You wouldn’t know it was the hottest, driest part of the summer in the abundant wildflower meadow Jonathan Shaw and his wife, Anne Habberton started at their Queenstown farm two years ago. Life springs from every bright green blade of grass. Flower stalks sway with colorful heads atop grassy leaves. Most of all, the birds and the bees are very, very happy (no! not like that!). So, grab your walking shoes, sunscreen and a good hat and join Chesapeake Forum on August 2nd for a rare field trip to this spectacular wildflower meadow (https://chesapeakeforum.org).

Ever since Shaw and his wife turned 32 acres of their working farm into native wildflowers, they have seen an ever-increasing stream of insects and birds including yellow-headed bobolinks, and indigo buntings. In late summer, countless species of butterflies come to enjoy purple cosmos, yellow goldenrods, bee balm and tufts of grass seeds that were planted with the help of Washington College’s Natural Lands Project Director, Dan Small.

Shaw is a renowned wildlife artist and instructor. Born in England, he is an expert Falconer and accomplished horseman. He has a passion for raising, breeding, and training Pasa Fino horses. He and his wife Ann Habberton Shaw are long time Queen Anne’s County residents and reside on a farm in Queenstown.

Join Chesapeake Forum for a rare Field Trip to Jonathan and Anne’s Queenstown farm on August 2 from 8:30 AM – 11 AM. In person. $20. Carpool from vacant bank lot in front of Target. To register, visit https://chesapeakeforum.org. Be sure to bring a good shade hat, sunscreen and binoculars.

Chesapeake Forum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lifelong learning opportunities to residents of the eastern shore. To receive Chesapeake Forum’s newsletter, please send your name and contact information, including address and email, to [email protected].

Those who like their history first-hand will have a chance to combine a visit to the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC with the powerful experience of hearing live from a Holocaust survivor in two upcoming Chesapeake Forum courses in February.  On Wednesday, February 1st, Chesapeake Forum will host a bus trip to the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC, followed by a rare opportunity to have an online Q & A with a Holocaust survivor, the following Wednesday, February 8th.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is a living memorial to the Holocaust, inspiring citizens and leaders worldwide to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity. Its primary mission is to advance and disseminate knowledge about the Holocaust; to preserve the memory of those who suffered; and to encourage its visitors to reflect upon the moral and spiritual questions raised by the events of the Holocaust as well as their own responsibilities as citizens of a democracy.

The self-guided Permanent Exhibition, The Holocaust, offers a chronological narrative of the Holocaust through historical artifacts, photographs, and film footage. Throughout the exhibition, visitors will also encounter personal objects and the eyewitness testimonies of individual survivors.  Viewing this exhibition takes 1-3 hours. Other current exhibits include Americans and the Holocaust (45 min), Burma’s Path to Genocide (30 min), Remember the Children: Daniel’s Story (30 min), American Witnesses (30 min), and One Thousand and Seventy-eight Blue Skies (10 min).

Field Trip to the Holocaust Museum is Wednesday, February 1st. One (1) session, 9 AM to 4:30 PM.  $65.  Please note:  The bus leaves the Easton Fire House at 315 Aurora Park Drive at 9 AM sharp.  To register for, visit https://chesapeakeforum.org.

The following week, on Wednesday, February 8th, the United States Holocaust Museum is offering Chesapeake Forum the opportunity to connect with a Holocaust survivor remotely via video conference. The program consist of a 30-minute interview between a museum staff member and a Holocaust survivor followed by time for questions and comments from the audience.

An Hour with a Holocaust Survivor is Wednesday, February 8th from 10 – 11 AM.  ZOOM (no recording).  $15.  To register for this or any other Chesapeake Forum course, visit https://chesapeakeforum.org.

Chesapeake Forum is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lifelong learning opportunities for residents of the Eastern Shore.  To receive Chesapeake Forum’s newsletter, please send your name and preferred email to [email protected].

Chesapeake Forum Academy for Lifelong Learning presents Professor David W. Blight, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom. Blight is the 2021 Visiting Professor, a series created in the memory of Chesapeake Forum’s Founder John F. Ford. The live Zoom lecture will take place on Thursday, January 21, 202, 4:00 pm to 5:30 pm $25.

Born into slavery near the banks of Tuckahoe Creek, Douglass escaped what could have been a lifetime of bondage to become nationally and internationally renowned as the 19^th century’s most famous orator and writer on the abolition of slavery and for the equality of all peoples. David Blight speaks and writes with deep understanding and appreciation of Douglass’s legacy in his own times, and in ours. Professor Blight’s virtual lecture on Zoom will draw past and present together by focusing on some of Frederick Douglass’s key legacies. The class session includes time for a Q & A session with Professor Blight following his lecture.

David Blight is no stranger to the Eastern Shore where he has conducted research on Frederick Douglass (1818-1895), Talbot County’s most famous native son. In June of 2011 Blight was invited by the Frederick Douglass Honor Society to be the keynote speaker at the dedication of the statue of Douglass on the lawn of the Talbot County Courthouse. David W. Blight is Sterling Professor of History and Director of the Gilder Lehrman Center for the Study of Slavery, Resistance, and Abolition at Yale University. For more information go to https://chesapeakeforum.org/.