Summer Series Update
We regret to announce that all events scheduled for the 2020 Summer Series have been cancelled. Although some areas in the country are reopening the case numbers are going up in some states, including North Carolina. With such uncertainty ahead we thought it best to put safety first. We do have events planned that do not involve groups of people in one place. Stay tuned for those announcements and visit this website for information about our summer contests. Award winning storyteller and songwriter Michael Reno Harrell was scheduled for August 22. In lieu of a personal appearance, we invite you to enjoy these videos. Remind Me Why I Came Into This Room Cleaning Out Mama’s House I’m Here Homebound
Blue Ghosts are here!
Blue Ghost Fireflies – Rare, Mysterious, and Probably in Your Yard! I gasped when I first spotted them, then I burst into tears and laughter simultaneously. Witnessing Blue Ghost Fireflies (Phausis reticulata) is a surreal experience. Southern Appalachia is the only place in the world to experience this magical phenomenon. Imagine thousands of firefly ‘fairies’ gliding above the forest floor on a dark, quiet, late spring night. They don’t flash or blink – they glow. And not bright yellow like an ordinary firefly but a constant soft blue-green. You’ll rub your eyes and blink a couple of times because you’re not sure if you’re ‘seeing things.’ The impressive display occurs between mid-May through mid-June from 9:30-10:30pm right here in Sherwood Forest. The Blue Ghost fireflies are not actually flies as the name implies but tiny brown beetles. The size of a grain of rice, the males fly just above the…
May Day, a Celebration of Spring
[gdlr_dropcap type=”circle” color=”#ffffff” background=”#cd853f”]M[/gdlr_dropcap]ay Day is a public holiday usually celebrated on May 1st. It is an ancient festival of Spring and a current traditional spring holiday in many cultures. Dances, singing, and cake are usually part of the festivities. May baskets are made. These are small baskets usually filled with flowers or treats and left at someone’s doorstep. The giver rings the bell and runs away. Sherwood Forest Friends originally planned a field trip to the North Carolina Arboretum to celebrate this spring, with cake , but in light of coronavirus precautions, we will celebrate May Day 2020 virtually! The Arboretum was established as an affiliate of the University of North Carolina System by the State General Assembly in 1986, nearly a century after Frederick law Olmsted, the Father of American Landscape Architecture, first envisioned a research arboretum as part of his legacy and plan for George Vanderbilt at Biltmore Estate. Join us for a…
Membership Renewals
Whew, what a busy year it has been! This month we will be sending out membership renewal notices. Please support us by renewing at the same or a higher level. Renewing online is easy so why wait? If you missed the summer series here is a summary. Our accomplishments and our dreams are only possible because of you. Your confidence in our mission has filled us with promise and possibilities. If you have suggestions of what we might do, or do differently, we are counting on your input. Use the email link in the footer of this website or talk to a board member anytime. We are only as good as the sum of our parts and you, our members, are the most important part. Here is a list of what we have done so far this year. Facility upgrades to benefit our programs WI-fi extended to Robin Hood Barn…
Upcoming events 2019
Spring is here and oh boy, do we have a fun year of events coming up! Please consult the “EVENTS” tab for full descriptions and reservation information for those limited attendance events. Check back often. New events are being added. Join us for an Earth Day nature walk on April 22. Afterwards we will have a tree planting at our headquarters, The Cove, followed by light refreshments. On Thursday, May 16 we will have Blue Ghosts & Bubbles at The Cove, a celebration of our ethereal spring fireflies. Eights days later on May 24, Ernie Mills will bring the sage author, Mark Twain, back to life. Still to be scheduled are movie nights at The Cove and a Cedar Mountain bog walk. Stay tuned. Our Summer Series in August promises to be one of the best ever. Our focus this year will be on mountain culture and we will…
a strategic lot is now safe
Lot D-30, Cardinal Road In July 2017 a group of eighteen residents joined together to create Tarheel Lake Partners LLC with the express purpose of purchasing the half-acre Lot D-30 on Cardinal Road in Sherwood Forest. They donated $41,000 of their own money to purchase this strategic piece of property. The lot was recently appraised at $62,000. In October 2018 the partners transferred title to Sherwood Forest Friends with three stipulations: • The lot will remain permanently undeveloped. • Foot trails will be permitted. • SFHA can have access to the Tarheel Lake/Dam provided that the temporary roadbed is restored with native plant material following completion of the project. Lot D-30 is important to Sherwood Forest because it offers the only access to Tarheel Lake and Tarheel Dam in the event that repair or desilting becomes necessary.Sherwood Forest Friends (SFF) voted on November 5, 2018, to offer Lot D-30 to…
Oct. 23 Bus Trip to Cherokee
On October 23, twenty-five “friends” headed out for a day of Cherokee culture. We met Lianna Costantino, our guide for the day, in Sylva. Our first stop was the Judaculla Rock in Jackson County. This ancient soapstone rock is covered with drawings thought to predate modern Cherokee culture. While Lianna told us the story behind the legend of Juthcullah we all pondered what the drawings actually mean. Some thought they were a recording of history while a few thought the rock could be a map. Our next stop was the pavilion at Mark Watson park where we enjoyed a deeeelishous picnic lunch prepared by Cathy Nell and Kathy Figiel. Everything was prepared and packaged with love! On our short drive to the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, Lianna told us stories of the Cherokee and explained their language. In the museum she…
We are!
Welcome to Sherwood Forest Friends. This website is the source of information on SFF activities and membership. We have many things planned for our first year as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization and you can help us reach our goals. Stay tuned!