The History of Orchard Valley

During each of the two biggest snowstorms of this 2022 winter, folks gathered around their glowing zoom screens for a recollection of the history of Orchard Valley Waldorf School.

These conversations ignited from a requirement by the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, and set Orchard Valley on a path to begin composing a substantial self-study document. This includes a written history of our school that will be shared with our mentor school later this spring.

On January 17, 2022, founders of the original Child's Garden kindergarten - Susan Darrah, the original teacher; Susan Ritz, the first Board Chair; Carley Claghorn and Kim Tulucke some of the early parents - celebrated the wondrous beginnings of this program when a group of families formed a “community group” creating festivals in their yards and in local parks. 

This group blossomed into the first classroom above the woodshop of a local carpenter on Main Street in Montpelier and then moved to 155 Northfield St in 1990 over 30 years ago. The early families worked side by side to renovate the rented space that was in poor condition and engaged in fundraising for a companion school in Nicaragua at the time. In those early days, they offered marionette puppetry in the local library, hosted a Waldorf Expo in the City Center and provided a hand washing station at the 4th of July parade to help get the word out. National Life, long-time landlord of the Child's Garden donated this building and land to us in 2019 which has been substantially renovated during the pandemic.

On February 4, 2022, a much larger group of over 15 enthusiastic founders came together to recall the arduous and exciting birth of Orchard Valley in the newly renovated classroom building of the Grace Farm campus. In 2000, a determined group of Child's Garden parents started a grade school initiative, the Three Rivers School. Soon after, the Child's Garden initiated a nursery program in the Flanders Building of Goddard College. There was disagreement and uncertainty in those years about when to start a school, where to start it and on what lands. The Child's Garden actually purchased a property on Town Hill Rd for a site that now is the home of an Orchard Valley family. 

Community members toured other properties, engaged in many meetings and even created a “Third Board” (The Montpelier River Garden Initiative) to help navigate the many decisions that extended beyond the work of the existing Board members of both the Child's Garden and Three Rivers School. Then, on August 15, 2003, with the support of a group of community-minded investors who forged the Montpelier Waldorf Investment Community Corporation (later reformed as the Grace Farm Community Partners), Grace Farm was finally purchased from the former Winooski Valley Orchards at auction by Ron Koss on behalf of the future Orchard Valley Waldorf School.

We plan to continue these conversations and to reflect on the birth of our first middle school, to remember the birth of the 4-year high school program called the Initiative (a Vermont Waldorf High School at the Stokes Building at Goddard College from 2013 to 2017) and to remember the birth of Sweet Clover Nursery in 2016.

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Thoughts From Our Participants:

“Through our work on governance, we are getting our Waldorf education.” - Pamela Van Deursen – former Orchard Valley Board Chair, former Initiative Board Chair

“Building community and culture...we have to appreciate each other for what we are doing. By doing this we build a culture of joyful activity.” - Johannes Otter – former Child's Garden Board member, former Orchard Valley Board member

“generosity of time and talent, a resource I had never seen lived with such activity before or since.” - Deb Reed – first school administrator

“Nothing short of a miracle...there were many miraculous turns, sometimes felt like a dead-end, we kept going, kept trying, things resolved.” - Tom Kavet- first Orchard Valley Treasurer

“One of the best experiences of my life....spiritual world was helping in our practical hard work.” - Jacqueline Gabe – first Grades teacher

We Remember:

Peter Fischer (1954-2013) - Built the first Child's Garden classroom above his woodshop on Main Street.

Jim Grundy (1968-2011) - Installed the solar panels on the Orchard Valley Farmhouse; beloved spouse of Nancy Bruce and father of Esme and Ava. Jim also worked on the installation of the radiant floors in the Grades Building.

Christiane Horvath (1979-2009) - Our first Music and German teacher

Stratton C. “Tony” French (1959-2019) - Long-time member of the Grace Farm Committee which hosted pruning workshops each spring in the orchards, Tony was a hydrologist dedicated to the testing and care of the water of Orchard Valley for many years. Beloved spouse of Julie Henderson, father of two alums, Piper and Eli French.

Kathryn Seaver “Kathy” Clark (1960-2019) - Served as the first office manager and remained in service to the Orchard Valley administration until her passing. Kathy substantially contributed to the initiation of the Sweet Clover nursery program. She was the beloved spouse of Keith Clark and mother of alum, Molly Clark.

A Note of Gratitude

by Lindsay Cahill Lord

I wanted to send an email of gratitude to all the teachers at Sweet Clover Nursery (SCN). I've mentioned this specific story to a couple of teachers, but it occurs to me that this really is a sentiment that is across all of your wonderful teachers and assistants, even if I've only personally stopped to see it a couple of times. 

I'm a first-time parent (and I'm also a little older than average for one!), which as you know can be a scary thing to be. Normal stages in my daughter's development have absolutely terrified me. And honestly, as a result, I was a little late giving her some freedom to grow and explore. I am constantly grateful for the experience, expertise, and care of the teachers at Sweet Clover. When my daughter was in Rosebud, Miss Jean recommended books to me that I've really leaned on to overcome parenting worrying; Miss Jung gave me welcomed advice on the introduction of table foods and on how to handle my daughter’s first cold! 

More recently at Sweet Pea, Miss Nolwenn has really invited open and regular communication, and she makes you feel like your family and your child are always her primary focus (when I know that in reality, we are one of many children in the classroom.) When my daughter had an injury at school a few weeks ago, after the second status update phone call to me from Miss Nolwenn, I found myself reflecting on how I am fully comfortable with and trust the judgment and experience of the SCN teachers with my daughter's safety and care. Which is a big leap for me, as I would previously obsess and panic over everything. 

I wanted to share a story that illustrates this, and how it positively impacted how we have since changed some of our home activities as a result: 

A few weeks ago, I pulled into the parking lot to pick up my daughter in the after-care program (at the time). I spotted her right away up on the play structure, and I admit that I completely panicked. She's too little to climb up there! She can't climb those stairs! She can't possibly get down by herself! My first instinct was to come flying out of the car and run and scoop her up. And I had to make myself pause and watch for a bit, and I am very glad that I did. What I observed (after my initial heart attack) was that an adult was standing right there. That she was carefully watching the three children on the play structure. That I could see her talking them through their climbing, and giving them guidance when they got stuck. And I watched my daughter crawl up and down the structure three or four times, each time she carefully chose her footing and descended down first. Since she's usually a daredevil, I can only assume that what I was observing was the result of lots of guidance received on finding her footing and taking her time. I saw that she was confident and practiced in her movements, and you could tell she was having lots of fun. 

At home, I rarely brought my daughter to the playground because I believed she was too little and it was too dangerous. She loves to climb, but I would only let her be carried up to the slide and go down it while being held by me with both hands. The Saturday following this particular pickup day, I brought her to the toddler playground in Northfield Falls, where she climbed and ran all morning. By the time we left, she could take herself up and down the stairs and ramp and go down the slide on her belly without any intervention from me. We now go to the toddler playground every weekend, and I swear she gains new mobility and balance each time. I would never have been brave enough to take her if I hadn't had the opportunity to watch the SCN teachers and carers interact with her outside while on the play structure. I am so grateful for that. I learned a lot in that one observation about trusting her to govern her own movements, but also about being present for safety and guidance without impeding her ability to learn.

The experience that the teachers and carers have in educating children meant they already knew all of this, which is what I observed that day at pick up. But I am so grateful that I could benefit from it as a parent. When we enrolled her at SCNS, I knew that you all would teach my daughter lots of things, but I never imagined that you would teach me as a parent as much as you have. I am so very grateful for that and for all of you!