Speakers Bureau
The Friends of the Wissahickon offers free public lectures on the following subjects directly to your organization or retirement residence at no charge (although donations are appreciated). To schedule a speaker, contact Audrey Simpson at the FOW office at 215-247-0417 or office@fow.org.
Postcards from the Wissahickon
David Bower, Volunteer Coordinator for Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, offers a Power Point presentation using his extensive Wissahickon postcard collection
A Poem Which Has Long Endured: The Walnut Lane Bridge at 100
David Young, Executive Director of Cliveden of the National Trust, discusses this structure, long an inspiration for artists, photographers, and writers.
Protecting Land with Conservation Easements
Debra Wolf Goldstein, member of Philadelphia’s newly-created Commission on Parks and Recreation and president of Conservation Matters, LLC, a legal and consulting firm with a focus on land conservation issues, presents this lecture on conservation easements.
Art Inspired by the Wissahickon
Dena Sher, founder of the Whitemarsh Art Center and a former FOW Board Member, presents a PowerPoint presentation that includes the history of the Wissahickon Valley as background to the art it inspires.
A History of Horses in the Wissahickon
FOW member Barbara Sherf, a communications professional who enjoys horseback riding as a member of the Philadelphia Saddle Club, offers this 40 minute slide presentation which delves into the equestrian history of the Wissahickon Valley from the early 1900s to the present.
The Wissahickon: Then and Now
Sarah West, author of Rediscovering the Wissahickon, offers four “Then and Now” PowerPoint programs of historic photos compared with current views of the same location. Choose from the following:
The 200 Year Industrial Era
Wissahickon Homesteads
Wissahickon Roads, Paths, and Bridges
Wissahickon Road House Era (1840-1916)
Stewardship Challenges in the Wissahickon
This PowerPoint program, also presented by Sarah West, gives an overview of the watershed. Ms. West discusses flooding and flood damage, water runoff, pollution and sedimentation, invasive plants, deer overpopulation, loss of biodiversity, and repairs and restoration.
The Story in Wissahickon Rocks
Sarah West offers another Powerpoint program that discusses the formation of schist, quartzite, gneiss, pegmatite, and other Wissahickon rocks using important geological concepts: the rock cycle, weathering, and plate tectonics.