQuest Summer camp is 9 unique nature-themed weeks, including nature activities, animal and plant identification, arts and crafts, Quests, games, and hands-on learning. Most of the day is spent outdoors and each week will feature an all-camp hands-on project related to the theme of the week, for campers aged 4-14; including half-day programs for our youngest campers, and a Leadership in Training Program for campers 13-14 years old.

The LIT program includes work with Teen Program Supervisor and peer group for half the day, as well as assist younger camper groups in the afternoons; activities & projects to promote environmental stewardship, conservation & sustainable practices; and team-building activities to grow leadership and group-facilitation skills.