Riverbed Ranch residents are hosting their third annual Homesteading Festival from Thursday, June 11 through Saturday, June 13, offering three days of education, demonstrations, tours, and community connection centered on self-reliant living.
This year’s keynote speaker is William DeMille, a nationally recognized educator with the Georgics Schoolroom. Georgics education focuses on agriculture, land stewardship, and practical rural skills that support resilient families and communities.
The festival will begin Thursday evening with a Dutch oven potluck dinner, followed by DeMille’s keynote address. Friday and Saturday will feature more than 35 presentations and classes led by experienced homesteaders and instructors. Topics include food preservation, home construction methods, animal husbandry, butchering, soap making, medicinal and culinary herbs, solar power systems, beekeeping, regenerative agriculture, homeschooling, and the development of self-reliant communities.
Attendees will have the opportunity to visit Riverbed Ranch, an off-grid agricultural community of approximately 150 residents, and see firsthand how families produce their own power, grow food using chemical-free methods, and organize daily life around principles of sustainability and self-reliance.
Organizers describe the event as both educational and relational, offering practical instruction alongside shared meals, informal discussions, and fellowship among families who value rural skills and preparedness.
The Riverbed Ranch Homesteading Festival is open to the public and welcomes individuals and families interested in learning more about off-grid living, small-scale agriculture, and community-based self-reliance.
For additional information about the festival, schedules, or registration, visit OSRHomesteadingFestival.com.
