Whether you’re seeking advice, looking to troubleshoot a challenge, or just want to connect with the CFN community, we’re here to help!

Date: March 17th, 2026
Time(s): 10 AM Eastern Time / 9 AM Central / 8 AM Mountain / 7 AM Pacific
Location: Zoom

Click here to join the Zoom meeting

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Glenmoore, Pennsylvania

Camphill Soltane stands as a vibrant, inclusive community dedicated to cultivating belonging, purpose, and joy for adults with intellectual and developmental differences. Nestled on a peaceful campus in Glenmoore, Pennsylvania, Soltane has woven together creative learning, meaningful work, and social connection through its array of programs and enterprises for the past 37 years. Grounded in Camphill ideals of mutual contribution, the organization offers a rich tapestry of opportunities that empower participants to grow alongside peers and mentors.

At the heart of Soltane’s land-based work is Soltane Horticulture, a flourishing initiative rooted in care for the land, sustainable cultivation, and inclusive participation and leadership. Through hands-on gardening, orchard care, greenhouse work, and seasonal plantings, participants engage deeply with the rhythms of nature while developing practical skills that support both personal and professional growth and community livelihood. Whether grooming the Angora goats, collecting freshly laid eggs, nurturing tropicals in the greenhouse, or harvesting fresh produce, individuals find connection, purpose, and confidence.

This spring, Camphill Soltane is proud to launch its Horticulture Vocational Training Program, a new and pioneering offering designed to bridge passion with professional pathways. This comprehensive training meets three days a week and focuses on real-world horticultural knowledge — from plant biology and soil science to irrigation and sustainable practices — coupled with professional development skills like teamwork, customer service, and interview readiness. The training is intentionally structured to prepare graduates to enter the workforce with confidence, competence, and a certificate that validates their achievements.

What sets this program apart is its deep commitment to accessibility and individualized learning. With sensory-friendly tools, adaptive pacing, and small class sizes, students receive tailored guidance that honors diverse learning styles and needs. Learners cultivate competencies in orchard care, greenhouse production, and garden design, all while being supported by experienced growers who foster confidence and independence.

Camphill Soltane’s horticulture initiatives echo the organization’s broader mission: to create inclusive spaces where every person can contribute meaningfully and be seen for their unique gifts. The vocational program builds on decades of experience offering supported work, volunteer opportunities, and integrated social enterprises in Soltane’s horticulture, Café, arts, and hospitality ventures. By embedding skill-building in a life-affirming community, Soltane helps participants step boldly into futures defined by capability, purpose, and joy.

Beyond the garden and greenhouse, the Camphill Soltane campus is alive with collaboration and creativity. The horticulture programs intersect with community events, seasonal celebrations, and shared traditions that reinforce dignity, respect, and shared purpose. As the vocational training program takes root in 2026, Camphill Soltane continues to expand its role as a living example of how care farming can nurture both land and human potential — offering an empowering model for inclusive, nature-based vocational pathways. 

Camphill Soltane

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Whether you’re seeking advice, looking to troubleshoot a challenge, or just want to connect with the CFN community, we’re here to help!

Date: February 17th, 2026
Time(s): 10 AM Eastern Time / 9 AM Central / 8 AM Mountain / 7 AM Pacific
Location: Zoom

Click here to join the Zoom meeting

The post Join CFN’s Monthly Open Office Hour appeared first on Care Farming Network.

Missed one of the most talked-about sessions from Care Farming Network’s National Conference—or want to revisit it with fresh ears? Join us for a special Encore Webinar, featuring a replay and facilitated discussion of one of our most popular conference presentations.

This virtual gathering offers another chance to learn from care farming leaders, reflect on key insights, and connect with others in the CFN community—no travel required.

Details:

• Date: Thursday March 5, 2026
• Time: 3:00–4:00 pm Eastern Time
• Format: Live virtual webinar
• Featuring: A standout presentation from CFN’s National Conference
• Suggested donation: $10
• Registration required

The specific session topic will be announced soon. All are welcome—whether you attended the conference or are joining us for the first time.

