Boynton Festival, Saturday, August 22, 2026

Boynton Festival Mini-Seminar Schedule

9:00 am - 9:50 am

The Science of Coffee with Alison Fleshman

Location: Björklunden Lodge, North Seminar Room 

So how much science is in that perfect cup of morning joe? Join me as we explore how we get from bean to brew through water chemistry, grind size, and how roasting/steeping/temperature and your barista really do play a role in that wonderful final cup. So grab a cup of coffee and let’s dive into the science of that glorious morning elixir.  

PRESENTER BIO:  I am a physical chemist at Lawrence who loves sharing my passion for physics, chemistry, and math with my students. I teach courses including Quantum Chemistry & Spectroscopy and Thermodynamics & Reaction Kinetics, and my research explores ion motion in ionic liquids to better understand and design materials for advanced batteries. I also study pigments in medieval manuscripts using non-destructive spectroscopy, bring that work into my Chemistry of Art course, and enjoy brewing beer, practicing yoga, and playing cello in my spare time.

Faith Builds a Chapel Revisited with Marjorie Myers Graham

Location: Boynton Chapel.

Winifred Boynton's stunningly illustrated book is subtitled "The Story of an Adventure in Craftsmanship" and it chronicles the origin, development and fulfillment of her vision for a personal chapel. She describes the nine years of learning, faith and labor involved, and serves as a detailed guide to her choices of religious imagery in the carvings and frescoes. This mini-seminar will introduce you to Winifred's book and a deeper experience of her chapel.

PRESENTER BIO: Marge taught college English, Humanities and Women's Studies, and is the granddaughter of Donald and Winifred Boynton. She now lives in Walnut Creek, CA where she leads Women's Studies seminars.  Marjorie is offering the Björklunden seminar From Scheherazade to Wonder Woman: The Heroine with 1,001 Faces, from Aug. 30 - Sept. 2, 2026.

9:00 am - 10:30 am

An Ecological Adventure Through Björklunden’s Conservation Easement Lands with Drew Reinke, Jane Whitney, and Paige Witek 

This guided hike is offered with the Door County Land Trust. Sturdy shoes, a hat and long pants are recommended. Bring sunscreen, bug spray and water.

Location: Meet in Björklunden Lodge Great Room

Discover the natural beauty of Björklunden on a hike along the scenic shores of Lake Michigan. As we explore the wooded trails and shoreline of the Lawrence University campus, participants will learn about the area’s diverse forests, unique ecosystems, and fascinating geological history. The hike will also highlight how a conservation easement with the Door County Land Trust is helping protect the property’s natural character and ecological integrity for generations to come. Join us for an inspiring outdoor experience that blends conservation, exploration, and education to celebrate the enduring beauty of Door County.

HIKE GUIDE BIO: Drew is the Senior Conservation Easement Manager for the Door County Land Trust. Drew works with private landowners to acquire new conservation easement properties and steward existing properties. A Wisconsin native, Drew spent 7 years working in the Pacific Northwest, 5 years at the Inland Northwest Land Trust in Spokane, WA. He holds a Master of Natural Resources degree from the University of Idaho, a Natural Resource Management degree from UW-Stevens Point and a Master Fly Fishing Certification from his golden retriever friend.  

HIKE GUIDE BIO: Jane grew up on the coast of Massachusetts, went to college on the prairies of Iowa, raised a family and worked as a librarian among the Baraboo Bluffs, and became a self-taught naturalist on the shore of Lake Michigan. Jane has been providing Land Trust and Björklunden nature tours for many years.

HIKE GUIDE BIO:  Paige joined the Door County Land Trust as Community Conservation Specialist in 2023.  She has a strong passion for environmental education and connecting people to nature and serves to engage the community and recruit volunteers in protecting the peninsula’s land and water through ecological stewardship, education, and research.  Paige grew up in Green Bay and graduated from UW – Madison with a Bachelor of Science in zoology and a certificate in environmental studies. Before joining the Land Trust, Paige spent five years in Missouri working as an education and outreach coordinator.

