Alice Ferguson Foundation

For close to thirty years, from 1922 to 1951, Alice and Henry Ferguson enjoyed life at their southern Maryland retreat. They entertained friends at their "Theater in the Woods," explored the Potomac shoreline in search of Native American artifacts, and delighted in exquisite views of Mount Vernon. But most importantly, Alice and Henry worked to advance their true passions: education and the environment.

Today, the Alice Ferguson Foundation (AFF), created in 1954, is a multi-faceted non-profit and a stalwart of the DC environmental community. Through a variety of programs and initiatives, the Foundation stays true to the passions of its namesake.

Milking Station at Hard Bargain Farm

View the Alice Ferguson Foundation Slideshow on Flickr

Hard Bargain Farm Environmental Center

Like most farms, a Hard Bargain day starts with the rooster's crow. Soon after the not-so-subtle wake-up, chickens, cows, goats, and pigs stir as they eagerly anticipate breakfast. But unlike your typical farm, by mid-morning, thirty 5th graders, freed from the confines of the classroom, have been unleashed on the Hard Bargain grounds - all in the name of hands-on educational experience.

The 330-acre Hard Bargain Farm is part of AFF headquarters in Accoceek, Maryland. It's a working farm, staffed by trained naturalists, but the focus is education. During a visit to the farm, local Maryland students (including many at-risk youth) take hikes, help with farm chores, and paddle canoes. For many kids who have only seen a chicken on a dinner plate, it's an experience with a lasting impression.

Hard Bargain Amphitheater

During the summer months, the Alice Ferguson Foundation entertains the local community with music and theater in its very own amphitheater. As spring turns to summer, check the Foundation website for updated schedules.

Alice Ferguson Foundation Sign

Bridging the Watershed

What happens when you take 20 urban high school students, drop them off at a national park, and direct them to the nearest stream for a macro-invertebrate critter count? A transformation - that's what.

The Bridging the Watershed (BTW) program abides by a simple concept - to re-connect youth with the natural world, they must first be introduced to it. As BTW leaders will tell you, a three hour visit to a national park has the potential to change fear of the natural world into appreciation.

Parents - don't be jealous, but through BTW your middle school or high school student has an opportunity to:

• Hike the Taylor Farm Trail in Prince William Forest Park to identify and classify invasive plants.
• Wade into Turkey Run, a Potomac tributary, to collect and count macro-invertabrates - data that is then used by the National Park Service for resource management (see video).
• Experience an eye-opening first-hand account of the Potomac trash problem from the shores of Oxon Cove Park.
• Collect and test water samples from Greenbelt Park's Still Creek in order to measure the Water Quality Index.

Are you a local educator? The Foundation will train both teachers and rangers/volunteers to help create actionable curriculum combining classroom activities with hands-on experience. Ninth grade Biology just got a lot more interesting...

Trash Free Potomac Watershed Initiative and Cleanup

When the Ferguson's bought their riverfront property in 1922, Gatorade bottles littering the Potomac shoreline were probably not a problem. Seventy-seven years later, in 1989, they were. The Alice Ferguson Foundation hosted their first river cleanup that year. Three million tons of trash and 50,000 volunteer participants later, support for the Trash Free Potomac Watershed Initiative, and the affiliated Cleanup event, is stronger than ever.

As a Trail Voice reader, you may already be familiar with the Cleanup (scheduled for Saturday, April 10th - register here). The Trash Free Potomac Watershed Initiative takes the concept of the Cleanup, adds governmental and non-profit partners, and attaches attainable goals for the watershed. As is usually the case with environmental initiatives, nothing can be accomplished without citizen awareness and participation. Have you made the pledge to do your part for a Trash Free Potomac by 2013?

The Foundation offers unique experiences catering to a variety of audiences, but the overlying mission is a constant: to build upon our progress and develop the next-generation of environmental stewards. That's Alice's legacy.

Membership: Join the Alice Ferguson Foundation
Social Media: Hard Bargain Farm Blog; Bridging the Watershed Blog; Facebook; Twitter

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