Community is what makes Camphill the place it is, and as we join together to celebrate the Easter weekend here at Camphill, we wanted to share with you why cultural festivals are so important to us.

The festivals allow us to build on our incredible community spirit as we come together to celebrate each other and the world around us.

Camphill was founded on the basis of creating a community in which children and adults, many with additional support needs, can live, learn and work within healthy social relationships based on mutual care and respect.

The four main festivals celebrated across the estates are Christmas, Easter, St. Johns, and Michaelmas.

Although these main events are Christian festivals, it is really important to us that we respect the diverse religious, spiritual, and cultural backgrounds of the people who live and work on our estates. Throughout the year we often gather to mark celebrations from across a wide range of cultures and religions such as Chinese New Year and Holi.

The festivals enable our community to pause life and come together to celebrate our incredibly diverse community. People can reconnect with each other, share stories and life experiences, play games, and reflect on the life they are living, whatever their religious beliefs. The sharing of food is always at the heart of all our celebrations and is much looked forward to.

The week running up to Easter is named Holy week, and we have been hosting a number of gatherings and events to celebrate the run-up to Easter Sunday. So far students have created Easter Egg Mandalas, made Easter-themed bakes and pancakes made with the seven grains that represent the different days of Holy week.

Along with Easter, we are familiar with Christmas, but some people are maybe not aware of St Johns and Michaelmas festivals, and what they represent. So, let's tell you!

St. Johns

Starting at sunset on 23 June, the celebration for St. Johns festival begins the day before the Feast Day of Saint John the Baptist. This feast day is one of the very few saints' days that commemorates the anniversary of the birth, rather than the death, of the saint being honoured.

The Feast of Saint John closely coincides with the June solstice, also known as Midsummer.

At Camphill School Aberdeen we celebrate St Johns by building and lighting a bonfire, eating freshly prepared food and folk dancing. It's a wonderful celebration that brings together our whole community and really showcases our incredible community spirit.

Michaelmas

Michaelmas Day is the feast of Saint Michael the Archangel and is celebrated on 29 September. Michaelmas is centred around a great feast and community gathering which coincided with the harvest.

To celebrate Michaelmas at Camphill, we display our harvests, gather as a community, sing Michaelmas songs, and eat delicious homemade soup and famous dragon bread.

Regular routine and structure are key for young people at Camphill School Aberdeen and the festivals play a key part in that. Many of the young people will use the marking of festivals as a way to determine where we are in the year, as in Scotland you can experience all the seasons in one day and it is not always so clear where we are in the year according to the weather.

All of the festivals we celebrate blend into our ethos of mutual respect for each other and the environment.

Below shows all of the festivals celebrated at Camphill School Aberdeen.