Register to save your spot and be part of the conversation.

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About Imagine That Farm

Imagine That Farm connects mental health agencies and farms to create care farm therapy. We partner with professionals and organizations to integrate nature- and animal-assisted therapies into their work, providing expert guidance to launch care farms and foster meaningful collaborations.

Our trainings blend hands-on, nature-informed methods with clinical expertise, equipping practitioners to deliver deeply connected, life-changing care. Whether you’re building a new care farm or expanding an existing practice, we guide you every step of the way.

Learn more about Amy Grace, LMFT and Imagine that farm on their website.

The post Grant Case Study + Organizational Timeline: Imagine That Farm appeared first on Care Farming Network.

Shawn Hayden entered GAAMHA’s Pathway House in 2009 with little hope and a life unraveling from addiction. Over time, the program’s structure and support helped him rebuild his life, repair his family relationships, and discover a professional path in service to others. That journey led to an unexpected turning point: the creation of GAAMHA’s care farming program, where individuals with substance use disorder and/or mental health challenges care for rescued animals and, in the process, experience connection, healing, and trust. 

Now President and CEO of GAAMHA, Shawn speaks candidly about his past struggles with addiction and how they continue to shape his perspective on recovery, purpose, and healing. He discusses the powerful, often transformative stories that emerge from the farm. And he reflects on the promising future of care farming and its potential to transform lives, communities, and the way society approaches support and recovery.

Read the Full Article here.

The post From Recovery to Stewardship: GAAMHA CEO Shawn Hayden Reimagines Healing appeared first on Care Farming Network.

The gravel road winds past whispering pines and sunlit fields, giving way to a wooden sign: Fox Moon Farm. Beyond it lies 60 acres of wild serenity deep within King and Queen County, with meadows stitched with clover, a glassy lake, and the low murmur of horses shifting in the pasture.

It is a place where time seems to stretch and soften, where nature and compassion braid together like strands of a bridle, and where a truly unique and enriching project was formed. For the people who come here, including children with autism, adults living with dementia, and parents weary from worry, this is more than a farm. It is a sanctuary.

The Fox Moon Farm Project began as a dream to “be of service.” Co-founded by Cindy Freishtat and Maria Flint, the nonprofit was born from a search for something real and rooted. It was a calling that would bring immeasurable meaning to their lives and to the lives of others.

Maria always dreamed of a farm for healing where people could gather to build community and connection. Cindy knew firsthand the healing powers of horses, having grown up with them, and was later inspired by her father, who had dementia, to create a nonprofit to help others in need.

The farm’s motto is simple: We Grow People.

“Growing people” means many things, but one of the most important traits the Fox Moon Farm Project cultivates is hope. For some, hope means their child developing the skills to live independently one day. For another, it is overcoming depression. For someone else, it is the hope of friendship and a chance to go to prom. The magic created here is not limited by age, gender, or background. It is palpable, and every visitor can feel and benefit from it.

In addition to the children who come to the farm daily for sessions, whether through Social Services programs or self-pay, the farm welcomes everyone. Twice a month, a gathering of amazing people with intellectual and developmental disabilities from Transitions Day Support Services comes to spend time with horses and other animals.

Participants pet and groom the horses, hold baby goats, garden, and help with other barn chores. Each activity is designed to engage the mind and calm the nervous system.

“They connect on a spiritual level, on an emotional level, on a physical level,” explained Fox Moon Farm equine specialist Kiele Marston. “You can just see the smiles come out. You can see them getting out of their van with anxiety and transforming into just happiness. It is amazing to experience.”

Healing at Fox Moon Farm takes many forms. Sometimes it is the quiet pace of a horse’s huff, and sometimes it is the spark that happens when connection replaces fear.

