A Yurt Classroom for the Phoenix Initiative

April 7, 2022

Dear friends,

I recently sent the letter below to all families participating in the Phoenix Initiative. We are a young educational program serving first and second graders and growing into a third grade next year. We also work with families with very young children in our Parent and Child classes. With these new stages of growth, we need to fundraise for a new classroom space, which is a large expense for such a small group, and the families asked if there was a way to share our efforts with a larger circle of friends and family. With that in mind, I've made this online fundraiser and shared the original letter below. We hope to raise the full amount with this GoFundMe as well as direct contributions from families in the initiative. I will keep this page updated with the direct donations in the updates section. 

Thank you for any contribution you are able to make. 

Meaghan

________________

Dear families,

 

It is with great enthusiasm that I am writing you this letter. After many weeks of research and discussions with various people, I have found a yurt and a yurt designer to help build the first independent classroom for the Phoenix Initiative at Mettabee Farm.

 

I am excited to get this project underway and I am reaching out to our community of families for support. We will need to raise the funds for this building which will be a home to the Phoenix Initiative in many ways into the future. In the upcoming year, the yurt will be used as the 3rd grade classroom, while also serving as a place for the whole program to gather, as well as parent meetings and infant/toddler classes on the weekends. The yurt will also house the Phoenix Initiative summer classes and camp.

 

We will need to raise the funds to begin this project within the next month, if possible. Here’s a breakdown of the project costs and examples of the type of yurt design and materials to be used.

 

Project Costs:

 

In addition, we will plant a beautiful garden of flowers, medicinal herbs, and perennial plants that will beautify and shape the landscape and play areas around the yurt. This will also serve as the imaginative vehicle for the fundraising: for each donation we will plant something into this garden. In this way, all of the individuals and families who give will be represented by this garden that will nourish the children on many levels of their being.

 

Gift ranges (and corresponding plants to be grown in the garden)

Peonies - $50-$500 / Asiatic Lilies - $500-$2,500 / Irises - $2,500 - $10,000

 

I am committed to building and growing this initiative. Some of you know this story, but I will tell it again here. At snacktime a few months ago, one of the 2nd graders asked me: “Miss Meaghan, how long are you going to have this school?” My response was “As long as the children come, I will be here.” Given the uncertainty of our times, I recognize this is a large monetary investment to make, however it is the right and necessary step for our program. If you have any questions or wish to discuss anything with me please be in touch. Please give at the highest range that you are able.

 

Thank you for being willing to create something new together, as a community, in support of the next generation.

 

Sincerely,

Meaghan

 

 

Traditionally Framed Mongolian-Style Yurt by Pisgah Yurt Craft (Asheville, NC)

Lyca Mikhael is the only person in the US designing and building yurts in the traditional Mongolian style. You can see from the photos that he has an eye for design, architectural integrity, and beauty. The materials he builds with are ecologically sound and he uses all-natural finishes for the woodwork. He is available to work with us on this project and will deliver and install the yurt himself over the summer.