10:00 am - 10:50 am

The Poetry of Steel: Violence, Verse, and Verisimilitude in Shakespearean Performance with Ryan Schabach and Lexi Praxl

Presented with Door Shakespeare

Location: Boynton Garden - Door Shakespeare Performance Area

This lecture-demonstration explores how Shakespeare’s verse drives moments of staged conflict and how actors and directors translate language into physical action. Through live performance and practical demonstration, participants will examine how rhythm and text generate violence, how staged combat creates the illusion of danger while ensuring safety, and how weapons shape character and story.

PRESENTER BIO: Ryan is a theatre artist and educator whose work spans performance, directing, design, fight choreography, videography, and teaching, with a focus on movement-based storytelling and ensemble creation. A longtime company member with Door Shakespeare, Ryan’s work includes collaborations with Milwaukee Rep, the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Next Act Theatre, Forward Theatre Company, Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, First Stage, 6th Street Playhouse, and Third Avenue PlayWorks, among others.

PRESENTER BIO:  Lexi is a theatre artist and administrator from northwest Indiana. She completed her theatre education at Lawrence University and recently earned a Master’s in Translation Studies from Durham University. Her work includes box office positions with Door Shakespeare and the Assembly Rooms Theatre, as well as serving as a theatre critic at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and performing at Shakespeare’s Globe. Lexi brings additional expertise in stage combat through her training as a competitive fencer.

The Faithful Beauty of the Stars with Associate Professor of Physics Megan Pickett

On a clear, moonless summer sky at Björklunden, you can see more than a thousand stars.  These stars—and the planets and the Moon and the Milky Way—have carried the stories of every human who has lived underneath them.  In this workshop, we will explore the constellations that have brought meaning to the night sky, and the wondrous astronomical gems hidden in them that tell us about our own cosmic origins.

Location: Björklunden Lodge Vail Hall

PRESENTER BIO:  Megan is an astrophysicist and Physics professor at Lawrence. She joined the university in 2006, making history as the first woman to earn tenure in the physics department. Known for her passionate and engaging teaching style, Pickett was recognized with the Lawrence University Excellence in Teaching Award in 2023. She has taught the popular Science of Superheroes course and regularly redesigns introductory physics curriculums to be more accessible. Her primary research focuses on the formation of solar systems, the origins of the universe, and galaxy formation. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Physics from Cornell University and her Ph.D. in Astrophysics from Indiana University. 

10:00 am - 12:50 pm

Nature Remix: Art & the Boreal Forest with Jill Newman

This is a 110 minute seminar designed for ages 7 and up and may be attended by children with an adult, independent young participants, or adults attending on their own.

Location: Meet in Björklunden Lodge Great Room

Explore Björklunden lakeside boreal forest through deep looking, conversation, and a scavenger hunt designed to sharpen observation and curiosity about the natural world. Participants will then create mixed-media landscapes inspired by the expedition using both traditional art materials and recycled objects. Together, we will create imaginative celebrations of nature while exploring ways artists can reduce material waste and care for the environment. 

PRESENTER BIO:  Jill is an artist educator with nearly 30 years of teaching experience spanning preschool through graduate school, including collegiate teaching and community-based arts teaching through organizations such as PenArt. Her work engages painting, drawing, collage, and interdisciplinary environmental arts programming. Across all of her work she is guided by a belief in curiosity, collaboration, and the transformative power of the arts.

11:00 am - 12:00 pm

How Land Trusts are Protecting Door County’s Landscapes for Future Generations with Emily Wood

Offered with the Door County Land Trust.