When 17-year-old Matt first arrived, he was nonverbal. His eyes darted between the sky and the ground, never meeting anyone else. Freishtat, who runs the farm’s Healing with Horses program, said that while initially nervous, he soon became a beloved visitor.

“He is just very special to me,” she said. “Maybe it is because he is one of my first, I do not know, but I have been working with him for quite some time.” The connection came not through words but through rhythm.

“You have to find what attracts and engages them, and I quickly learned that for Matt it was music,” she said. “I started singing, and I started clapping and we started drumming.”

Music became their bridge, and in the months that followed, something miraculous happened. Matt began to practice verbal skills. He started following directions, driving the tractor and laughing out loud.

“One of the most powerful things that has happened with Matt is that he is starting to learn language,” Freishtat said. “He is finding his way into the world.”

At Fox Moon Farm, children with special needs learn through movement and touch. From brushing the coats of horses to gathering eggs or tending to the Community Garden that helps feed local families, every task builds confidence and helps create a calm space.

“A lot of these kids need to be outside. They need to be in a farm environment, and they need to be with animals,” Freishtat explained. “We were out in a big field, and I put Matt’s hands on the wheel, and I was like, ‘Let’s go.’”

The tractor rolled forward, the wind caught their laughter, and for a moment, everything was perfect.  Driving the tractor has been a massive self-confidence boost for Matt, and it means there is real hope that he can one day drive a car all by himself.

“To be a parent of a child with special needs is so hard on so many levels,” Freishtat said. “And to see your child doing things that you never thought they might be able to do, whether saying words, driving a tractor, or opening gates and following directions… you know what we do? We give them hope.”

Hope, it turns out, is Fox Moon Farm’s truest crop.

The Healing with Horses program is part of a larger picture, one that continues to evolve. In addition, the farm hosts private family and friends Gathering Spaces. Whether you are celebrating a special occasion, having a family reunion or simply wanting to catch your breath, the farm offers the perfect backdrop for meaningful connections and inspiration. Dive into their beautiful lake for a swim or take a boat ride while soaking in the stunning views. All of the spaces are rentable by the day. Even the farm’s newest addition, Soul Moon Cove, builds that vision. Nestled by a six-acre lake beneath cathedral-high oaks, it serves as a retreat space for yoga, art, and empowerment workshops.

“It is a place to rest and rediscover yourself,” Flint said. “People come here to heal, to learn, to breathe.”

Hope also comes in the form of their Community Garden, a program designed to support families experiencing food insecurity in King and Queen County, as well as surrounding counties. Tended to by loving hands, the farm harvests and delivers thousands of pounds of organic produce to families in need each year, and there is more on the horizon. 

Behind the scenes, another dream is taking shape: the Forest Trail Project. The team has been carefully crafting a network of winding paths through the surrounding woods, serving as a living classroom where participants can walk, ride, and explore. The trail will serve as a haven for horseback rides and quiet reflection while also becoming a new setting for hands-on learning. Along these shaded paths, children and adults alike will practice decision-making, confidence building, problem-solving, and creativity, guided by the gentle harmony of nature.

Leading the charge is the farm’s newest team member, Jared Rigney, whose background in outdoor education and easy humor have already made him a favorite among the kids.

“He has got them laughing and working hard,” Freishtat said, smiling, adding that the crew members are not just building a trail; they are building pride.

At Fox Moon, the belief that nature is the greatest teacher runs deep. On any given day, the farm hums with quiet purpose. Horses nicker softly as volunteers muck. Children’s laughter carries on the breeze. Down by the lake, dragonflies skim the surface while attendees practice meditation on the dock. It is not unusual to see a parent sitting nearby with tears in their eyes, not from sadness, but from the simple joy of watching their child open up and bloom in the natural world.

Fox Moon Farm is not a grand facility with sprawling stables or high-priced treatments. It is something much rarer: a place where the boundaries between people and nature blur and where healing is found not in medicine but in moments of connection.

