Common Ground Center

A Little Bit of Everything

Tuesday April 16th, 2013 2:25PM

People often ask us, "What do you do at CGC when we're not doing camp?". Perhaps a more appropriate question would be, "What don't we do?". For one, we've been busy all winter working with groups that want to host programs on our site.

Who's Who at Common Ground: Calia Marshall

Friday January 18th, 2013 5:42PM

This post is the first in a series highlighting Common Ground Center community members--many of whom you can get to know better at family camp! Carole Blane recently had the opportunity to catch up with the busy-bee Calia Marshall. Enjoy!

Happy New Year!

Wednesday January 2nd, 2013 6:58PM

Well, we've made it through the solstice, the hectic holidays, and the end of 2012! In the last few weeks of December, our gorgeous site transformed from a grassy meadow complete with a rainbow to a snowy winter wonderland! We've been sledding, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing since the snow started flying.

Camp Common Ground Early Bird Registration

Wednesday November 28th, 2012 3:30PM

The deadline for early registration for Camp Common Ground is December 12, 2012. Click for more information on fees & registration. It's never soon to start planning for next summer!

Ways of the Wild and Wren's Nest and Teens, Oh My!

Monday October 1st, 2012 5:06PM

To say that Common Ground Center had a busy year in the rental department would be putting it mildly. We’ve had unprecedented traffic from such varied groups of people, and by the looks of it, 2013 will be even busier! Twenty-four different groups came to see the beauty of our site, some of them for multiple trips!

School's Out!

Tuesday June 12th, 2012 2:28PM

Common Ground Center has recently had the pleasure of hosting two of our favorite school groups: The Schoolhouse in South Burlington and Robinson Elementary in Starksboro. Energetic students from The Schoolhouse spent the day playing on the playground, blowing bubbles, and using the tennis courts, basketball courts, and ping pong table.

Energy Independence in Vermont & Beyond: Is it Possible?

Friday April 13th, 2012 4:36PM

Energy independence has been a topic of conversation a lot lately in Vermont because of news that a federal judge blo

Join us May 19 for a Family Fun Volunteer Day!

Tuesday April 3rd, 2012 5:15PM

This May 19 from 10:00 am - 4:00 pm, Common Ground Center is hosting a Family Fun Volunteer Day! Volunteers of all ages will help out with trail maintenance, plant our vegetable garden, and play on our 700 acres of protected wilderness. We'll also be giving tours, so this is a great opportunity for new families to explore all that our site has to offer.

Spring Newsletter

Monday March 26th, 2012 3:42PM

Happy Spring! Click here to download our Spring newsletter!

Jack Jumping: A Potential CGC Activity?

Thursday March 15th, 2012 4:43PM

Common Ground Center's Kiesha Richardson is an avid Jack Jumper. We think the winter sport has great potential to become a favorite CGC pastime!

Women's Weekend: Looking Back & Ahead

Friday February 10th, 2012 12:52PM

The Women’s Weekend is scheduled for Friday, May 18^th – Sunday, May 20^th. This year's retreat will feature more Fun, Chocolate and Rummikub! This program began at the behest of several of our community members, all at separate times and from other programs. Our founding mothers include Read More...

My Winter Weekend at the Lodge

Thursday February 2nd, 2012 5:01PM

When my daughter MollyRose was three or four, a group of moms from her preschool decided to go on a hiking trip to the Adirondacks. Over the past 16 years, this fall outing has become an annual event.

Cooperation Takes Root at CGC

Monday January 23rd, 2012 9:21AM

Common Ground Center has always been a place that honors people’s creativity and cultivates community involvement, and that culture is largely rooted in Jim’s vision for CGC to be cooperatively run. In fact, I met Jim at the Vermont Cooperative Summit and we bonded over having been members of student-owned housing cooperatives.

Connecting With Our Neighbors

Friday January 6th, 2012 5:46PM

I have been working in the summer camp business for a couple of years now and most people seem to have an appreciation of how hectic the summer can be, but they tend to think my winter months are spent lounging around or perfecting my fantasy hockey picks.

Six steps towards a sustainable holiday season (and life beyond)

Thursday December 15th, 2011 9:12PM

Today's blog post comes to us from our very own resident green guru, Peg Kamens. She offers up some great suggestions on how to be green this holiday season:

Winter's coming, embrace it!

Friday December 9th, 2011 1:55PM

I've always looked forward to winter and find myself getting gleeful, unlike most of my friends, at the first snowfall or brisk day. Perhaps it's because I grew up in rural Vermont or because I was born in January. Whatever the reason, I know winter is coming whether I like it or not, and so I choose to embrace it rather than “survive” it. If not, I’d have a miserable eight months!

The Barefooted Life

Thursday December 1st, 2011 1:23PM

Barefoot running is all the rage, especially around our camp community. Peg and Sequana introduced Common Ground to the toe shoes two summers ago, and since then we’ve started to read about the benefits of wearing them (and running in them) everywhere (check out Jason Robillards’ blog).

California, here we come (Peg & Jim visit their extended CGC family)

Saturday November 19th, 2011 12:29PM

Our daughter MollyRose had one of those long college weekends off, the kind that make you wonder why the short academic year costs so much. But whatever, she had time to visit her brother Jake to see how he was faring out at Slide Ranch, and we tagged along.

Does your stuff own you or do you own your stuff? Meditations on letting go.

Friday November 11th, 2011 12:54PM

At Common Ground Center we’ve been thinking a lot about stuff these days. I recently downsized from a two-story house in New Jersey to an apartment in New York City. Connor and Neily came on board as office staffers – creating major shuffling of stuff and space in the office.

Carole Blane sits down with longtime camper Joan Plisko

Thursday November 3rd, 2011 11:29AM

When I first met Joan Plisko and she told me what she does for a living I was so interested and finally got to sit down and talk with her for a newsletter article last year.