A Historic Hike Around Hemlock Overlook One of the things I love most about working at Adventure Links previously at Hemlock Overlooking Regional Park is that I count all 400 acres as my backyard. When I’m not working in the office or facilitating programs, I often take to the trails to explore this gorgeous property….
Category: Parenting
May 6, 2015
Anna Birch
I’ve recently joined the ranks of being a mom to not one but TWO teenage daughters. There’s no greater reward and ego-leveler than parenting! There are probably as many parenting models, tips, and sets of advice as there are diet fads. Just when we think one might work, our child or society switches on us and we lose…
My education philosophy perpetually changes the more I learn and experience. One of my core foundations that has remained throughout my entire professional career is that every child should have the opportunity to engage in meaningful play outside. In general, this can only be achieved if you are not afraid to get a little dirty. I once…
Just the other day, we had the sad occasion of one of our leadership team members unexpectedly losing a childhood friend. The Facebook post/tribute he wrote to this friend was vivid, beautifully written and it read as if the memories were as fresh as yesterday. However, he hadn’t seen this friend since their childhood. I…
Our family took a magical, adventurous, and once in a lifetime journey together to Arizona in December. One of the trip highlights was a descent into Glen Canyon. The hike was not for the timid and we took extra precautions throughout to “take risks” in a safe and controlled environment. Both subtle and obvious lessons…
Camp Navigator has featured our Summer Camp Director Mark Diedering in their latest issue. Marks asks and answers the top questions you should ask when choosing an adventure camp. Check out the article here. Camp Navigator also phone interviewed Mark with some basic questions about Adventure Links’ Summer camp. You can hear the interview…
I had absolutely no idea just how many hundreds of lives would be changed with that fateful phone call on a beautiful Spring morning over a decade ago. It was a mother, an unbelievably committed, energetic, and wise mother looking for a summer camp program for her son. Little did I know that our conversation…
January 1, 2013
Anna Birch
Sometimes you just have no idea how powerful a role your child plays in another child’s life. It seemed like just another one of many play dates for my 5th grade daughter recently but this one ended quite differently! The light conversation with her friend’s mother quickly gained depth and speed when we began sharing about our…
November 13, 2012
Anna Birch
“Fine…” When did that magically become the answer to nearly every answer to every question I ask my pre-teen daughters?! This past summer, I picked up my girls up from our Adventure Links’ camp and I was bursting to ask them them all sorts of questions about their week. Their response, even when it didn’t…
October 30, 2012
Anna Birch
“Mama, you’ve got to see this.” We took the wonderful opportunity to camp out on our property with another family last month. The hammocks were hung and we all climbed in to our cocoons for the night. It was still dark when my daughter appeared next to me and climbed in to try to sleep…