Middletown Boy Scout Builds Goat Playground At Special-Needs Farm

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — This Middletown Boy Scout, Nick Madden, is trying to become an Eagle Scout this spring and he's doing a unique service project at Oasis Farm, which is a working farm for young adults with autism.

In the past, Middletown Boy Scouts have often done service projects at Oasis; the local teens installed nearly all the fencing and plant beds in the farm's vegetable garden.

For those who don't know Oasis, this is a 26-acre working farm on Sleepy Hollow Road. It was founded by Middletown resident Mai Cleary and her husband in 2011. When the Cleary's oldest son was 4, like so many children, he was diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Mai said she was inspired to create Oasis after reading about Bittersweet Farms in Ohio, the first working farm in the nation for adults with autism.

"Autism doesn't just go away. There's so much focus today on providing support for children with autism, but people spend far more of their lives as adults," Cleary told Patch three years ago, when she gave us a private tour of the farm. "But by age 21, they phase out of the public school system ... It's really hard for them to be employed and people out there don't understand what it's like to have autism."

She said her son graduated from an inclusion program at The College of New Jersey, and she and her husband rented him an apartment in Red Bank; he tried to find work. But it was a struggle.

"We just always thought farm life would be good for him," she continued. "And for others. The idea for Oasis is simple: Children with autism grow up."

For his service project, Nick is building a goat playground at Oasis Farm.

Yes, you read that correctly: A goat playground. The young adults who live at Oasis Farm raise goats and milk them. They sell milk and goat cheese at a roadside farm stand in the spring and summer. (P.S. Their goat milk is amazing, is unpasteurized and is super fresh.)

"One of the needs of Oasis Farms is to have a goat playground where goats can climb and play," said Nick. "They are playful and friendly animals. The playground will provide a place for the goats and the young adults to interact. As an avid skateboarder and skier, I appreciate the need for outdoor activities, so I decided to build this playground for them."

Oasis also used to offer yoga with goats.

Nick is asking Middletown residents to donate money or supplies to help him build the goat playground.

"I hope you can donate to my project — any amount helps," he wrote. "All funds raised will go directly to purchasing materials (lumber, nails, cement). All of the labor will be carried out by volunteers — if you have a particular skill and have time to spare, we would also love to have you help."

Here is the GoFundMe page for Nick's Eagle Scout project: https://www.gofundme.com/f/ple...

More about Oasis in Middletown:

"Oasis Farms is a beautiful and serene farm that supports young adults with autism," wrote Nick. "The peaceful setting and its closeness to nature provide an ideal learning and working environment for these individuals. They're taught the workings of farm life, including nutrition, treatment of animals and environmental conservation. Daily activities include cooking, property maintenance and farming."

Tour Oasis, A Working Farm For Adults With Autism In Middletown (May 2019)

Oasis is open to adults ages 18 to 27. Cleary said ideally, young people stay at Oasis for four to five years, and are then better equipped to work in the world or live in group housing.

"They're learning how to live away from home; they're learning social skills," she said. "We have a range of people here, from non-verbal to high-functioning adults with autism. But even for those who are high-functioning — these people are still working hard to get through the day. It's stressful for them."

At Oasis, the residents live on the farm; they each have their own bedroom in the rambling Revolutionary War-era farmhouse. Every day, they have a long list of farm chores to do. A counselor sleeps overnight there, as well. Some residents also come just for the day program.

Imagine having double vision all the time, said Cleary, who is trained as a nurse. That's what having autism is comparable to. It's difficult for them to focus on what someone is saying and to make eye contact, she said.

"It's also difficult for them to make friends. And that's the hardest part for parents, I've found. You just picture this really lonely child and really lonely adult," she said.

But once they get to Oasis, residents usually thrive. "Kids have done better in three months in our program than they have in 12 years of school," she said. She's seen young adults bond instantly.

Even for those who don't have verbal skills, strong friendships have formed on the farm.

"We have residents who are inseparable," she said. "For them, it's like going home to people who speak their own language."

It's a farming life: The young adults awake with the roosters at dawn, have a communal breakfast and then get to work feeding the animals. The rest of the day is spent doing farm work, be it planting seed, working in the vegetable garden/solar-powered greenhouse or milking goats. They also have exercise breaks and yoga classes. Support staff, therapists and volunteers come in the daytime, and help the residents. Oasis grows nearly everything they eat on the property and they have a farm stand on Sleepy Hollow Road, where they sell what they make: Soap, fresh lavender from the garden, fresh goat milk, eggs, goat milk lotion and natural insect repellent.

Twice a month they hold a special tea, where nearby residents from Middletown, Lincroft and Colts Neck pay to be served a traditional high tea, complete with scones and clotted cream. Oasis residents wait on them; it's called the "Social Graces" tea to teach the residents social skills, Cleary explains. In the summer, they also serve a paid breakfast on the farmhouse porch to neighbors.

On the weekends, residents go home to their families and return Sunday night, ready to begin the week anew.

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