Horsing around: Kennebunk Rec and Carlisle Academy team up to offer kids farm fun

KENNEBUNK, Maine — As the coordinator for non-traditional programming for the Kennebunk Recreation Department, Lucas Skoglund recognized Carlisle Academy as a shoo-in for collaboration with the town when he spotted the Lyman-based equestrian farm during a search on Google Maps.

Skoglund reached out to Sarah Armentrout, who cofounded the academy at Spring Creek Farm on Drown Lane with her husband, Nick.

“I wanted to reach out to them because I’ve always been attracted to nature and the farm,” Skoglund said. “We got a couple of programs going, right off the bat.”

Three, to be exact: FarmABLE, “Farm From Ordinary” Camp, and Group Riding Lessons.

The goal of the collaboration is to create opportunities for children who might not otherwise go to the academy and experience farm life if they are not into riding horses, according to Sarah Armentrout.

FarmABLE is an immersive, experience-based program geared towards fostering an appreciation for nature and emphasizing the need to be good stewards of both land and animals. The program, intended for children ages 6 through 12, includes nature walks, horse grooming, lessons about soil, and opportunities to get hands dirty in a raised bed of herbs and flowers.

The farm camp has a similar mission, with activities available for students at the elementary and middle-school levels.

The group riding lessons are all about learning the skills and safety measures necessary for hopping on a horse. The introductory program also focuses on how to care for horses, from grooming them to maintaining their stables.

Carlisle Academy takes on all the lesson planning for the three programs, while Skoglund helps supervise and transport the kids to the farm. While the academy has a strong focus on horse-related activities, including therapeutic ones, the facility’s collaboration with the town of Kennebunk also involves other aspects of outdoor life.

“We do things from beekeeping to nature walks,” Skoglund said. “They’re building an outdoor classroom at the moment.”

During a recent tour of the farm, Armentrout visited the space in the nearby woods that is being cleared and transformed into the “classroom.” While the space is not yet finished, the project is well on its way and already inviting, situated as it is in the cool shade, with a hammock nearby.

Participation in the programs is growing, according to Skoglund.

“It has been one of my most popular programs since signing on,” said Skoglund. “Being able to get out and meet with the horses and just have a good time outdoors has really caught the attention of the community.”

While the Kennebunk Recreation Department is half of the collaboration for these programs, young people from throughout the region can participate in them, according to Skoglund.

“That’s a big thing with a lot of our programs,” Skoglund said. “We like to make them accessible to anyone who wants to join.

Skoglund said the staff at Carlisle Academy has been “helpful and wonderful.”

“The kids really do love them,” he said. “They always have something unique for them to do. That’s part of why this collaboration works so well. I’m in non-traditional programming, and they always come up with weird, funky, unique ideas that capture the kids’ interests.”

Parents and guardians of children who would like to join any of these programs are encouraged to reach out to Skoglund at either (207) 604-1313 or lskoglund@kennebunkmaine.us. While summer sessions are underway, Skoglund said he is currently planning and scheduling fall offerings.

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Carlisle Academy has been growing since 1998

The Armentrouts founded Carlisle Academy in 1998. Back then, the program was known as the Equest Therapeutic Riding Center and operated out of a single, gray farm structure that you can spot in the distance, on your left, as you arrive on the property. In 2011, the Armentrouts renamed their enterprise Carlisle Academy Integrative Equine Therapy and Sports.

The academy has expanded on-site over the years, spreading across the farm’s acreage from that single riding center to now include a rustic main office, stables, an indoor arena, a covered outdoor arena, flower gardens, nature trails and, come next year, the aforementioned “classroom” in the woods.

The Kennebunk Recreation Department is not the only community partner with whom the academy collaborates.

RiverRidge Center, a health care facility in Kennebunk, for example, brings some of its residents to the farm. On one recent afternoon, the residents could be seen exploring a raised bed of flowers and herbs with Sherry Morrow, a master gardener who lives on the farm with her husband, Charlie. The RiverRidge residents that afternoon also groomed horses, under the guidance of academy instructor Joyce Brown.

Carlisle Academy has other programs, as well.

FarmWELL, for instance, is geared toward older adults with special needs. The academy’s description of the program offers a glimpse at the beneficial aspects of interacting with horses and soaking up farm life.

“Relaxing in the sun beside the horse paddocks, watching the antics of spring lambs, or grooming a horse provide a sense of connection and renewal,” the academy says in its promotional materials. “These activities, paired with the sights and smells of the farm, engage all the senses while offering opportunities for social interaction and gentle physical exercise.”

According to the academy, there are benefits to such activities: increased circulation and mobility, positive feelings, and a connection to nature.

Carlisle Academy also works with schools near and far to provide internships to students. This summer, Nora Hall and Palma Foschi Walko, both doctorate students at Johnson & Wales University in Rhode Island, are working for the academy at Spring Creek Farm and are learning and getting hands-on experience with certain aspects of their majors of occupational therapy.

Both Hall and Foschi Walko are focusing in part on hippotherapy, which involves horseback riding as a means of therapy or rehabilitation for people to improve their balance, coordination, and strength.

Hall said people engaged in hippotherapy like the connections they make with horses.

“There’s a lot of mental health aspects, as well, which is great,” she said. “Horses are so in tune to your energy. You really need to put forward what you want to get back. They’re very receptive animals.”

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Foschi Walko said she is having fun seeing all of the functional aspects of what OT can do.

“Sometimes, in a clinic, you may see little snippets ... but you don’t see how it relates,” she said.

Cat Sullivan, of Kennebunkport, is an undergraduate student at Brandeis University in Massachusetts. She is also interning at the farm this summer. She is majoring in sociology but is considering a career in occupational therapy.

“Resume-wise, this is really just a great experience to have,” Sullivan said.

Sarah Armentrout, who grew up in Kennebunk, said Carlisle Academy had never before collaborated with the parks and recreation department of her hometown. She said she was thrilled when Skoglund called her, setting into motion the new programs that are thriving at her farm today.

“He’s just so wonderful, putting together non-traditional programs,” she said.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Carlisle Academy welcomes Kennebunk Rec to farm and equestrian center