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Sourland Mountain Festival returning July 23 By JOe EMANsKi For many years, the Sourland Conservancy depended on two main events for fundraising: the Sourland Mountain Festival, held annually in July, and the Sourland Spectacular cycling-hiking-running event, held each September. Like so many things the past few years, these traditions were compromised by the coronavirus pandemic. The Sourland Spectacular returned as a regular event in 2021, but the festival was canceled for both 2020 and 2021. And now it is back! The 17th annual Sourland Mountain Festival is set to take place on July 23, rain or shine, at Unionville Vineyards in Ringoes, a new venue for the event. In prior years, the festival has been held at Hillsborough Golf and Country Club, which announced its permanent closure this January. The festival, which is set to start at 3 p.m. and go until 8:30, will feature a variety of live musical performers, food vendors, artists and artisans. As usual, local businesses and organizations will also be on hand to do outreach and support the event. The pandemic came at a particularly painful time for the Sourland Conservancy and the festival committee because the 2019 version was the most successful one ever held, attracting a reported 2,300
attendees. Unionville Vineyards has a maximum occupancy of 1,000, so this year’s festival will not be reaching those numbers. But event co-chair K. Suzanne Parsons says the winery will be an excellent site for the event. “We didn’t actually have the festival the last two years, but we had other things to tie in the festival concept,” says Parsons, who has been involved with the festival for about eight years. “In 2020, we had Save the Sourlands Solofest (online), and we got a beautiful film out of it. In 2021, we had Sourland Mountain Happy Hours, one every month for six months, and the last one was live. “Then the board of trustees said, ‘What about reviving the festival this year?’ And here we are.” Parsons, who is co-chairing the event this year with Alison Kavchok, says the music is her favorite part of the festival. This year’s lineup is set to include The Outcrops, James Popik and Supernova, Rainbow Fresh, and Water Street. Food and beverages will be provided by Unionville Vineyards, Flounder Brewing Company, Sourland Mountain Spirits, Blauwenburg Bistro, Johnson Family Ice Cream, Barn Find Barrel Aged Coffees, We Squeeze to Please fresh lemonade, and Thai Cha See FESTIVAL, Page 8
HoVal Class of 2022 graduates
Mea Allex, Anushka Agarwal, Sukhmani Arora and Hana Hamid on June 22, 2022 at the Hopewell Valley Central High School graduation ceremony. For more graduation photos, turn to page 6. (Photo by Mike Schwartz Photography/www.mikeschwartz.photo).
CHS Junior takes 2nd prize in Lowell Milken Center national art competition By JOe EMANsKi When the Kansas-based Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes announced the nine winners of its 7th annual international ArtEffect Project competition, the list included an 11th grade student at Hopewell Valley Central High School.
Raelynn Cui, a student in teacher Lora Durr’s Studio Art III class, won second prize for her mixed-media painting, “Man Behind the Camera,” a portrait of photographer and activist Lewis Hine. The ArtEffect Project challenges middle and high school students to honor unsung heroes
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with creativity and skill. The Lowell Milken Center selects each year’s unsung heroes, and students select the heroes they want to feature and create works of art based on what they learn about them. The LMC awarded the $6,000 Grand Prize to Chloe Kim, a 10th See ARTIST, Page 10
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