June 5 and 19: Ferrisburgh Town selectboard meeting, 6:30 p.m.
June 6: VUHS Jazz Ensemble at Burlington Jazz Festival 3:45 p.m.
June 8: Family Picnic and Field Days, FCS
June 9: From Farm to Forest, Rokeby Museum, 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
June 9 and 23: Ferrisburgh Grange King Pede card party 6:30 p.m.
June 12: Meeting about ANWSD elementary age athletic programs, VUHS, 6 p.m. 
June 12: VUHS Walden Celebration, Willowell, 6 p.m.
June 14: FCS Step Up Ceremony for Sixth Grade students
June 15: VUHS graduation in the high school gym, 6 p.m.
June 17: Campaign for Smart Justice, Rokeby 3 p.m.
June 22: Bixby Library Gala, 7-11 p.m. 
June 23: Ferrisburgh Hollow Family Yard Sale, 8 a.m.
July 1: “What is the Negro to the 4th of July?” Rokeby, 3 p.m.
 
FERRISBRUGH — We congratulate all our area students on another successful academic year and wish them well for the summer or for their plans after graduation. Keep up to date with all the end of the school year activities on the schools’ websites.
Ferrisburgh Central School will be holding its annual Family Picnic and Field Days on Friday, June 8. Many fun events will be held, including a performance by the 5th/6th Grade Chorus. In addition, the students will participate in the American Health Association’s Jump Rope for Health to promote heart health awareness in our community. Parents are asked to RSVP for the picnic to [email protected].
The school’s physical education teacher, Annie Wilson, is looking for community volunteers to assist with the jump rope activity. Call 877-3463 if you able to help.
The FCS summer garden organizers are looking for volunteers to help maintain the students’ gardens. Contact Judy Elson at [email protected] to find out how you can assist.
Over the past few months, a group of community members representing the three ANWSD elementary schools have been working to create an equitable district-wide K-6 athletic program for all students. On Tuesday, June 12, at 6 p.m. in the VUHS auditorium, there will be an informational meeting to present this group’s ideas and recommendations to parents. Also, the ANWSD athletic program is looking for soccer and basketball coaches. If you are interested in coaching these sports, contact Peter Maneen at [email protected].
Here are a few of the end of year activities for Vergennes Union Middle School and High School. The last day of school for students will be June 15. Vergennes Union High School will hold graduation ceremonies on Friday, June 15. The Commodore Jazz Ensemble will perform on Church Street at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival on June 6 — this is always a fun event so make the trip north to Burlington to support these talented musicians.
The North Ferrisburgh Village Association is having its second annual multi-family tag sale on Saturday, June 23. The sale runs from 8 a.m.-3 p.m., rain or shine. Some households may stay open longer on Saturday and/or be selling goods on Sunday. Parking will be available at the North Ferrisburgh Methodist Church at 227 Old Hollow Road. Most of the participating households are in the Ferrisburgh Hollow, with a few on the side streets.
A week before the tag sale there will be two documents on the North Ferrisburgh Methodist Church web site, nfumchurch.org: one will list all the participating addresses and a summary of what is being sold, the other will be a map of the house locations.
Rokeby Museum will present a program entitled “Farm to Forest” on Saturday, June 9, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. By 1830 hundreds of acres had been cleared on the Rokeby farm to make grazing land for Merino sheep. Now, almost 200 years later, nature has reclaimed much of this, but the subtle signs of human use still remain.
Join Rokeby staff for a walk through the trails and fields led by master naturalist Jacob Holzberg-Pill, who will provide us insights into the transition of the land, the many different types of trees and plants that have arisen and point out the often hidden “footprints” of man. With degrees from Yale and Harvard, Holzberg-Pill teaches ecology and land stewardship in a variety of settings with students and adults. Participants should dress for the outdoors. Sturdy or waterproof boots and insect repellent are recommended.
Rokeby will also host a presentation entitled “Campaign for Smart Justice” by the ACLU of Vermont on Sunday, June 17, at 3 p.m. The U.S. represents just 4 percent of the world’s population yet locks up nearly 25 percent of the world’s prisoners. Nationwide, Black and Latino communities are over-represented in the system. Vermont’s incarceration rate has followed national trends and incarcerates African American men at a higher rate than any other state.
ACLU Vermont is part of the Campaign for Smart Justice — a national initiative that seeks to cut the number of people in prison by half though innovative and necessary reforms. Learn about a variety of solutions to this problem. The presentation includes a screening of three short films that premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, telling the first-hand stories of three people who have been incarcerated: Lavette Mayes, Jason Hernandez and Johnny Perez.
The annual commemoration of “What is the Negro to the Fourth of July” will be held at Rokeby on Sunday, July 1, at 3 p.m. This is a unique and memorable opportunity to experience history. Join all who gather to read aloud Frederick Douglass’s most famous speech, originally delivered on July 5, 1852. Declining to speak on the 4th of July, Douglass instead castigated the United States for decades of slavery and injustice. Come and add your voice to this statewide public reading sponsored by the Vermont Humanities Council.
The “King Pede” card parties held by the Ferrisburgh Grange are scheduled for the Saturdays of June 9 and 23. These get-togethers are held at the Ferrisburgh Town Hall and Community Center and begin at 6:30 p.m. with a sandwich supper and then on to an evening of fun and card games. King Pede is an unusual game that involves “trick-taking” techniques such as in Hearts and Spades or Pitch. This is a game of fun and skill so come prepared to use your strategic thinking.
Enjoy an evening of festivity and fun at the Bixby Library’s annual Gala on Friday, June 22. Experience a variety of wonderful local cuisine and move to the sounds of The Grift under the magic of the Library’s historic dome. Relax on the porch or in the new Community Living Room with a glass of wine and check out some of the unique items up for bid.
This year the theme celebrates the warm breezes of spring and the proximity of our towns to beautiful Otter Creek Falls and the inimitable Lake Champlain. The $60 ticket includes two drinks, all the food you can eat, dancing and door prizes. For more information on how support our region’s library, visit bixbylibrary.org. 
It is time to start planning for summer so be sure to look into the amazing summer camps and lake expeditions at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. There is a wide variety of Lake Adventure camps that involve learning about boating, sailing, life on the lake and the history of our area. In June, there are also courses in beginners’ blacksmithing and blade smithing. Visit the museum’s website to learn more about these amazing camps, courses, and all the events coming for Summer 2018 at lcmm.org.
NOTE: We are always interested in including a variety of Ferrisburgh-related news in this column, so if you have news that would be of interest, contact Sally Kerschner at [email protected]. You are able to access these columns and other information about Ferrisburgh news and events by viewing the Ferrisburgh Town Website at ferrisburghvt.org.