My name is Brooke Paluch, and I am the director of the Orchard in Kyle, Tx. I would love to let you in on the vision for this location and how it came to be! If you are reading this, please also pray with us on this journey.
God led our family to Texas almost 12 years ago. We were so grateful to have found Vertical Chapel when we first moved here. I remember asking our Pastor if he thought there would be a school associated with Vertical some day. I had visited a private Christian school in IL prior to moving and cried when I walked the halls of that school. However, I tucked that dream away because God’s timing is best. I continued to pray as I also continued to work as a substitute teacher. I knew He was stirring something different in my heart but I had no idea what it was. I fervently prayed for God to show me how teaching curriculum and teaching about Jesus could be woven together.
One morning, back in October of 2023, I received an email that was forwarded to me from a friend. It was a newsletter from someone named Kate, who was looking for substitute teachers at a homeschool program called The Orchard. I messaged her at 5:00am telling her I was interested. Upon meeting the teachers there, I cried again, seeing the beautiful tapestry that God was weaving together. We walked and talked, and knew that God was calling us to partner together in this. The crazy thing is that I didn’t even really know about the homeschool world, but God was gently drawing me into this wonderful community.
I attended a lunch meeting with homeschool moms, and when it came time to introduce myself, I yet again, found myself in tears, as I told them who I was. A former teacher, a mother of 3 who attended public school, was urging them to keep going on their precious journey of homeschooling. I was in this weird space between not knowing why I was there, to then also feeling the nudge so strongly from God to encourage these mamas to pray about each child and do what’s best for their children. That lunch marked me. I wanted to continue to encourage these parents. There is something so special about being part of a community that values curiosity, character, and faith. I continued to sub at The Orchard in the 2023-2024 school year.
In December of 2023, Kate gave us all a gift for Christmas. It was a framed drawing of a Mustard Tree and at the bottom you could see the mustard seed. This was so special because she explained how The Orchard got its name. We have the privilege of helping to sow seeds into these children, and that as they grow they will bear fruit. Two weeks before that I had been given a bracelet of a mustard seed from another dear friend. “It’s like a mustard seed that, when sown upon the soil, is the smallest of all the seeds on the ground. And when sown, it comes up and grows taller than all the garden plants, and produces large branches, so that the birds of the sky can nest in its shade.” Mark 4: 31-32 These gifts marked me, and I felt God spurring me on to continue to pray.
In 2024-2025, I became a teacher at the Orchard and taught Culture Study and History to grades K-3. What an opportunity to be graced with teaching kids and coming alongside parents in their homeschool journey. I quickly fell in love with the joy of teaching children that genuinely love to learn about the first farmers in Mesopotamia and the story of Moses as well.
In the fall of 2024, I spoke with a dear friend from church about how I really felt God stirring in my heart to have an Orchard type school at Vertical. It was a couple weeks later that she shared that vision with a few other mamas at a gathering they had. God was putting this on the hearts of others as well. From there, some of my sweet friends, and homeschool mamas (Jenna, Amanda, Lindsey) started praying together. Along with these prayers, I was also able to be a homeschool mama for the first time. My son, at age 16, began homeschooling in January. He also started working with me at The Orchard. What an incredible blessing.
Kate and I began praying more fervently for this in the Spring of 2025 as well. Our prayer was always that if the Lord opened the door, and we felt like this was in His timing, we would move forward. Doors kept opening. In May of 2025, some of the staff from Vertical was able to tour The Orchard to better capture the Vision. We knew that opening a second location would allow us to serve so many homeschool families at our church and the surrounding communities. What a gift it would be to have a second location in the Kyle area. And now, here we are, in 2026, moving forward with God’s leading.
Just as Kate says in her introduction for when The Orchard started in Wimberley,
“This is who we are. A wholehearted tribe of parents pressing on towards the goal of educating the hearts, minds, and spirits of the children in our care. Sowing diligently the seeds of goodness, truth, beauty, joy, integrity, and so much more. We know that these seeds will grow into strong trees that will bear fruit in their own time.”
I am deeply thankful to Kate for welcoming me into this amazing program she has created. Her leadership, vision, and heart for families have been such a gift, and I am honored to walk alongside her and this community. I look forward to learning, growing, and serving together!
I will continue this legacy of putting my faith in God as He leads me on a new adventure of opening another Orchard campus in Kyle. We will bring the same atmosphere to our campus of righteousness, peace, and joy and enjoying the same joy-filled education that the Orchard is known for. We will use our imaginations, get creative, play outside, read great stories that inspire us, work on our character, and prioritize relationships. I aim to establish a rich community between the families at our campus that can lean on each other for strength and encouragement.
We invite you to join us!
