Hoosic Riverfest May 26

Hoosic  Riverfest  May 26

Riverfest, the  annual celebration of the Hoosic held by the Hoosic River Watershed Association  (HooRWA), will be held at Cole Field on  the Williams College campus from 11AM to 4 PM on Saturday, May 26.  Admission  is $5 advance and $7 at the gate per person. Children 10 and under admitted  free.
Riverfest is a family  event that features live river animals, crafts and games, pony rides, raft  rides, live music, drumming and a riverside art exhibit. The traditional  Riverfest bird walk, led by Leslie Reed-Evans of the Williamstown Rural Lands  Foundation, begins the day of celebration. (Meet at 7:30 at Ephs Pond opposite  Cole Field.) Events for kids and adults are scheduled throughout the day.
          Healing Winds, a not-for-profit Native American cultural and  educational organization, will set up a tepee and invite children to help  erecting a wigwam. These will be settings for drumming, dancing, storytelling  and games.
          Riverfest tickets have been subsidized this year by over  $3,000 in contributions from area businesses, including title sponsor, the Williamstown  Savings Bank (WSB), and major sponsors Alton & Westall and the Williams  College Center for Environmental Studies. Businesses have also donated $2,000  in prizes. Admission tickets double as raffle tickets for an Old Town kayak  from Berkshire Outfitters, a mountain bike from the Spoke, or outdoor clothing  from Nature’s Closet.  The first-prize kayak is on display in the lobby of  the Williamstown branch of WSB.  Tickets  can be purchased in advance at the bank, The Spoke, Nature’s Closet, Wild Oats  or from HooRWA board members.
          Numerous other bucket raffle prizes are available.
          Visitors to Riverfest may want to end their day with a visit  to MASS MoCA’s O, Canada exhibit, opening at 5:30 p.m. that day. The exhibit  will showcase the vast expanse of art made in that country, spanning all media  and crossing generations and geography. Tickets for the reception are $10.
          For more information, contact HooRWA at 413-458-2742 or office@hoorwa.org.