March Events and Programs at Davidsonville Historic State Park
Weaving Wonders
Wednesday, March 23 2-4 pm
Free admission
Join a park interpreter to experience hands-on how people here on the frontier of Arkansas made their own fabric! Learn how to weave on our tabletop loom, and take home your own cardboard loom project for a modest fee. This event is come-and-go, so drop in and out whenever you like!
You’ve Got Mail
Thursday, March 24 2-4 pm
Free admission
Join a park interpreter and journey back in time before the days of cell phones, e-mail, typewriters, and ink pens to learn how messages would have been written and sent in Davidsonville’s time. Make your very own message to mail off to friends and family. This event is come-and-go, so drop in and out whenever you like!
Go Outside and Play!
Friday, March 25 2-4 pm
Free admission
Children in historic Davidsonville did not have the same toys we have today, but the fun they had was timeless! Join a park interpreter during this come-and-go program to play the Game of Graces, Blindman’s Bluff, Clothespins in the Jar, and more. The next time your mom tells you to go outside and play, you can do it 1820s-style. This event is come-and-go, so drop in and out whenever you like!
Dyed and Berried at Davidsonville
March 26 9am-2pm
$25 per person
What do onion skins and bodark wood have in common? They both turn fabric a beautiful golden yellow color! Join a park interpreter to learn how the local plants and trees added color to the lives of the inhabitants of Davidsonville two hundred years ago. Workshop participants will use mordants, nuts, wood chips, and more to dye a t-shirt to take home. T-shirt is included in registration fee. COVID-19 SAFETY GUIDELINES ARE IN EFFECT FOR GUEST AND STAFF SAFETY. SPACE MAY BE LIMITED. To register, call the park at (870) 878-6765 or email us at powhatan@arkansas.com. Registration deadline is 5 p.m. on March 11 and space is limited to 10 participants.
Cathy Drew is a lifelong resident of the region that she loves to promote. She was born in downtown Batesville in the late ’60s, located in one of the eight counties she now enjoys encouraging people to visit.
Drew became associated with the Ozark Gateway Region in 1990 while working at the ad agency (The Media Market Inc.). The agency handled marketing for the regional association, where she and her co-workers produced an annual tabloid publication. She began working as the Ozark Gateway Region director in June 2000.
After Drew became director, she took the region to the next level by helping the tourism organization create a new website and moved it from the old newspaper paper tabloid publication to a color magazine format. She helped open a visitor center for the Ozark Gateway, allowing visitors to pick up information from the entire state 24/7. Over the years, Drew has helped the organization meet new marketing goals, such as in- and out-of-state marketing, assuring that all 100,000 copies of their magazines are distributed each year.
In 2016, she assisted in creating the first Ozark Gateway Region Golf Classic. The tournament continues to grow each year, allowing the organization to expand its co-op program and helping each county have dedicated promotion. Drew stays busy at Ozark Gateway as the ad sales manager, magazine editor, day-to-day office operations, trade show representative, and magazine distribution representative, all while ensuring that the region is represented all over Arkansas and southern Missouri.
Drew was featured in several local and statewide publications over the years, as well as the 1997 cover of the Ozark Gateway Region tabloid, along with her then 4-year-old son, Jon. She has received several awards, such as the Batesville Rotarian of the Year in 2010 and a three-time Paul Harris Fellow.
She also has served as an Independence County election commissioner for several years. She now serves as their co-election coordinator, helping with behind-the-scenes management of voting equipment, day-to-day election deadlines, and poll worker training.
Drew is Batesville Rotary Club Past President, and is the Rotary Clubs’ current membership chair.
In March of 2018, Drew was honored with induction into the Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame for her many years of dedicated service to the tourism industry.