About Us – Overview
About
Heathcote
Heathcote is a 44-acre center on the School of Living land trust, dedicated to education, agroecology, and intentional community since 1989. After a long history of being predominately white, Heathcote dedicated itself to a transition to leadership by people of color. Now, the resident members are majority people of color. Regardless of race or background, all people who are in alignment with our goal to heal, connect, and empower are welcome.
Anchored by the historic Heathcote Mill, the center serves as a resource for both those who teach and those who learn, honoring traditional as well as newer sources of knowledge. Program initiatives include topics such as bio-intensive agriculture, health and nutrition, animal husbandry, plant identification and ecology, and children’s education.
Heathcote cultivates urban-rural linkages and food system support networks through an established garden and education program, promoting food sovereignty and security.
About
Our Mission and Vision
Heathcote is an intentional community, care farm and education center that works towards social transformation through holistic self-care, cooperative economics, earth care, spirituality, and experiential learning.
Heathcote Community Farm and Education Center, in partnership with the Spiritual Center for Indigenous Living, envisions a world where all individuals, particularly those from historically marginalized communities, have access to transformative relationships with nature. Our care farm serves as a vibrant hub for growth, connection, and empowerment, fostering a deeper sense of belonging, resilience, and environmental stewardship.
Through our holistic approach, integrating agriculture, education, and therapy, we aim to:
- Support Healing: Provide a nurturing environment for individuals to process trauma, build confidence, and cultivate emotional well-being.
- Connect: Foster meaningful relationships between people, plants, and the natural world, promoting a sense of community and interdependence.
- Empower: Equip individuals with the knowledge, skills, and resources necessary to become active stewards of their own health, well-being, and environmental sustainability.
Guided by the principles of indigenous living and the wisdom of the natural world, we honor the ancestral bonds between humans and the earth. By healing our relationship with nature, we remember and respect the traditional knowledge and practices of our ancestors, revitalizing a sense of pride, identity, and belonging. Using methodologies that are based on following nature’s patterns, such as permaculture, agroecology, and analog forestry, we share practical skills for growing food and medicinal herbs sustainably. Together, we can co-create a more just, equitable, and regenerative future for all.
About
Our Peace Treaty
We agree to honor, respect, care for, and nurture all living beings of creation that are on the Heathcote land, including the nature spirits of the land, Mother Earth and her minerals, the stream, the trees, the plants, the medicine, the animals, the ancestral guardians of the land, Heathcote structures including living and working spaces, and the residents and extended community who care for the land.
We agree to adhere to and uphold the living, breathing, and growing body of agreements and policies that School of Living and Heathcote have created and continue to adapt to maintain harmony, peace, cooperation, and progression towards fulfilling Heathcote’s mission and vision.
About
Our Members
Heathcote members, both resident and non-resident, include various identities, religions, and political viewpoints. The community includes educators, tradespeople, retirees, healthcare professionals, technologists, administrators, and farmers.
Current membership includes four resident adults and more than two dozen non-resident members, many of whom are former residents living in Baltimore County and adjacent areas.
Heathcote aims to develop more inclusive centers to foster a membership base that reflects broader communities with diverse backgrounds and skillsets.
About
Our History
Heathcote evolved from a haven for dispersed School of Living members in the Freeland, Maryland Line area, an initiative by Mildred Loomis.
Initially owned by long-time member, Bill Anacker, Heathcote Center was sold to School of Living with the division of his land. It was later given to Heathcote under a 99-year lease to become the National School of Living Headquarters.
In the 1970’s, Heathcote was devolved into the independent Heathcote Community and Heathcote Education Center, a fiscally sponsored entity of School of Living and School of Living network. Since that time, Heathcote has continued as a community, education center, organic farming demonstration project, and social hub.
About
Our Land
Heathcote is located in an upland section of the Piedmont Plateau Province, nestled in a valley formed by differential weathering, channeling our creek through a watershed of dendritic drainage over quartz and mafic schists. This points to Heathcote historically being in a region of high but very localized habitat diversity. Our 44 acres are surrounded by steep ravines, meadow, wetland, creek and forest.
Healthy oak-hickory forest systems in the region may contain white oak, northern red oak, black oak, and chestnut oak. Hickory species include shagbark and pignut hickory. A diversity of trees, shrubs, and herbs may include tulip poplar, red maple, dogwood, red bud, blueberry, mountain laurel, Solomon’s seal, and may apple.
Originally dominated by oak-chestnut, the land has been oak-hickory dominated since the American chestnut was eradicated by blight at the beginning of the 20th century. Additionally, remaining ash trees are threatened with eradication.
Now located in an agricultural and residential area, the land is mostly dominated by opportunistic forest regrowth endemic with invasive vegetation. While soils were once ideal for tobacco farming, local agriculture is now dominated by pasture and forage.