“Every person who comes here leaves a little piece of themselves behind and takes something of Fox Moon with them,” Freishtat said, reflecting on what the farm has become. In the evenings at Fox Moon Farm, as the wind stirs the tall grass and the farm settles in this quiet corner of Virginia, far from the noise of the world, hearts found their home. 

For more information on Fox Moon Farm, visit them on Facebook at facebook.com/foxmoonfarmproject or online at foxmoonfarm.org.

If you work with children or adolescents experiencing trauma, depression, behavioral challenges, special needs, or situations where traditional talk therapy has not reached them, consider the power of Equine Assisted Learning. At Fox Moon Farm, horses help students learn emotional awareness, self-regulation, anger management, boundary setting, and so much more – one steady heartbeat at a time.

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Whether you’re seeking advice, looking to troubleshoot a challenge, or just want to connect with the CFN community, we’re here to help!

Date: January 20, 2026
Time(s): 10 AM Eastern Time / 9 AM Central / 8 AM Mountain / 7 AM Pacific
Location: Zoom

Click here to join the Zoom meeting

The post Join CFN’s Monthly Open Office Hour appeared first on Care Farming Network.

By Deborah Becker

Farming wasn’t on Shawn Hayden’s mind when he began looking at property near Gardner, a small city in central Massachusetts. His plan was to convert a farmhouse into housing for men in recovery from drug addiction and mental health issues.

Hayden, who runs the Gardner Athol Area Mental Health Association, envisioned a place where residents would live while receiving services from his organization.

As he and his staff finalized their first property deal, the seller made an unexpected request.

“It was kind of on his way out, he’s like, ‘Hey, I have two goats and a pony here,’ ” Hayden recalled. ” ‘Can they just stay?’ And we said, ‘I guess so.’ ”

From that unlikely beginning, was born a program that’s part animal sanctuary, part therapy center. The number of animals on the Gardner property has grown to 75 — with chickens, pigs, horses and critically endangered Newfoundland ponies joining the farm’s original residents.

The 16 men who live at what’s now known as the Carl E. Dahl House care for the animals and do daily chores. They typically stay for several months. Each person is assigned one particular animal to watch over as a central element of their therapy.

Since the farm began accepting residents in 2021, it has served about 200 men, funded through a combination of state and private grants, and donations. Hayden said many of the men are doing well and are now living on their own.

The program could become part of a growing trend in addiction treatment under U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has touted creating “healing farms” across the country for people struggling with substance use.

While the residents in Hayden’s center receive weekly counseling and psychiatric care, he believes it’s their work with animals that brings the most important lessons. Hayden said concepts like resilience and empathy are part of many treatment programs, but people appear to understand them more clearly once animals are involved.

“Sometimes it’s hard to get people motivated,” Hayden said. “But if I put a baby goat in your hands, everyone wants to help that baby goat, right? So it’s a little bit of a cheat code for some of these kind of lessons that we’ve been trying to teach people forever.”

Many animals at the farm are old or sick and need a lot of care, he explained, leading to lessons about accountability and showing up daily. Sometimes they don’t survive, prompting conversations about grief and letting go.

The goats are a favorite of 48-year-old Walter Cobb from Dorchester. He recently relapsed after six years of being drug-free. Cobb said he enjoys the routine of his daily chores. He’d never been on a farm before he arrived two months ago. Now, he said, he visits one goat a couple of times a day.

“I come out here at 5 in the morning,” Cobb said, as he swept one of the barns. “It’s gotten to the point where he jumps up and lets me hug him. We’ve got a good bond.”

Sometimes it's hard to get people motivated. But if I put a baby goat in your hands, everyone wants to help that baby goat, right?

-Shawn Hayden

The farm is an example of what’s known as a “therapeutic community,” a broad category of residential treatment that’s been around for decades. The programs are typically at least several months long, led by people who are also in recovery and include work or vocational training as part of the therapy.

