Community Calendar

The Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival will be held June 2-3 at the West Plains Civic Center.

Information at:

Founders Park will host live music and live art during Downtown Springfield's First Friday ArtWalk. The June performances will be music from Lo and Behold and art from George Perkins and Haley Langevin.

The Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival will be held June 2-3 at the West Plains Civic Center.

Information at:

The 41st annual Chadwick Railroad Days will be held at the Chadwick Community Center. This family fun-filled event with a parade, games, crafts and vendor booths, demonstrations, live music and dance, food and lots more.

There will be a Silent Auction and a drawing for a hand-quilted quilt.

The Chadwick Museum will be open all day.

Money raised will help with expenses of museum and the Chadwick Community Center.

Bring a lawn chair.

Never hiked before? No problem. Bennett Spring State Park team members will host a guided hike on Bridge Trail. Meet at 11 a.m. at the nature center. This trail is a 0.7-mile loop of moderate difficulty that goes upland in a white oak-dominated woodland. After reaching the hilltop, the trail winds downward back to the spring and the stone Civilian Conservation Corps Bridge. Participants will stop frequently to connect with and enjoy nature. The trail consists of natural surfaces such as dirt, gravel and loose rocks with raised obstacles. Hikers should bring water and insect repellent and wear appropriate shoes for hiking.

Bennett Spring State Park is located at 26250 Highway 64A outside of Lebanon. For more information, call 417-532-4338.

For more information on state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com. Missouri State Parks is a division of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources.

The public is invited to a free weekend of fun and learning at the

12th Annual Prairie Bioblitz and National Prairie Day to be held at Carver Prairie near Joplin, MO on June 3 and 4, 2023.

Join biologists, volunteer naturalists, and other prairie enthusiasts at Missouri Prairie Foundation’s Carver Prairie to celebrate National Prairie Day (June 3), founded by the Missouri Prairie Foundation, and help biologists inventory plants, birds, insects, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and more. The weekend will also feature a potluck dinner with a fish fry, live bluegrass music from No Apparent Reason, free tent camping, and nocturnal insect observations and star gazing. Activities continue through early afternoon on Sunday.

Participants may enjoy an afternoon or morning of activities or stay for the whole weekend. An interest in nature is all that is required to attend. The event is free of charge, but attendees must register for Prairie BioBlitz activities for planning purposes and to assure a spot in field study groups.

“The Missouri Prairie Foundation is very pleased to offer this weekend of learning and fun,” said Carol Davit, the Missouri Prairie Foundation’s executive director. “Temperate grasslands are the most endangered, least conserved of any major terrestrial habitat on earth—and therefore Missouri’s tallgrass prairies have global conservation significance,” said Davit. “Participants will learn more about and see firsthand the incredible biodiversity present on the prairie while helping document the different kinds of plants and animals we can find.”

For a detailed schedule, directions to the prairie, and to register for Prairie BioBlitz activities, visit https://moprairie.org/event/bioblitz-2023/. To learn more about Carver Prairie, visit https://moprairie.org/project/carver-prairie/.

Horse Fun Show at the Marshfield Saddle Club. The show lets riders enjoy fun horse classes including, but not limited to, barrel racing, pole bending, showmanship, egg & spoon, and stick pony for the kids without a horse.

Hatch Foundation and Springfield Sister Cities Association will host Gigs in the Garden, an outdoor concert series at 2 pm on Sundays, May 7, 14 and 21. Bring lawn chairs or blankets.

The concerts will take place a the Peace Through People Pavilion at the Springfield Botanical Gardens at Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park.

Admission is free with a $10 suggested donation to support garden accessibility projects. Beverages are available for purchase.

Schedule:

May 7: Goat Milk Honey
May 14: MOJO Lite
May 21: The Paper Moons

Theatre and Therapy, group therapy combined with experiential theatre activities, will be Monday evenings (5:30-8) beginning June 5 and running through July 17 (skipping July 3).

Jon Herbert, director, actor, and writer, will facilitate theatre experiences; then, Gail Herbert, MS, PLPC, will facilitate group therapy. Theatre and Therapy is for adults who are feeling disconnected or “stuck.”

For questions, or to enroll, contact Gail at 417-501-5262 or gailh@gailherbertcounseling.com.

Space is limited.

Are you stumped on where to look next in your genealogy search for those elusive ancestors? There may be places you haven't considered. Ozarks Genealogical Society researchers Fran Black, Rita Wallace, and Doris Wilson will be available to make recommendations whether you are a beginner or long time researcher. Please send your questions in advance to ogs@ozarksgs.org. List as much pertinent information as possible, including where you have already researched and what you are trying to find. Assistance will be provided to as many questions as possible, time permitting. Zoom will not be available for this program.

Attendance Options:
In person at the OGS Library. 534 W. Catalpa St., Springfield, Missouri, NO ZOOM.