Location: Björklunden Lodge Vail Hall

Door County, Wisconsin is home to some of the Midwest’s most unique shorelines, forests, wetlands, and wildlife habitats, making land conservation essential to preserving the region’s natural beauty and ecological health. Learn about conservation and how land trusts like the Door County Land Trust play a vital role by permanently protecting natural areas, restoring habitats, and partnering with communities and landowners to conserve open space. Through education, stewardship, and conservation easements—such as the one established by Lawrence University on the Björklunden campus—these efforts help preserve the character, environmental sustainability, and natural heritage that make Door County such a treasured destination. 

PRESENTER BIO: Emily is the Executive Director of the Door County Land Trust, where she leads the protection and stewardship of more than 10,000 acres of critical habitat.  She holds a degree in Wildlife Biology from Ball State University and has extensive experience in conservation leadership and environmental policy. In 2025, she was recognized as a Lake Michigan Champion of Conservation by the Lakeshore Natural Resource Partnership.

A Tour of the Most Enduring Beer Styles with Bobby Fleshman

Offered with McFleshman's Brewing Co. Appleton, Wisconsin

Location: Björklunden Lodge North Seminar Room

Beer evolved from our ancestors' practice of fermenting sugars wherever they could find them as hunter-gatherers.  Eventually they cultivated grasses, which in turn were used to make beer and bread.   A fascinating arc of over 10,000 years led to our modern society and communal spaces such as the Irish pub and German beer garden.  We will walk through some of the most loved beer styles together and learn how the water, climate, and traditions led to their long term adoption.

PRESENTER BIO:  Bobby holds a PhD in Astrophysics, and worked as a NASA researcher on the Cassini mission to Saturn. He has since shifted industries and, with his wife, Allison McCoy, opened McFleshman's Brewing Co. (Appleton, WI) in 2018. McFleshman's places great emphasis on the community created by the classic pubs and beer gardens.

1:00 pm - 2:30 pm

An Ecological Adventure Through Björklunden’s Conservation Easement Lands with Drew Reinke, Jane Whitney, and Paige Witek 

This guided hike is offered with the Door County Land Trust. Sturdy shoes, a hat and long pants are recommended. Bring sunscreen, bug spray and water.

Location: Meet in Björklunden Lodge Great Room

Discover the natural beauty of Björklunden on a hike along the scenic shores of Lake Michigan. As we explore the wooded trails and shoreline of the Lawrence University campus, participants will learn about the area’s diverse forests, unique ecosystems, and fascinating geological history. The hike will also highlight how a conservation easement with the Door County Land Trust is helping protect the property’s natural character and ecological integrity for generations to come. Join us for an inspiring outdoor experience that blends conservation, exploration, and education to celebrate the enduring beauty of Door County.

HIKE GUIDE BIO: Drew is the Senior Conservation Easement Manager for the Door County Land Trust. Drew works with private landowners to acquire new conservation easement properties and steward existing properties. A Wisconsin native, Drew spent 7 years working in the Pacific Northwest, 5 years at the Inland Northwest Land Trust in Spokane, WA. He holds a Master of Natural Resources degree from the University of Idaho, a Natural Resource Management degree from UW-Stevens Point and a Master Fly Fishing Certification from his golden retriever friend.  

HIKE GUIDE BIO: Jane grew up on the coast of Massachusetts, went to college on the prairies of Iowa, raised a family and worked as a librarian among the Baraboo Bluffs, and became a self-taught naturalist on the shore of Lake Michigan. Jane has been providing Land Trust and Björklunden nature tours for many years.

HIKE GUIDE BIO:  Paige joined the Door County Land Trust as Community Conservation Specialist in 2023.  She has a strong passion for environmental education and connecting people to nature and serves to engage the community and recruit volunteers in protecting the peninsula’s land and water through ecological stewardship, education, and research.  Paige grew up in Green Bay and graduated from UW – Madison with a Bachelor of Science in zoology and a certificate in environmental studies. Before joining the Land Trust, Paige spent five years in Missouri working as an education and outreach coordinator.