Visitors can learn about one of the region’s lesser-known Frank Lloyd Wright houses during an Oct. 6 lunch-and-learn program at Laurelville Retreat Center in Mt. Pleasant Township.

Tim Fischer, manager at Kentuck Knob, will lead attendees on a PowerPoint “walk-through” of the dwelling near Chalk Hill, Fayette County, one of the last homes designed and completed by Wright.

The program will begin at noon in the center’s small dining hall, with lunch prepared by Laurelville’s culinary team.

Kentuck Knob was commissioned by Bernardine and I.N. Hagan on 80 acres in the mountains above Uniontown where their families had lived for generations.

“After falling in love with Fallingwater (the home of their friends, the Kaufmanns), they telephoned Frank Lloyd Wright and asked if he would design a house for them. His answer was, ‘Of course,’ and they lived there for 30 years,” according to a release.

The home opened to the public for tours in 1996.

Fischer has a passion for the preservation of the home and an encyclopedic knowledge of its contents, vast sculpture garden and history, the release says.

Pollinator program

Laurelville also will host a Sept. 26 lunch-and-learn on “Garden Design as If Pollinators Matter,” with Martha Oliver, proprietor of The Primrose Path and horticulturist at Powdermill Nature Reserve.

That program will begin at noon in the center’s youth pavilion.

Oliver will talk about the most recent research on pollinators and what they want in a garden. She also will look back at the history of garden design and show how to design a garden through the seasons that will appeal to pollinators.

Tribune-Review Horticulturist Martha Oliver will talk about designing a pollinator-friendly garden on Sept. 26 at Laurelville Retreat Center.  

“We have been planning some unique programming for the community to help people get outdoors,” said program director Mary Kaufman.

Other upcoming events at the center include yoga under the stars, an open mic night, tree identification hike and Biking the Great Allegheny Passage with Laurelville. More information is available on the website.

“We are very glad to help local residents get out safely and enjoy nature and learn about new subjects,” Kaufman said.

Guests must preregister for the lunch-and-learn programs. Cost for each is $15.

All CDC and Pennsylvania Department of Health safety guidelines will be followed.

Preregistration is available on Laurelville’s Facebook event page or by calling 724-423-2056 from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Details: laurelville.org

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