Introducing Workshops-on-Demand. We get a zillion requests for workshops here at SoR. Rather than deciding ourselves what to do, check out our new on-demand workshop catalog. It includes all your current favorites, and many new ones that you suggested. We’ll schedule the new ones once we get enough RSVPs. So RSVP today! It’s free! Check it out: https://schoolofranch.org/workshops
Plowing New Ground in Traditional Arts. Spoon carving? Knot tying? Wildlife Tracking? We’re expanding the range of topics we cover to include traditional arts and crafts. There’s more to ranch and farm life than soil tests, founder, and failing to grow cucumbers (any figure out how here?). We’re introducing a new line of workshops to scratch that itch. They are part of the new workshop on demand program for now. RSVP now!
Join a Leadership Council. We will be recruiting soon for people to join Leadership Councils, starting with the equine world. These Councils will meet on a quarterly basis (or whatever they decide) to direct our workshop development for the coming quarter. If you are community minded, passionate about horses, and want to make a difference, please consider joining. More on this soon, but you can let me know now if you are interested.
Hitchin’ a ride. We are developing a program to encourage more seniors to participate in School of Ranch. We’d like to offer people who don’t feel comfortable driving the possibility of a ride. We’ll be putting the offer to try to find a ride into our materials moving forward. If someone needs a ride, please consider taking them if you are attending a workshop! We added a checkbox to reg forms so you can let us know!
School of Ranch October Workshops:
October 21st and 24th. School of Ranch presents, “Practical Welding for Ranch and Farm.” You always wanted to weld, right? Build real skills – like how to fix, reattach, and patch things made of metal. Know the basics? Then you can learn to build things like gates, feeders and troughs. Sessions held in a professional welder’s shop. Small group – max of 6. Everyone gets their own welder, their own station, and personalized instruction. November dates available too!
Price: $125 per session
Time: Tuesdays 5:30 to 8:30pm and Saturdays 10am – 1
Location: Powell Butte (address upon registration)
Learn More: https://schoolofranch.org/lp-welding-long
October 24th and Nov 19th. School of Ranch presents, “DIY Electric for Ranch and Farm.” Join us on a local
ranch with significant electrical issues and learn how to troubleshoot, fix what you can, and determine what you need an electrician to do. In just one session, you’ll gain the knowledge and confidence to handle electrical tasks without a zap!
Price: $120
Time: 5:30pm to 8:30pm
Location: Redmond, OR (Address provided upon registration)
Get Details: https://schoolofranch.org/w-electric
October 21st. School of Ranch presents, “Practical Carpentry for Ranch and Farm.” A key step on the path to self-reliance is learning how to build things from wood. In this hands-on workshop, you’ll be guiding through the step-by-steps of making a structure from wood. You will join our skilled framer to construct an elevated pathway made entirely of wood, and learn skills you can apply in other construction projects. Whether you’re ready to take on bigger projects, an aspiring carpenter, or want to become more self-sufficient, this workshop offers hands-on training in skills that will last a lifetime. Sign up for either session (they are both the same). Limited to 10.
Price: $99
Time: 2:30 to 5:30 on the 8th, Noon to 3 on the 21st.
Location: Bend, OR (Address provided upon registration)
Get Details: https://schoolofranch.org/w-construction
October 14th and 21st. School of Ranch presents, “DIY Maintenance for Ranch, Farm and Home.” Got a hole in the drywall? Drains sluggish? Circuit breaker keeps tripping? Thinking about adding a new shelf or TV mount? Outlet got wrecked while moving that new couch? Tired of waiting forever from someone to fix them, only to have to shell out big bucks for the privilege? Take this hands-on workshop and fix them yourself! Yeah you! Even if you’re renting, taking care of these problems before you move out can help you get your full deposit back. Handle these basic maintenance tasks with confidence. Sign up today!
Price: $99
Time: Noon to 3pm
Location: The 14th in Redmond and the 21st in Bend
Get Details: https://schoolofranch.org/w-basic-home-repair
October 19th and 24th. School of Ranch presents, “Fermentation: Sauerkraut and Mustard.” Back by popular demand, our fermentation series continues. Learn to make sauerkraut and mustard and impress your buds at the next tailgate! And to recover from all that partying, in November we’ll be making infused vinegar and the sweet and sour drink, the Shrub (supposedly drinking a Shrub helps control weight!). As always, Beth Covert, our food preservation expert, will bring laughs, skills, and delicious food! These workshops sell out, so get your tickets for both now!
Price: $40
Time: 5:30pm to 8pm
Location: The 14th in Redmond and the 21st in Bend
Get Details: https://schoolofranch.org/w-fermentation
October 28th, School of Ranch presents, “Equine Safety, Part I – Physical Safety with Kate Beardsley.” Join us for this three-workshop series featuring Kate Beardsley of Mustangs to the Rescue, Victoria and Josh Wiliams of My Horse Journey, and a TBD local vet. The overall concept is how to keep you and your horse safe, primarily by avoiding situations that make you and them unsafe, but also what to do if those safety measures fail. We will look at this question from three angles.
- Physical Safety – Everything from how to set up a safe environment to how to keep everyone safe while trailering a horse, to how to escape if there’s a fire. (Kate Beardsley)
- Health – How to prevent health problems and what you need to be able to do if things go wrong. (Vet TBD)
- Psychological Safety – Understanding how your horse thinks about and experiences safety, how to let your horse know you understand, and what to do to keep you and them safe when they stress. (My Horse Journey).
Price: $30 for School of Ranch Members, free if you face economic hardship, $40 for others
Time: 10am to 1pm
Location: Mustangs to the Rescue, 21670 McGilvray Rd, Bend
Learn More: https://schoolofranch.org/w-horsesafety
Nov 4th. School of Ranch presents, “Practical Masonry for Ranch and Farm.” Got rocks? Well put them to work! Join us for a Practical Masonry For Ranch and Farm, a workshop where you’ll learn essential skills and be able to apply them — in this case to build a firepit out of the lava rocks we all have lying around. You can use these skills to build a wall, a walkway, a fireplace – most anything you can imagine. Led by experienced stone mason Morgan Griffin, this hands-on workshop is for beginners and those with some prior experience who want to hone their skills. Workshops limited to 10 participants.
Price: $125
Time: 10am to 1pm
Location: Central Oregon Veterans Ranch
Get Details: https://schoolofranch.org/w-masonry
Coming Soon from School of Ranch:
Animal Health and Nutrition Series with Purina: First up – Healthy Hooves with Purina and a local farrier.
Small Scale Irrigation with Mountain Sky. If we all have something in common in Central OR, it’s we all have a water problem.
Electric Fence 101 with Gallagher Fence. What they are good for, how to choose the right solution, how to set it up and more.
There is a great migration taking place from urban to rural areas. People like me looking to reconnect with the land and escape urban life. Rural life means knowing how to use tools and machines, how to make soil out of, well, dust, and how to raise healthy, happy animals. I started School of Ranch so we can learn these new skills together.