Flying Horse Farms
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Virtual aerial view of Flying Horse Farm
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Flying Horse Farms will be a magical, transforming and fun camp for children with serious illnesses. Situated on nearly 200 acres in Mt. Gilead, Ohio, it is being designed to inspire children to reach beyond their conditions through safe adventures at no charge to the campers' families. Flying Horse Farms will deliver year-round experiences at its custom designed facility opening in 2010, while providing off-site camp opportunities until then.
Flying Horse Farms will serve up to 2,500 children with asthma, cancer, gastrointestinal diseases, heart disease, hemophilia and related blood disorders, sickle cell anemia, and families each year.The camp itself is situated on a property of rolling hills, lakes, woods, trails, meadows and wetlands which will serve as the perfect backdrop for an array of traditional camp activities such as swimming, boating, ropes course, arts and crafts, music and drama, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, building friendships and lots of laughter.
Feature Story
Nick Miesen is the Director of Development for Flying Horse Farms. He served as a camp staff member and volunteer for Camp Boggy Creek during his
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Flying Horse Farms Away Campers |
summer vacations in college. Nick is a member of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity, which supports The Association of Hole in the Wall Camps through philanthropic efforts, and counts among their alumni Paul Newman, founder of the Hole in the Wall Camps. This is Nick’s account of how he became involved with the Hole in the Wall Camps. The piece was originally published in the Hole in the Wall Camps 2007 Annual Review.
When I became a member of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity, I had no idea what an impact that decision was going to have on my life. After hearing about Phi Tau’s relationship with Hole in the Wall Camps, I was determined to have a Camp experience of my own. In May of 2000, I headed down to Camp Boggy Creek for the summer to be the activity specialist for “Boating & Fishing.” I engaged with children who had faced challenges that I could never imagine dealing with. By summer’s end, it became clear to me that I had been the student all along and the campers had been my teachers. I was naive to not recognize that a child could teach me more about life in one week than I could ever attempt to teach him in a year.
After another amazing summer at Camp Boggy Creek, I continued down the normal path with most of my fellow college graduates to conquer the corporate world and rake in the money. It only took me a little over a year to realize that the corporate world is not all that I thought it was, and that life is too short to do something that you don’t enjoy. Now, I have come full circle: as Director of Development for Flying Horse Farms, I get to be involved in building the first Hole in the Wall Camp in the Midwest in my home state of Ohio. The best part of all is that I am experiencing this journey with Liz, one of the first people I met at Camp Boggy Creek. Since 2004, I’ve been extremely fortunate to call that co-counselor my wife and mother of our daughter, Stella.
Camp Contact Information
Administrative and Camp Office
225 Green Meadows Drive South, Suite A
Lewis Center, OH 43035
Phone • 614-505-6161 Fax • 614-505-6683
Email • info@flyinghorsefarms.org
Visit www.flyinghorsefarms.org