News from Mount Carmel Youth Ranch

Ranch Program Overview

2008-04-22T09:02:00.004-07:00

Hello everyone and welcome to Mt. Carmel Youth Ranch’s blog.

In the previous entry, I mentioned that there was going to be a series of articles to discuss what is going on at the Ranch. This particular entry is meant to be the first of such articles.

What I’d like to focus on today is an overview of the Ranch’s Program. As our web site states, “We specialize in a unique therapeutic approach that creates steady behavior improvement.” It is also stated elsewhere, “[The Ranch] uses real life experiences on a ranch to dignify and increase the self-esteem of the troubled youth.”

What do the above two statements mean?

When I first came to the Ranch to work as a mentor, the answer to the above question hit me very quickly.

There is the constant presence of nature, life and death on the Ranch that faces all of us every day.

In my case, I first arrived in the beginning of January—right at the beginning of calving season in all its, bitter, glory.

I say ‘bitter’ because in Northwest Wyoming, it is bitter COLD at that time of the year. The fact that the Ranch is situated on a desert makes for very cold nights.

As I was to discover later, bitter cold nights in January were only the beginning of the end in the life of the Ranch.

There is a cycle followed by the Ranch. As we are a ‘real-working cattle ranch,’ the cycle follows that of the cattle with the seasons of the year. Beginning in Spring and running until the end of Winter, there is a different emphases placed upon each season, accompanied with responsibilities and duties particular to each. Each of these responsibilities and duties is what forms the heart of our programs for the boys.

In the Spring, the beginning of our cycle commences and it is usually awaited with high expectations.

The first duty is breeding the cows and this is what overtakes a good portion of the Spring work. A cow’s gestation period is nine months, like that of humans. Experience has taught us that breeding cows should begin in April and perhaps go into May. Any later leaves open the possibility of calves being born in the Spring thaw, which has proven to be disastrous in the past due to weather conditions at that time. With hard experience behind us, we strive to complete the breeding with successful pregnancies early on.

The breeding is done in two ways:

The first is the ‘natural’ method of bulls mating with cows. The boys, alongside staff, herd the cows into one of our corrals. After that, a bull is put into the same corral and nature is left to herself.

The second method is artificial insemination. This process has more to it than the natural method. Beginning with a section called “bull semen testing” and running to actual insemination of the cows, it is quite an amazing, if not somewhat repulsive, process to ‘city boys’ like myself.

While the cattle-breeding goes on, the Ranch starts preparing for field work. We begin breaking ground for farming seed on our land. We do not buy feed for our 500 head of cattle. We raise our own feed every year and do so proudly.

Recently, the Ranch expanded upon its seeding and crop produce. We have undertaken a San Foin (literally meaning ‘holy hay’) seed project that provides ranchers throughout the United States with a product that is both good for cattle and resistant to certain types of insects.

By the beginning of May, the branding season starts. This is the season looked forward to by the veteran boys in our program. The calves born during the calving season are rounded up, herded and lassoed. From there, the boys and staff take individual calves, hold them down and brand them with the Mount Carmel Ranch insignia. This ensures that our ownership of the calf remains if it was ever to be lost.

About the time that all the Spring work is done, Summer comes upon the ranch and with it, the appropriate work called “The Summer Pasture.”

The Summer pasture is where a lot of our cowboying work is done. We officially open up our ‘Cow-Camp’ program. The boys move up to our cabin on the Beartooth Mountains and move cows every 30 days to different sections of the grazing areas. It is a very involved process wherein cattle are doctored (if needed) by the boys with professionals, maintain water lines, mend fences and overall caring for cattle.

The boys themselves are usually rotated on an 8-day basis between ‘the Cabin’ and the Ranch as there is work on the Ranch to be done as well. Farming, irrigating and raising the crops await the boys and so they are kept quite busy.

By the time the summer is over, a lot of hard work has been done but there is no rest for the weary. The Fall comes upon us and with it the process known as “The Harvest.”

