Old McDonald's Farm on Evans Road

Old McDonald’s Farm, Inc. (OMF) is a nonprofit, children’s charitable organization that uses livestock, agriculture, gardens and natural resources as educational tools. We teach children to be kind, caring, and capable, “can do” kids. Additionally, we teach science, mathematics, history, geography, reading, writing, and public speaking as a part of language arts, and healthy life-skills, etc. We offer educational Day Visit Programs (field trips) for families or up to 80 students at one time with four different Day Visit Programs packages. Check out our week-long, Summer Programs (or camps) for elementary age students. We have a Farmer-For-A-Day Program for folks to stay the night and we work with children with special needs one-on-one or in small groups also. We offer horse back riding lessons or horse boarding as well. New this year, are Saturday Samplings classes and an over-night, weekend camp for Summer Program alumni kids. We have taught nearly 20,000 children since we began Old McDonald's Farm, Inc. more than two decades ago. It began as a passion to reach kids in a unique way. It came from an awareness of what was not working in our society or not working in schools for kids as much as from a passion to offer something worthwhile, meaningful and different for school children. I worked at 1190 KEX Radio in the Marketing and Promotions Department. They happened to have their own non-profit, children's program (still do-it is called the KEX Kids Fund now) that provided glasses and hearing aids to low-income kids. Over time, I cared more and more about the good we were doing for children in the Portland Metropolitan area. I became the Director of the Needy Kids Fund, Inc. and worked for KEX for three years. That is where I got my "non-profit" bug as I like to call it. I do not think I had heard of or could even spell non-profit back then. Well, being young and cocky, I thought hmmm...if I can run a non-profit, I likely can start my own non-profit so that is what I did. Starting a non-profit is not recommended for the faint of heart though. In the olden days, my maiden name was McDonald so we had to go with that name. I would have not called it Old McDonald's Farm, Inc. if it was not my name, believe me. And thus, we are 22 years later and close to 20,000 children taught in classes since we began. It has been an amazing amount of work but quite worthwhile. I feel blessed to be a part of it and to be able to see children thrive out at our farm program.