Willa Cather tour at Franklin Pierce set for Friday

Famed author Willa Cather (Courtesy photo)

RINDGE, N.H. - Franklin Pierce University in partnership with Bride Farm and The Shattuck is hosting The Willa Cather Tour on Friday in Jaffrey beginning at 4:30 p.m.
The event begins at 90 Old Dublin Road.
The Willa Cather Tour is part of the University's series of NEA Big Read events. This past spring, Franklin Pierce was awarded a $9,500 Big Read grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The University is one of 77 organizations nationwide awarded a grant, and one of only two in New Hampshire. As part of The Big Read, Franklin Pierce chose to feature author Willa Cather and her novel My Ántonia.
Attendees will take the "Willa Cather Walk" that the author made from the Shattuck Inn in Jaffrey, up a lovely wooded road to the meadow at Bride Farm where she wrote in summers and autumns beneath a pitched tent. The walk takes about 45 minutes round trip and participants should wear comfortable walking shoes. For those who wish to see Cather's writing site, but choose not to take the walk, a shuttle will be available and will drive to the destination.
Following the 4:30 p.m. "Willa Cather Walk," there will be a 5:30 p.m. candlelight reading beside the graves of Willa Cather and her longtime partner Edith Lewis at the Old Burying Ground near the Jaffrey Meetinghouse. Master of Ceremonies for this event is Marlin Fitzwater, former press secretary for presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. Immediately following the reading, there will be a reception at The Cathedral Ballroom at The Shattuck.
Shuttle transportation will leave from Franklin Pierce University's Petrocelli parking lot at 4 p.m. on Friday, October 21, 2016. Those wishing to get a ride to the Jaffrey events should register with Dr. Donna Decker at (603) 899-4296 or deckerd@franklinpierce.edu by October 18.
The event is free and open to the public