Before the cows come home (like the expression), a race starts. There are local laws that restrict the time limit that local ranchers have for letting their cattle graze and these times change every year. For 2008, ranchers and their cattle must be out some time between the 30th of October to November 15th. On average, our cows are ready to come home by the time 9/10ths of the Harvest is done.

Some of the calves from the calving season are sold during the month of November. They are sold in November because that is the time when the calves reach the projected weight for selling.

Upon the return of the boys and staff, the Ranch settles in for the Winter.

Winter runs roughly from December to April. In the beginning of the season, the irrigation water is turned off and the process of Winter begins. Boys and staff start preparations for the upcoming calving season. They feed the cattle with the feed taken in the Harvest and start sorting the cows into different pens. In essence, all that they do is feed the cattle and help the cows and heifers give birth.

It is about the beginning of January that the first calf is born. Calves continue to be born until the beginning of May. Boys and staff brave the cold weather every hour to check the cows to see if they are in distress. This schedule of going out every hour changes as the weeks go by and the weather warms up, making it not so imperative to go out continuously. By the time the last calf is born, the Spring is upon the Ranch and the yearly cycle begins all over again.

During the various seasons and cycles, our other programs are in full effect. There is the Breakthrough Parenting course with Mr. and Mrs. Tom and Susan George, Academics with Mr. Larry Ley and Counseling (both individual and group sessions) with the boys with Mrs. Penny Gifford. The times and arrangements of our programs may vary in accordance with the workload being done (much to Mr. Larry’s consternation as he keeps the boys’ coursework on track with all the various farm activities).

The work on the Ranch is never done and it is this ‘never-ending’ motif that provides much strength to our programs. The boys are kept busy and learn important things about life and themselves. This forces the boys to let go of the selfishness that they have engrained in themselves and learn to serve others. Serving others is a powerful way the boys learn to unfold their minds as God created them.

There are some important elements that we have discovered to be very effective in helping the boys to unfold their potential.

First and foremost, we place an emphasis upon the spiritual aspect of the boys’ lives. Our founders, Michaeleen and Gerald Schneider, are Catholics and they have incorporated various elements of the Catholic tradition into our program.

Though we define ourselves as a Ranch in the Catholic Tradition, we do not force anyone to accept Catholicism. There are no ‘forced conversions’ as the expression goes but we do expect boys to be respectful of religion and interiorly participate to some degree.

Another important element to our program is the continuous life and death situation that faces the boys at every turn and every day of ranch life.

The calving season is a great example of life and death situations. If a calf dies due to neglect on a boy or boys’ watch, the thought of that life having died due to neglect weighs heavily upon the conscience. Steadily, boys will learn to care for a creature other than himself, thus drawing him out of the selfish attitude instilled in him.

All in all, our program is very unique with how the seasons, work and prayer come together to unfold the boy’s mind as God created it.

I think that should do it for this particular entry. It may be updated as time goes on so check back periodically.

Until next entry, I remain your faithful MT.C.Y.R. blogger.

-MTC, KJS

Ranch Blog Welcome

2008-04-22T08:18:00.004-07:00

Hello everyone!

My name is Kevin. I am one of the mentors here at Mount Carmel Youth Ranch.

It is the Ranch's desire to keep the families of our boys and prospective families informed of Ranch happenings. As a part of fulfilling this desire, I have recently been appointed the updater of the Ranch's blog. I come to this new position with an extensive online experience of writing essays, articles and even blogging.

I hope to serve well the parents of our boys by providing weekly information on the happenings at the Ranch. In order to do this, I have decided that there will be a series of articles to kick-start our blog into high gear.

Here is a sneak peek into what you can expect in upcoming entries.

1) An overview of the Ranch, its life, dealings and heart of our therapy program.

2) A demonstration of a specific aspect of Ranch life.

3) Another article on some work the boys have undertaken.

There are a couple things I need to note in the meantime.

