Strolling of the Heifers is seeking heifers, strollers, marchers, and floats for its upcoming Parade, as well as entertainers, volunteers and vendors for various Stroll Weekend events.
Strolling of Heifers Weekend takes place June 6-8, with the agriculturally-themed parade scheduled for Sat., June 7 at 10 a.m. in downtown Brattleboro.
Registration or application forms for all events and functions, as well as guidelines for each, may be found at via www.strollingoftheheifers.com/register, or via the pull-down registration menu at the top of any page on the website. For parade units, parade director Richard Chapin announced that the deadline for applications is May 1. He is seeking parade units of all kinds, including musical units, marching units, animals, clowns, acrobats and dancers.
The theme of this year’s parade is “The Heifers are Coming to Town” — which reflects the recent move of the Stroll’s headquarters to the River Garden, and is the name of the event’s theme song, written by Alan Greenleaf. Parade participants are encouraged to use costumes, dance, puppets and their imagination to amplify that theme as well as the general agricultural theme of the event.
Chapin said that in general, no motorized vehicles except farm vehicles are allowed in the parade, and that animals other than draft animals need to be appropriately contained. Any floats should be pulled by horses, tractors or people. Also, for the safety of other animals and people, dogs are not allowed in the parade, along the route, or at the Expo.
Questions may be directed to Chapin at rchapin.members1st@yahoo.com, 802-257-5131 or 802-257-9300.
A contingent of heifer calves from area farms and 4-H groups will lead the parade, as always. To participate, heifers must be born before February 1, 2014. All heifers must be accompanied by a health chart, which is obtained from their veterinarian.
Heifers may be registered online as well, and questions may be directed to the heifer coordinator, Peter Stickney, at pstickney@putneyschool.org or 802-387-4730.
The Stroll’s entertainment chair, Beth Kiendl, is recruiting entertainers for the Friday evening (June 7) downtown street festival, Saturday pre-parade entertainment, and the Saturday Slow Living Expo at the Commons and Retreat grounds. For the Expo, she is particularly seeking entertainers for children and families, teen bands, and traditional music genres like bluegrass, folk, fiddles, banjos, ukes and country.
The deadline for entertainer applications is May 5, but early applications are strongly encouraged. If you have any questions, please email Kiendl atbkiendl@sover.net or call her at 802-254-4270.
Vending locations are still available for the Friday evening street festival as well as the Slow Living Expo. Prospective vendors can register at the Stroll website. The deadline is May 16 but earlier registration is encouraged to be sure of getting a spot. At the website, vendors will also find event details and registration rates. For further information they should contact Stroll general manager Julie Potter atJulie@strollingoftheheifers.com or 802-490-6366.
Finally, the Stroll is always looking for volunteers to help out in a multitude of ways at all events, ranging from the Slow Living Summit (June 4-6) to the Tour de Heifer (Sun., June 8). A volunteer registration form may be found at www.strollingoftheheifers.com/get-involved/.
Prospective volunteers may also contact Vicki Friedman, volunteer coordinator, atvolunteers@strollingoftheheifers.com, or phone her at 802-490-2265.
For general information on Strolling of the Heifers, visitwww.strollingoftheheifers.com.
