Damariscotta River Association (DRA) and Maine Farmland Trust (MFT) invite the community to a celebration of farmland protection and community collaboration on Thursday, July 26 from 5 to 8 p.m., at Morning Dew Farm’s new fields on Route 1 in Damariscotta.

It is important to note there is no parking available at the farm site on Route 1. Guests must park at DRA’s Round Top Farm at 3 Round Top Lane in Damariscotta and take a shuttle provided for the event.

The party will feature food by Harvest Moon Catering, beer from Oxbow brewing Co., and music by the Newell Family & Sharon Pyne.

The event is free, and all are welcome. To help with planning, those attending are asked to sign up online at www.mainefarmlandtrust.org/events or call 207-338-6575.

Maine Farmland Trust, in partnership with DRA, and with generous financial support from many in the local community, purchased the former Phillips Farm property in 2011 to ensure it would remain in agriculture, and remain an important scenic site for the local community. Area residents will remember that prior to the purchase these roadside fields were under consideration as a development site for a Super Walmart.

"I can’t think of a better welcome to Damariscotta than the fields of Morning Dew Farm,” expressed DRA Executive Director Steven Hufnagel. “It speaks of a place that values sustainable economic development, natural resources and the skills and well-being of its people."

Before they purchased the farm property last fall, Brady Hatch and Brendan McQuillen of Morning Dew Farm in Newcastle had been leasing the fields from MFT for several years. Now they own the property, which is conserved with a voluntary land protection agreement that will ensure the land always remains available as farmland.

Hatch and McQuillen cultivate a wide variety of certified organic produce to supply their customers at the local farmer’s market, farm shares, and at their Midcoast wholesale accounts.