Classes
In-person Wild Blessings classes will start soon and are scheduled each week through November. Check below for the type of classes that are offered and click on a link provided to sign up. RSVP and payment is required at least 3 days prior to each event. Patreon members are offered a discount.
• Teaching Tuesdays
• Plant Walks
• Befriending Plants
• Forage to Feast
• Special Events
About Class Pricing
The prices for my classes are based on individual participation or Patreon membership. Patreon members get a discount that is described on my event pages (Facebook). View this page regularly for all of the classes offered. The prices are different depending on the content and nature of the class.
Reduced pricing for families is not offered because I treat each participant as a learning adult and provide the benefit you would get from a private tutor. As a Patreon member you would pay a reduced rate for each class and your children will learn more than they could ever get sitting in a room listening to a lecture because they will be taught in a living environment with hands on experience. We also keep the groups small to allow for plenty of questions and interaction. If a family were to request bringing small children, I ask that they contact me in advance to work our special arrangements because I want all students to feel that they are being trained without unnecessary distractions.
PAYMENT
Payment for classes can be made through Paypal, Venmo, or you may bring your payment when you attend.
Paypal: send to hollydrake56@gmail.com
Venmo: jdrake55
Become a Patreon Member
Patreon members get reduced prices on all teaching events. Become a Patreon member by going to Patreon.com and search for Wild Blessings or Holly Drake and then sign up. Enter the amount you want to give and it will be automatically drafted each month. I offer a lot of teaching online for free (in addition to my in-person classes) and your support through Patreon helps me continue. As little as $10/month will go a long way and is a great investment for your family. Patreon members also receive exclusive content such as recipes and handouts with teaching content. Becoming a member will open up a lot of material that your family can learn from.
Teaching Tuesdays
A free video class provided each week online following nature’s wave. On Tuesday Holly presents a class often focusing on one in-season plant and an update on what is available in God’s grocery stores this week.
When: Every Tuesday, free online
Where: Facebook: Wild Blessings w/ Holly Drake (a private group, request to join) or Wild Blessings YouTube channel.
Classes
(Check my YouTube channel for the lastest)
Foraging Adventures
$55 per person (general admission)
$25 for Wild Blessings Patreon members (to learn how to join as a Patreon member, read description above and follow instructions)
Please pay in advance with PayPal (hollydrake56@gmail.com)
or Venmo (pay to Jdrake55).
If you need to cancel your class let me know in advance so another person can take that spot. Please respond via the Event page set up for this class so I know who is coming..
Bring water to drink and wear closed toe shoes and a hat.
I want to empower you in building YOUR confidence in foraging skills and in God’s provision.
Sign up will be by link to an event page so you can reserve your spot.
Befriending Plants Intensive
Plant Intensives are held on a Saturday morning each month from 9-Noon. Look for an announcement on when these classes will begin.
Where: At Holly’s house – 279 Deer Crossing, Todd, NC 28684
What: This is an in-person gathering where we celebrate one plant (some of my green allies) to get to know it utilizing all of our senses. Experiencing each plant through observation, learning, writing, drawing, story telling, poetry writing and then herbing around with it to make a fitting herbal preparation and a few wild recipes featuring our star plant.
We will spend the first hour foraging for our featured plant, the next hour herbing around with it and the 3rd hour learning about it’s multifaceted gifts.
Who: People who really want to make the green world their grocery store and medicine chest. This is an investment to take your herbal learning to a whole new depth.
Cost: $55 general admission $30 Patreon members (please pay via PayPal, Venmo in advance, at hollydrake56@gmail.com)
Handouts with recipes and preparations for the featured plant will be provided. By the end of a season of this in person herbal intensive you will have learned the basic herbal preparations, lots of wild cooking tips and started to build your own herbal monographs, and personal apothecary.
On the Calendar
Check back here for announced dates.
Plant Walks
With food prices soaring, wouldn’t it be great to find wild edible plants growing around you? Learn how to Forage! Discover the wild riches that are waiting to be discovered and valued as they have been for centuries past.
Join me for a plant walk at the Todd Island Park on the New River near the town of Todd every Friday night of the summer at 6 PM to discover what is in God’s grocery stores. You’ll be surrounded by sounds of the river and the beautiful mountains as you walk along paths that circumvent the island (wear clothes and shoes appropriate to outdoor hiking on flat terrain). At the end of this class you will know about plants in all their life cycles, which parts to gather and how to prepare them for food and medicine.
You will see many wild edible plants that probably grow near you or in your yard. You will learn to recognize them by careful observation, and fun instructional methods to help you remember each plant and learn how to harvest and use each of them for food and healing. We’ll also enjoy a wild tea and snack together.
Wild Blessings Plant Walks are held throughout the Summer at the Todd Island Park on the New River near the town of Todd. Todd Island Park is located at the corner of Railroad Grade Road and Castle Ford Road, about two and a half miles downstream of the town of Todd, situated on the South Fork of the New River.
HOW TO PAY
Class sizes are limited so sign up now. Pay in advance through PayPal (send to HollyDrake56@gmail.com), Venmo (@jdrake55), or bring payment when you arrive. Contact Holly Drake at 828-406-8241 if you have questions or if inclement weather is possible.
On the Calendar (click on the date below for more info)
When:
SEPTEMBER
• Sept 13 – Plant Walk (Friday, 6:00-8:00pm)
• Sept 20 – Plant Walk (Friday, 6:00-8:00pm)
• Sept 27 – Plant Walk (Friday, 6:00-8:00pm)
Where:
Wild Blessings Plant Walks are held throughout the Summer at the Todd Island Park on the New River near the town of Todd. Todd Island Park is located at the corner of Railroad Grade Road and Castle Ford Road, about two and a half miles downstream of the town of Todd, situated on the South Fork of the New River.
Foraging and Feasting
I am a wild foods chef and have offered many wild food feasts where the guests come to learn, forage for wild edibles, and cook a meal together. The cuisine is sometimes Asian, Greek, Italian, Mexican and Indian or just seasonal. All non-wild ingredients are organic, farm fresh and increasingly gluten free. Meats are grass finished, happy animals from local farms or local game. Here is a blog showing what Wild Blessings Forage to Feasts have looked like over the many years of hosting them.
Cost: $85/person – $125/person (depending on location) – $50 for Wild Blessings Patreon members
Who: Class size is limited to 10 people. A waiting list will be kept to fill any cancellations.
What: A forage to dining experience. Foraging, Cooking and Eating together
Sign up now to reserve your spot minimum of 3 days before event. Reservations are required and class sizes are limited. Pay in advance through PayPal, Venmo, or direct arrangement by contacting Holly Drake at 828-406-8241.
On the Calendar
What: Forage to Feast
When: To be announced
Where: To be announced
CHECK BACK FOR THE NEXT EVENT
