Bringing Imagination into reality.

It all started with Bonnie River. Bonnie moved to Truckee in 2014 to support her family and watch her grandchildren grow.  Little did she know that 6 years later she would impact over 100 of Truckee’s children.

Many of us, including almost every current member of the FOTTW board, walked through the doors of Cedar Sage Preschool looking for care for our toddlers or young children. I think it is fair to say we all found so much more. 

Children have a way of growing older, and as the children of Cedar Sage grew older, they needed somewhere to grow into. A small group of parents were thrilled with the Waldorf education that their children were getting in preschool – it was empathetic, experiential and filled with love and beauty. It brought out the best in the children, and the children were happy, content and peaceful. When the suggestion came that this type of education could be carried through the grades, there was no need to ask the parents twice. The group was small at first. Ten families formed a home study learning group. They became 14, and then 25.

The community was growing and with the best interests of the children in mind, Friends of Tahoe Truckee Waldorf was formed to strengthen the Waldorf community in Tahoe and to help support the families of Tahoe Truckee in accessing Waldorf Education. In order to support the needs of so many children, Friends of Tahoe Truckee Waldorf had their first Elves Workshop in December of 2016. The First Annual Elves Workshop received an overwhelming community response that showed there was a great desire in our community for the beauty and magic that Waldorf has to offer.  

In 2017, having outgrown a learning group, the community decided that it was time to pursue bringing a public Waldorf School to Truckee. With the help of TTUSD, Newcastle and Golden  Valley Charter Management Organization,  we invited Golden Valley Tahoe School, a tuition free public Waldorf school, into Truckee. They opened their doors in the Fall of 2018 to enthusiastic families and children.

In 2018, in an effort to also provide Waldorf Early Childhood Education to more children and meet the needs of the Tahoe Truckee community, Friends of Tahoe Truckee Waldorf partnered with a wonderful group of passionate parents to build Little Gems Preschool. Little Gems Preschool proudly opened its doors in the fall of 2019.

The past 4 years has been quite an adventure. We continue to build our vision of increasing access and supporting the growth of Waldorf Education. We are proud to see a public Waldorf School and a preschool in our community.  We are excited to provide after school and summer enrichment programs to support these schools and the children of Tahoe Truckee. Encouraged by our success and power to mobilize passionate people, Friends of Tahoe Truckee Waldorf continues to move this community forward. With the help of our passionate community base, we have recently purchased a beautiful and wonder-filled 40 acre property at the end of Union Mills Road.

For 2020 it’s time that we turn the dream of our forever home into reality. We welcome the launching of phase 1 of our long term capital campaign which helps us achieve opening the doors of our new property as a home for Little Gems Preschool, Golden Valley Charter School and our own community programming! We are excited about the next phase of our journey and so thankful to the families that are helping us build this homestead. 

Since inception we have spent every year making our communities visions come to fruition. What started as 10 children 4 years ago, now impacts over 100. We are grateful to continue to rise to this challenge. We look forward to continuing to turn imagination into reality by supporting the Tahoe Truckee community and igniting ethical thinkers through action and programing that supports families, imagination, mindfulness, education and environmental stewardship. 

We hope each of you will join the dedicated & passionate parents and community members that keep us achieving the unachievable.

Liz Sheppard
Board President