A perfect autumn afternoon, sunshine for one day between days of rain, a cooling breeze, the aroma of woodsmoke mixed with the smell of toasted marshmallows for s’mores, this was the auspicious backdrop for the kick-off fundraiser at the Warren Ferris Cemetery in Forest Hills on October 27, 2019.

With nearly 100 folks attending, descendants of Warren Ferris, Wesley Chenault, and Benjamin Dye greeted each other and mingled with residents of Forest Hills, Little Forest Hills, Lakewood, and the White Rock area. Together, this gathering was the first major meeting of the Friends of the Warren Ferris Cemetery, a non-profit formed to honor prominent early Dallas settlers and to celebrate the creation of a wildlife way station on the site.

Tom McCurry casts wildflower & Blackland praire seed mix

After a tour of the cemetery led by landscape architect and advisor Michael Parkey, celebrants moved to the adjacent home of James and Barbara Jordan for refreshments and detailed information about the project. Author of the Ferris biography Land is the Cry!, Suzanne Starling was available to sell autographed copies of her book, the proceeds of which go to the Friends of Warren Ferris Cemetery.

Texas State Representative, retired, Harryette Ehrhardt, EdD, leads the conversation on the education aspects of our program

Former state representative Harryette Ehrhardt introduced Dallas attorney Mike McKool, sponsor of the day’s event, who recognized the descendants of the Ferris, Dye and Chenault families. Event logistics were orchestrated by a team of volunteers, (a big thank you to members of the board of the Native Plant Society, East Dallas Chapter, neighbors & descendants), manning registration and donation tables, creating seed balls, making s’smores and providing wild flower and Blue Bonnet seed for the participants to spread throughout the cemetery site during the tour. Donations are still coming in. The fundraiser was a HUGE success.

Event sponsor, Atty. Mike McKool, mingles with neighbors and descendants

From a site completely overgrown with invasive species in the early spring, the beginnings of the transformation could not be more dramatic. Julie Fineman’s vision of returning the site to native Backland prairie with grasses and wildflowers to attract animals, birds and monarch butterflies, has led a dozen hardy neighborhood volunteers to labor each Saturday from March until the event. An initial grant of $1,500 from Grady McGahan’s Urban Forest Council reinforced the enthusiasm for the approach and spurred on the volunteers. In July, Julie teamed up with Harryette Ehrhardt who provided many Dallas advisors, partners, and sponsors for the project. Harryette moves at lightening speed, it’s amazing what we accomplished under her guidance in a little over three months!

Landscape Architect, Michael Parkey, leads the tour discussing scope of work

After reading Land Is the Cry!, Julie also realized the historic significance of this pioneer cemetery and of Ferris himself. Through a dedicated outreach, descendants of pioneer families that were buried in the cemetery became enthusiastically involved. Sympathetic to its own mission, the Communities Foundation of Texas agreed to be the fiscal sponsor of the project and a website was created to publish a snapshot of our goals and receive donations of the project: https://portal.cftexas.org/friendsofwarrenferriscemetery

For a comprehensive review of ALL our projects: https://www.friendsofthewarrenferriscemetery.org/projects

The website, will feature photographs of the October fundraiser, as well as updates on the development of the landscape and the progress of the educational and research programs. Information is also available in the “birdhouse” mailbox on San Leandro Drive at the entrance to the site.

Work on the Warren Ferris Cemetery program, including clearing, planting, educational and research programs, will be an ongoing effort. Volunteers and contributions will be needed.

Alicia McClean and Sara Jane Fox work the seed-ball making table for the kids

DONATE to help us meet our goals!

· VOLUNTEER to garden, research, manage social media, be a docent, educate, advise. See all opportunities here. Master Naturalist credits apply.

These details and more can be found on our website www.FriendsoftheWarrenFerrisCemetery.Org

A Big thank you to all who’ve volunteered and donated to date and who attended the event. We look forward to building a tight knit community with our neighbors and strong bonds with descendants through the Friends of the Warren Ferris Cemetery.

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