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Renfrew hosts Royer Farmstead Tour and photography exhibit.


WAYNESBORO - Family and friends are invited to "walk back in time" from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Saturday, July 2, when Renfrew Museum and Park hosts Royer Farmstead Day.

All of the outbuildings on the property will be open for a walk-through tour hosted by guides in period clothing. The sites include the milk house, smoke house, Fahnestock house, Fahnestock barn, tannery site, gristmill, limestone kiln, the Royer house, and the Summer Kitchen. The farmstead tours are the only time that all of the buildings are open to the public.

The limestone kiln is currently undergoing a restoration, so visitors will be able to look at its progress when they come. They will also get to see the progress being made on the pottery display that will house the museum's John Bell collection.

Maurer photographs

In addition to the property tour, there will be a photography exhibit in the Visitors Center by Greg Maurer. The exhibit will feature landscape photographs of national parks in the southwest.

Maurer is a Waynesboro native currently residing in Downingtown. He developed an interest in photography at an early age when he took a photography class at East Junior High School in Waynesboro. After receiving a Polaroid camera as a gift around the same time, he was constantly taking pictures.

The focus shifted from still pictures to moving pictures in college at Penn State, where Maurer graduated with a degree in telecommunications and video production. While he did continue to shoot still photography, his interest didn't fully rekindle until he started visiting national parks.

"I took the family out to Bryce Canyon National Park and Zion National Park in Utah in 2010, and that was my first trip with a really good digital camera," Maurer said in a press release promoting the show. "I think my interest [for still photography] was lying dormant for a while and this trip is what revived it."

A century of parks

The show is timed well, as 2016 is the 100th anniversary of National Parks. The National Park Service and the National Park Foundation has been coordinating efforts throughout the past year to make the centennial a big celebration for everyone. Last year, they created the "Find Your Park" movement, which encourages all visitors to share their favorite parks and be an active part in looking towards the future in preserving the parks for more generations to come.

"There is so much attention on National Parks this year, and this show fits so perfectly with that," said Maurer. "I just want everyone to see the natural beauty and diverse geological range that the parks across the country have. It's also very important to me to show people why these parks matter, and why we should all be working together to conserve them."

"Some of the most spectacular landscapes you'll find anywhere are right here in our national parks," said Maurer. "You're hard-pressed to find almost ready-made places to pursue photography."

Maurer says he is particularly drawn to the southwest due to its drastic difference in landscapes, and the Native American culture found there.

"I can't explain it fully, but that region of the country really pulls me in. It almost seems alien out there compared to what we know on the east coast. I definitely 'found my park' out there. I also really appreciate the deep respect the Native Americans have towards nature, and being around them helped me create that same appreciation and respect for it. Hopefully this show will inspire others as well."

It is Maurer's goal to visit all 58 national parks in the US. He has visited 12 of them so far.

When you go:

Royer Farmstead Day and Greg Maurer photo exhibit

Saturday, July 2

Renfrew Museum and Park 

1010 E. Main St, Waynesboro

Farmstead tours 11 a.m. 2 p.m.

Photo exhibit opening reception 11 a.m. , Visitors Center

The show will be on display through Labor Day weekend

Admission $8 adults, $7 seniors, $5 ages 7-18, 6 andunder free

Free for members of the museum and park.

For more information about Royer Farmstead tours visit w.ww.renfrewmuseum.org or www.facebook.com/renfrewpark, or call 717-762-4723.