Parent Portal
For Sam Hilde, Willow is more than a school—it is a place where learning meant exploration, curiosity, and community. Sam remembers cooking outdoors – students gathering around a cast-iron pot to make stew over an open fire. Science came alive in the campus stream where he and his classmates pulled on boots, scooped up tiny creatures, and learned about the ecosystems on campus. “Willow gave me the opportunity to grow as an individual because I was out in the woods interacting with the trees, the bugs, and the dirt,” Sam recalls.
That early connection to the natural world helped shape Sam’s path well beyond Willow. After high school, he studied natural resource management at the University of Vermont, and today he is the Farm Operations Steward at Maranatha Farm in Peapack, NJ. There, he oversees everything from beekeeping and mushroom cultivation to regenerative farming practices that restore the land and protect local waterways. “We’re not just producing crops,” Sam explains. “We’re building ecosystems.”
Looking back, Sam sees a direct line between his Willow experiences and the work he does today. “Community is very important to me, and I got that at Willow—in the smaller setting with teachers, kids, and staff all connected,” he says. “What makes Willow unique is that kids don’t just sit in classrooms. They’re outside, surrounded by native plants and wildlife, learning how to be part of a community that includes the natural world.”
At Willow, children don’t just study nature from a book—they live it, explore it, and learn to care for it. Just as Willow helped Sam discover his path, it continues to inspire students to grow into curious, confident, and compassionate stewards of their communities and the world around them.
Reflecting on his own path, Sam offers advice for today’s students: “At Willow and beyond, community is what guides and fulfills you. Find the people who are interested in your thoughts and what you can contribute.”
Sam shows some organic raspberries grown at Maranatha Farm
Want to join the Willow community? Start a conversation with our Director of Enrollment Management, Lisa VanderVeen, to see how your child will thrive at Willow.