While Hayden’s program requires daily chores and animal care, he said it’s different from some other therapeutic communities because of its focus on medical care and professional mental health treatment. The men’s work with the animals, he said, is built into a daily routine that blends old-fashioned farming with current therapeutic techniques led by staff counselors and psychiatrists.

“There is nothing we do on this farm that’s novel,” Hayden said. “We didn’t invent anything. We looked at something that’s worked for centuries, and we modernized some components of it.”

Also taking a fresh look at this idea is U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has personal and family experience with drug and alcohol addiction. As a model, Kennedy points to a program in Italy, called San Patrignano.

San Patrignano is an unusually large and sophisticated therapeutic community that currently serves more than 800 people. The residents pledge to live there for at least two years and work in farming, culinary arts, textiles and other jobs. The program is free, but the patients’ work is unpaid, which critics argue leaves people vulnerable to exploitation.

San Patringano’s leaders, and some current and former residents, say work is crucial to treatment, and the proceeds support the community.

In 2023, Kennedy told the podcast host Dr. Drew Pinsky that creating a network of facilities like San Patrignano in the U.S. would be his “Peace Corps,” an initiative founded by his uncle, the late President John F. Kennedy, in the 1960s.

“They teach skills, they have bakeries and furniture factories, and they are basically self-sufficient. It is so successful over there,” said Kennedy, who promoted the rehab idea several times before he was confirmed as health and human services secretary.

In the past, some therapeutic communities have faced allegations of abusing and exploiting residents. In one high-profile example, a large therapeutic community based in California became a cult, and its rise and descent was profiled last year in an HBO documentary.

San Patrignano was itself the subject of scandals, but today its leaders say policies are in place to prevent abuses.

Addiction experts say while therapeutic communities should be part of the treatment landscape, they can vary widely in terms of quality and structure.

Kevin Sabet,  president and CEO of the Foundation for Drug Policy Solutions and a former drug policy advisor in the Clinton, Bush and Obama White Houses, said for therapeutic communities to succeed in the U.S., they must adhere to medical standards and strict oversight.

But Sabet also said the nation needs more — and better — drug treatment options. Although the U.S. spends billions annually on treatment, tens of thousands of people die of overdoses every year. That’s despite widening access to the overdose reversal drug naloxone, also known by the brand name Narcan.

Sabet said therapeutic communities might make a difference, especially for people with severe substance use disorders.

“It would be cheaper than what we’re doing now, frankly,” Sabet said, “which is often waiting until there are a lot of problems and dealing with it in the criminal system, or reviving somebody with Narcan 15 times.”

A strong feature of therapeutic communities, according to Sabet and other experts, is the length of treatment — well beyond the average 28 days spent in many U.S. rehabs. They say that’s not nearly enough time to treat people for addiction.

John Kelly, founder and director of the Recovery Research Institute at Massachusetts General Hospital, said addiction treatment should span at least five years and gradually wind down.

“We really are talking about the long game here,” Kelly said.

But he added that more research is needed to assess how therapeutic communities might address the opioid epidemic. He’s concerned that expanding them could backfire if the Trump administration forces people into treatment or if programs are not adequately funded.

San Patrignano’s medical director, Dr. Antonio Boschini, said it would take more than money to replicate the Italian program on this side of the Atlantic. He said other countries have adapted San Patrignano’s model to account for cultural differences. But he believes there is a significant difference in the U.S. that underlies its high rates of addiction.

“Pain is a disease in your country — not only physical pain, but psychological pain,” Boschini said. “If you don’t learn how to cope with pain, you are more vulnerable to drugs.”

Interest in therapeutic communities appears to be growing among U.S. providers, according to Hayden and other advocates. Hayden attended the first national “care farming” conference at the University of Massachusetts Amherst this year, and said another is planned for next year. He’s now collecting data on his approach, and has secured state grant funding and nonprofit awards to expand his youth outpatient program to bring more people to the farm.

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