-While I am sure every family would like to know what their son is doing specifically, there are privacy and confidentiality laws that prohibit mentioning specific names. With this in mind, I will instead use pseudonyms with singular quotation marks around the name.

-Statements from the boys on their work will be given. These statements will be real and not fabricated.

If there is anything else that comes up regarding the blog entries, I'll be sure to notify you in a future post.

That said, sit back, relax and enjoy reading about Ranch happenings.

-MTC, KJS

February 5, 2008

2008-02-05T10:01:00.000-07:00

Winter is sure a long time going! There is a common joke among ranchers that says something about winter being the slow time of year. I can’t understand what that means with all of the feeding of animals, construction, and calving season. Us cowboys sure don’t like being afoot. We want to get on a horse to do something, but it’s mostly tractor work, pitch forking feed, and pulling a calf that wants to stay inside its warm mother. The boys are earning their share of sleep by attending cows at night during this time of year. We have to have someone looking at the cows at all hours of the day. Tractors are also being cleaned up and maintenance done in anticipation of farming needs in March. This ol’ cowpoke can sure remember some colder winters, but they sure seemed shorter in my younger years. My ol’ friend Beck, used to live in Alaska. He said a man could die if he took a breath too fast up there. I guess there is always someplace worse than where you’re at. At least it’s not that bad and it looks like God will bless us with some warmer weather soon. My Christmas cactus has one more flower on it, must be a sure sign of spring.

Happy 2008 Everyone!

2008-01-07T11:51:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone and I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. Here at the ranch, the boys who stayed for the Christmas holiday had a lot of fun. The boys went to Mass on Christmas Day and had a wonderful Christmas dinner. They were also able to go skiing, out to dinner and to a movie during the holiday break.
Outside, the boys have been busy at the corrals and the calving season has begun. Calving has had a slow start but things are picking up. The boys have been taking care of a calf that was born with a low temperature and they had to keep her warm so she was able to go back to her mother. It is amazing how the life cycle affects the boys. It may not be immediately apparent but the experience stays with them for a lifetime.
Here is a link that will take you to a broadcast that I hope you will find inspirational. It is a phone call from the “sky cowboy”, a 13 year old boy who called in to a radio station to share what he has learned from experiencing a loss. http://ksbj.org/eblogs/morningShow/

“Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude”. Denis Waitley

“For God Himself works in our souls, in the deepest depths, taking increasing control as we are progressively willing to be prepared for His wonder”. Thomas R. Kelly

Mount Carmel Youth Ranch

2007-12-05T13:35:00.001-07:00

Mount Carmel Youth Ranch
Substance Abuse Recovery help for troubled teens with Work Skills-Vocational Training through Relationships, Nature, Counseling and Healing Love.

Mount Carmel Youth Ranch is a therapeutic real working cattle ranch for troubled teen boys ages 12-18. Mount Carmel Youth Ranch offers solutions to families dealing with the negative influences in today's teenage environment. We are located on a beautiful 40,000 acre Wyoming cattle ranch, far from the temptations of drugs and alcohol, sex and peer pressure. Mount Carmel Youth Ranch is 30 miles from town and their are no fences beyond the natural boundaries of the vast Wyoming wilderness .Mount Carmel Youth Ranch is a safe & loving place, where they are free to find their true selves and get in touch with the values they have forgotten.

Our Philosophy:

The Philosophy of Mount Carmel Youth Ranch is based on a commitment to personal growth through change, honesty, trust, experiencing the beauty of Gods creation in nature. Through our “paternal teaching” and “Reality Therapy” approach the young mans mind and heart are renewed and unfolded as God created him. We employ this philosophy in all of our day to day activities in this program. We are a family- a group of people involved in the total sharing of our lives. We know that change happens as a result of meaningful sharing and honest relationships. We also know that growth in the areas of honesty, trust,integrity, improved relationships, responsibility and stress management will reduce your child’s dependence on unmanageable behavior, thus increasing your child's ability to find joy and fulfillment in his life.