By Kerry Roeder, Executive Director
Sunday, June 5th marked the first time that we were able to gather as a community since before the pandemic began. It was an evening filled with joy, inspiration, gratitude, and love. It was wonderful to be surrounded by so many staff, volunteers, and neighbors. We also know that not everyone was able to join us and that we have lost loved ones over the past two years. We thank you all for continuing to support our collaborations in Fairhill and hope that this will be the first of many celebrations together again.
Our program began with a reminder of the words of Anna T Jeanes to do “the next needed thing” in order to better humanity. These four small words speak to what Historic Fair Hill has always been about – responding to the needs and interests of our neighbors in creative and collaborative ways, being resilient, and rising to meet the challenges of the day.
Keynote speaker, Nicole Juday Rhoads, spoke of the intersection of Quakerism and a connection to nature. Her talk covered the rich history of Fairhill and the enormous value of trees, gardens, and green spaces in our lives.
Finally, we were able to honor the indelible spirit of Jean Warrington. Jean began as a volunteer and board member before becoming our first program director and then executive director. As we heard from those who spoke about her, Jean’s love of Fairhill is truly “infectious” and she has always had a way of bringing more people into the work. In her own words, she shared about her love for Historic Fair Hill and it being filled with people who are working to care for one another and seeing what love can do.
It’s been another challenging year for everyone, but we have continued working together to make the world a little brighter and to carry on the legacies of Lucretia Mott, Robert Purvis, Peaches Ramos, and Jean Warrington. Thank you all for being a part of Historic Fair Hill.
