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LEHMAN TOWNSHIP — You might already know Renee Rosier as an assistant professor of biology, but on Sunday you can meet her as a strolling bagpipe player.
That’s part of the magic of the Arts at Hayfield Summer Festival, set for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 28 on the Penn State/Wilkes-Barre campus in Lehman Township.
The festival gives more than 100 local folks a chance to demonstrate their talents in music and dancing, wood carving and juggling, quilting and jewelry making and many other creative fields that might be far removed from their daily jobs.
“I love seeing the campus in such a vibrant state,” Rosier said, recalling how patrons approached her during past festivals to compliment her piping. “They’d tell me stories about their trip to Scotland.”
While Rosier will be wearing a new kilt this year in the Campbell tartan that is part of her family heritage, she won’t be the only participant with interesting attire, not with four fairy tale princesses waiting to interact with young fans in the campus gazebo between 12:30 and 2:30 p.m.
“They’re excellent young actresses and they interact beautifully with children,” acting coach Gina Major said. “They’ll have coloring pages and storybooks with them but if a little girl wanted to bring her own storybook and have one of them read it to her, that would be fine.”
Children also are especially welcome to take part in projects that will be going on all day in the craft tent, and they and their parents may be interested in meeting Tim and Sharon Carey, who will be showing a video about the animals that appear in their book about the rescue of a fawn.
People with gardening questions will have a chance to talk to Penn State master gardeners, festival chair Janis Winter said, and people interested in astronomy can tour the campus observatory with assistant professor of physics Violet Mager from 1:30 to 3 p.m., who can show them the new solar telescope.
If you’re interested in quilting, Winter said, expert quilters Lois Hardisky and Shirley Gashi will be in the Student Commons, eager to share their knowledge and show off quilts that display a cathedral window, Grandma’s flower garden and the 50 states, complete with their state birds and flowers.
And if you’ve never seen the interior of the historic Hayfield House, one time home of gentleman farmer John Conyngham, there will be tours at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
“Every room has a different kind of family story connected to it,” Winter said, adding that not-to-be-missed parts of the tour include the gold-plated bathroom faucets and a circular staircase that is “exactly what you’d see in one of the many DuPont houses.”
