The town of Warren steps lively at its singular 4th of July Parade and Festivities. The procession of quirky floats and merry musicians is followed by hot dogs, a street dance and a unique get-to-know-your-neighbors scheme: Pay $1 for a numbered "Buddy Badge," then find the other person in the crowd with the same number and you'll both win a prize.
Rokeby Museum in Ferrisburgh marks Independence Day with its annual Reading Frederick Douglass event. Audience members take part by reading portions of the abolitionist, orator and statesman's famous address "What to the Slave Is the Fourth of July?" Douglass first gave the powerful speech on July 5, 1852, as the keynote at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Bondeko bring a multicultural mélange to the Next Stage Arts Bandwagon Summer Series in Putney. The musicians in the Portland, Maine-based outfit span generations and originally hail from Albania, Guinea, Paris and Austin, Texas, creating a sound that's an unlikely — and unforgettable — collaboration.
Vermont Humanities marks two anniversaries — its own 50th and the 100th of Vermont State Parks — with its Words in the Woods series. In the second of five gatherings, listeners soak in the natural beauty at Kill Kare State Park in St. Albans as spoken word poet Ellen "LN" Bethea (pictured) shares her work. Stay and enjoy the day at the park afterward: Entrance fees are covered for participants.
The Rochester Chamber Music Society salutes one of its own at the Federated Church of Rochester when pianist Cynthia Huard plays her final concert, a coda to her 30 years as the group's artistic director. She's joined by cellist Ani Kalayjian and violinists Adda Kridler and Mary Rowell in a bittersweet program that includes works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Gabriel Fauré and native Vermonter Nico Muhly.
Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont hosts a Pizza Social at Miller Farm in Vernon, part of a summerlong series highlighting historic farms and hardworking farmers around the state. Foodies enjoy wood-fired pizza and soft-serve ice cream made from Miller Farm milk before a hayride and farm tour. Catch upcoming installments of the series in Middletown Springs, Shoreham, Johnson, East Hardwick and North Thetford.
If you missed last summer's attendance-record-breaking exhibitions of "For the Love of Vermont: The Lyman Orton Collection," here's another chance. The Vermont Historical Society presents a reprise showing at the Vermont History Museum in Montpelier. The selection of 20th-century works by Vermont artists is a love letter to the Green Mountain State.