The purpose of the fund is to support the mission of The Folk School, which is to perpetuate the joy of hands-on learning. We offer year-round classes and programs for all ages in traditional crafts, woodworking, outdoor skills, and hands-on arts and sciences.
Our classes include woodworking, boatbuilding, pottery, carving, basket making, blacksmithing, sewing, tanning, book arts, survival skills, summer immersions for kids and adults, cooking, music, wild plant identification and sustainable harvesting, food preservation, farming, writing, journaling and drawing, navigation, botany, biology, and much more. Some are designed for students of all ages, many are focused on kids, and still others on adults. We also have periodic classes and events for homeschooling families, to help provide a diverse education in arts and various skills.
The Folk School was founded in 2007 by Marianne Stolz and John Manthei, who created a Week in the Woods program for local residents. They brought together with Marianne’s childhood experience at a German folk school (a child-focused cousin of the Danish model of folk schools), and John’s homesteading skills. The Folk School was organized in 2010-2011, and in the last four years moved from the original out-of-town location into town, while transitioning to a new generation of leaders.