We are in the darkest days of the year, yet within days we will begin our slow climb to longer days. Before we know it we’ll be getting ready for the 2021 Maple Syrup season and looking forward to welcoming people back to the Folk School.

2020 was a bust in terms of holding classes and inviting people back to the Avon Hills Folk School. But, we did take advantage of the pause and made great strides towards the future. With the help of many we focused on several key, foundational pieces critical to our future growth.

We Have a Logo!

Just a few weeks ago a logo was born! We are very excited about this as it is one important part of our entire brand identity that has also evolved over several months of discussion, design and reflection. Our brand will help to guide us in all of our communications and reach out to audiences and individuals going forward. It truly is a foundational piece, a cornerstone really, of our future. Thank you to Katrina Lynn for guiding us through this process and to this exciting destination. We are grateful for the support of a Project Grant through the Central MN Arts Board that made this important work possible.

*“This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Central MN Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.”*

Master Campus Plan

With the professional experience, guidance and passion landscape architect and AHFS alum Lucius Jonett of Midwest Wetland Improvements helped us to arrive at a Master Campus Plan for AHFS. In future blogs we will roll out the exciting vision and possibilities contained within this plan. LIke our Brand the Master Campus plan will be invaluable in guiding us forward as well as helping immeasurably to “show” our vision to everyone.

Grant Support and Dedicated Talent

With the financial support of several grants we received (more on these soon), AHFS will be able to bring on board two individuals with unique and somewhat overlapping experiences and expertise. More on these two in future blogs and the work they will be doing, and have already begun, to help move us forward in 2021.

Awesome Images!

Finally, we’ll end 2020 and this blog by sharing with you some tremendous images from the AHFS from Jeff Yappuncich from Yuppy Photography. These along with future images, like the brand and Master Campus Plan, will help us to share with others this special place that we invite you to experience.

Thank you to the many who have done the work, contributed their talent, treasure and time – to get us to this point. In 2020 the AHFS has moved from an infant organization, crawling around on the floor to a toddler that can stand and even take a few steps.

Looking forward to what we can accomplish together in 2021.

Happy Holidays to everyone, everywhere!

Chris Schellinger
Executive Director/Founder
Avon Hills Folk School