A Typical Week
Conferences

Six-day conferences begin with registration from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday and end at lunch on the following Friday. Other conference registration days and times are announced above. On check-out day, all rooms must be vacated by 9:00 am to allow the cleaning crew to prepare for the next arrivals.

Meals
Meals are special times at Ferry Beach – times to meet new friends, relax, and enjoy nourishment in the company of others. The DeWolfe dining facility offers a friendly, sunlit atmosphere. Dinners are followed by singing for all who wish to join in.

All meals include vegetarian and vegan options. Breakfast and lunch are cafeteria-style and dinner is served family-style. Meals are announced by ringing the bell on Quillen lawn, first with a five-minute warning bell followed by a second ringing when the dining room opens. Meal times are 7:30-8:30 a.m., 12:00-1:00 p.m. and 6:00-7:00 p.m. Our dining room hosts will welcome you to meals and offer assistance as needed.

Coffee, tea, cold beverages and snacks are available in the dining room throughout the day. We ask our guests to return cups to the dining room.

You are welcome to enjoy the food we provide at mealtimes but we do not furnish carry-out items, and request that our guests do not remove dishes and flatware from the dining room.

Music/ Musician of the Week
Music is enjoyed throughout the week at chapel, after meals, in concerts and sing-alongs. A Ferry Beach choir sings each Sunday morning, with rehearsal at 8:30 a.m. in the Chapel. Everyone is encouraged to participate in the choir! Details will be given during orientation, or can be obtained by asking the Musician of the Week. The Musician of the Week works with the Minister of the Week to plan music for the daily chapel services. He or she also leads the dining room songfests, organizes other musical events, and helps plan the talent show.

Arts & Crafts
Creative programs are offered every afternoon from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. and at other times when pre-arranged with the Arts & Crafts Director. The Art Room is located on the first floor of Rowland Hall. Conferees and vacationers are encouraged to participate in this program. Announcements of activities will be posted on Quillen Porch and in the Grove. The Arts & Crafts Director also works with the children during the morning Children’s Program.

Religious Services
Sunday worship services are held at 9:30 a.m. in the Eleanor B. Forbes Memorial Chapel in the Grove (Rose Pavilion or Rowland Hall in bad weather). Brief chapel services are held weekday mornings at 8:45 a.m. Chapel attendance is a long-standing Ferry Beach tradition. Grace is said each evening before dinner; Friendship Circles are held on the Beach after dinner.

Minister of the Week
Each week, Ferry Beach invites a Unitarian Universalist minister to serve as minister of the week. He or she is responsible for preaching the Sunday chapel service; daily chapel services after breakfast (usually at 8:45, lasting 15-20 minutes); Friendship Circles each night after dinner; and can be available on a limited basis for pastoral care.

Hospitality
Social hour is held daily. The 5:00 -6:00 p.m. “Gathering” is held on Gardiner lawn. Light snacks are available and soft drinks can be purchased. We do not provide alcoholic beverages but conferees may bring their own.*** The adult social time is scheduled daily from 9:00-11:00 p.m. in Gardiner. Singing, dancing and games may be part of an evening social time.

***Guests who bring their own alcoholic beverages to hospitality must take them away when they leave. We can not hold or store any alcoholic beverages, even if you intend to drink them at the next hospitality gathering. If anything is left at the end of the event, we will dispose of it. Also, because of liability issues, no one is allowed to have alcoholic beverages in the dining room during meal service.

Adult Nature Programming - Exciting Nature Trips!
During the week, the Ferry Beach Staff Naturalist works with the Children’s Program in the morning. In the afternoon, they lead educational and entertaining family trips around the Ferry Beach campus and to other off-site places, such as the Saco Heath Preserve, Biddeford Pool, and the Scarborough Marsh. They are also available for answering nature questions, star gazing, birding expeditions, giving good advice on nature outings and for ecology fireside chats. Volunteers are encouraged to work in the organic garden!