Blue Mountains Conservancy

10/12/2026

Join us as we continue our year-long journey exploring the 13 Moons. Each month, we gather to celebrate a different moon and explore its seasonal symbolism across cultures.

This September, we honor the Hunter Moon—Historically marking the time for many cultures in the northern hemisphere to hunt game and stockpile meat before winter. Hunter moon signals the transition from the bright, active half of the year into the dark, quiet winter season.

At Heritage Pond, we’ll honor this season by:
—Making bow and arrows from Willow
—Creating Elk skull and antler artwork from drawing charcoal and chalk pastels
—Viewing antlers from deer and elk
—Trying some Elderberry tea

Come celebrate the gifts of this time in nature, connect with the land, and share in the beauty of this turning season.

We’d love to have you with us this Saturday!

Teachers: Amanda Welch and Meghan Ballard

Location: Heritage Pond Education Center located at 913 South Miller Drive La Grande

Cost: Class is free but there is now an option to make a donation to help keep our program free to those in need. $10 suggested donation per class.

Register here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wild-school-ages-6-12-free-tickets-1999468676636?aff=oddtdtcreator

This program is supported with a grant from The Gray Family Foundation and La Grande Soroptimist International - SILG, and the Wildhorse Foundation

09/19/2026

Wild Preschool: We had 31 little ones and their caregivers join us over the past two days to celebrate the abundance of apple season.

We started our day with songs and parachute play before settling in for a reading of The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall. We then got creative with apple stamping, explored apples using child-safe knives, and took a closer look at their colors, textures, and details with hand lenses. We also had lots of fun picking apples and pressing them to make fresh apple c***r!

Wild Schools are supported with grants from and The Wildhorse Foundation.

09/14/2026

Let’s get outside next Friday and Saturday and celebrate apple season!

We’ll start with fun songs and parachute time, then listen to a reading of The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall . After that, we will get creative with apple stamping, cutting into apples with child safe knives and pressing apple c***r.
Then we will wrap up class with a walk around the pond.
Both days will be the same theme

Days: Friday and Saturday Sept 18th and 19th

Time: 10am-11am

Teachers: Meghan Ballard and Luc Schuette

Cost: Class is free but there is now an option to make a donation to help keep our program free to those in need. $10 suggested donation per class.

Register here - https://www.bluemountainsconservancy.org/heritage-pond-classes.html

Wild Schools are supported with grants from and The Wildhorse Foundation.

09/06/2026

Join us as we continue our year-long journey exploring the 13 Moons. Each month, we gather to celebrate a different moon and explore its seasonal symbolism across cultures.

This September, we honor the Harvest Moon—a time of abundance, gratitude, completion, and preparation for the darker, colder months ahead. Traditionally, it is a time to give thanks for the Earth’s bounty and the nourishment it provides before winter arrives.

At Heritage Pond, we’ll honor this season of abundance by:

🍎 Pressing fresh apple c***r from our heirloom apple orchard
🌹 Making rosehip jam
📖 Listening to an Indigenous tale about the wild rose and its connection to love and protection
🖋️ Creating natural black ink from oak galls
🪶 Drawing with turkey quills
Come celebrate the gifts of the harvest, connect with the land, and share in the beauty of this turning season.

We’d love to have you with us this Saturday!

Teachers: Amanda Welch and Meghan Ballard
Location: Heritage Pond Education Center located at 913 South Miller Drive La Grande

Cost: Class is free but there is now an option to make a donation to help keep our program free to those in need. $10 suggested donation per class.

Register here https://www.eventbrite.com/e/wild-school-ages-6-12-free-tickets-1999468572324?aff=oddtdtcreator

This program is supported with a grant from The Gray Family Foundation and La Grande Soroptimist International - SILG, and the Wildhorse Foundation

09/02/2026

Join us outside this fall for free nature-based art and science ☀️🌈❤️🌸🐌🍄

Classes are still free but now you have an option of making a donation to support our classes to help us continue to offer Wild Schools - suggested donation is $10 per class.

Wild Schools summer schedule is now live! https://www.bluemountainsconservancy.org/heritage-pond-classes.html

08/27/2026

We are all set up for a roaring good time at Mud Kitchen kids tomorrow! There’s still space to join - https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mud-kitchen-kids-ages-3-7-dino-dig-tickets-1986785349463?aff=oddtdtcreator

08/25/2026

6 spots left to join us this Thursdays!

Lots of space to join us next week!

Join us for next Thursday’s Dinosaur Dig Mud Kitchen drop off class!

Funds raised during this 2 hour drop off class are used to help keep our Wild School programming free to youth in Union County!
We
🌿 Mud Kitchen Kids: A Summer Splash of Imagination & Messy Fun! 🌿

Calling all little chefs, explorers, and mud pie masters! Mud Kitchen Kids is a two-hour drop-off adventure designed for potty-trained children ages 3–7 who love to mix, mash, squish, and stir up some messy magic. Each session invites kids to dive into our themed mud kitchen, where nature meets imagination and creativity runs wild!
From mud muffins to leaf soup, your child will get hands-on with dirt, water, and natural treasures while building sensory skills, friendships, and unforgettable summer memories.

✨ $25 per session – all proceeds help support our free Wild Preschool program, giving more kids access to outdoor learning and play.

Spots are limited, so grab your boots and get ready to stir up some fun – because the best summer memories are made in the mud!

Children WILL get dirty, please have kids arrive with sunscreen already applied and a full water bottle and a snack.

Teachers: Tatiana Derichsweiler and Lexzi Hart

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/mud-kitchen-kids-ages-3-7-dino-dig-tickets-1986785349463?aff=oddtdtcreator

08/25/2026

We are so grateful for Wildhorse Foundation support of our Wild Schools programming ❤️

Wildhorse Foundation is pleased to announce our Q2 2026 grant awards! 👏

This quarter, $447,230 was awarded to 29 organizations for projects serving communities in the homeland area of the Cayuse, Umatilla, and Walla Walla people. We're grateful for the opportunity to support these nonprofit and government entities — from youth education, to new community spaces, to basic medical needs.