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The Harvest Fest last Thursday was the culmination of summer-long courses held at the site located at the headwaters of the Boardman Watershed.

"There are two groups here," Susan Morley, a Primavera co-director, said. "The PrimaVeggies, from seven to 12 years old and the Pea Pods, ages two to five." Each group had just finished a six-week course called the PrimaVeggie Club. Some had continued through the second session, making their fun last for a total of 12 weeks.

This is the fourth year Morley and her husband, Don Russell, have held the sessions. It was the first time they had junior leaders.

"We learned that after age 12 ... well, then what," Morley said. "So, this year, we had a 13-year-old and a 16-year-old as junior leaders.

"The best way to teach leadership is through the program. We teach the sacred act of caring for the food and having safe food."

The PrimaVeggie group was limited to 10 participants and the Pea Pods limited to five. Morley said she and Russell decided to limit the size of the groups in order to give the children more attention. The groups met for consecutive Thursday mornings.

"We met at the same time," Morley said. "But we would start with sacred time in different spots on the land."

This year, participants were from Kalkaska, Antrim and Grand Traverse counties.

Primavera is home to the Dunamis Peace Institute. According to the DPI brochure, it grew out of a Christcentered faith community of Church of the Savior in Washington DC. It is a non-profit organizations. The missions in Michigan, Latin America and Hawaii each have autonomy in their own structure but have responsibility to the DPI board.

The DPI brochure states that for more than 20 years, it remained faithful to a small group of Mayas displaced through exile and called home to Guatemala to be healers of land, preservers of culture and bearers of peace.

The stated goals of Primavera are, in part, to live from a quiet, centered inner space and in harmony with Earth; provide hospitality for people of differing faiths; and build up the community by providing sacred space and time. For more information, call 231-258-6728 or e-mail susandon@primavera.name