Speaker Program

Please join us at the South Ferry Church on South Ferry Road in Narragansett for a series of community speaking programs pertinent to state, national and international issues. The speaking programs encompass a broad array of topics important in today’s ever changing and challenging world. Programs are held from 5:00 - 6:00 p.m. on Mondays, and are free and open to the community.

3
August

John Fernandez

Monday August 3, 2026 - 5:00 pm

Topic: Breaking Point: The Crisis in Healthcare

John Fernandez - is the president and CEO of Brown University Health, a not-for-profit, comprehensive, integrated, academic health system affiliated with The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and the largest healthcare provider in Rhode Island. More than 1.5 million people each year receive care at one of Brown University Health’s hospitals. Prior to joining Brown University Health, Fernandez served as president of two organizations that are part of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system. From 2018 to 2022, Fernandez was president of Mass Eye and Ear, one of the nation’s largest specialty hospitals. Fernandez also served as president of Mass General Brigham Integrated Care, a Mass General Brigham entity formed in 2019 with a mission to bring lower cost health care closer to where patients live. From 2007-2018, John served as the president and CEO of Mass Eye and Ear when it was an independent specialty hospital before joining Mass General Brigham (formerly Partners) in 2018.

 
10 
August

Christian McBurney

 Monday August 10, 2026 - 5:00 pm

Topic: Rhode Island in the Revolutionary War

Christian McBurney - is the author of eleven books, six on the American Revolutionary War and five on Rhode Island (four are on both). His books include The Rhode Island Campaign: The First French and American Operation in the Revolutionary War and Dark Voyage: An American Privateer's War on Great Britain's African Slave Trade. His next book is on the famous “Black Regiment” of Rhode Island during the Revolutionary War. Christian is also the founder and publisher of a leading Rhode Island history blog at smallstatebighistory.com and is President of the George Washington American Revolution Round Table of Washington, D.C.

17
August

Ted Dintersmith

Monday August 17, 2026 - 5:00 pm

Topic:  Reimaging Education

Ted Dintersmith – is an education advocate, author and filmmaker. He focuses on the urgent need to equip humans with competencies to lead purposeful lives in an age of rapidly advancing machine intelligence. His Sundance-acclaimed documentary Most Likely to Succeed has been screened by 10,000+ communities across 35 countries. His top-selling What School Could Be draws on a year when he visited 200 schools across all 50 states. His new film Multiple Choice brings audiences to a public school district that immerses all high-schoolers in career-based learning. His current book Aftermath showcases powerful math ideas that make or break our lives—ideas schools gloss over while burying us in obsolete math adults don't use and smartphones perform flawlessly. Ted holds a PhD in Engineering from Stanford and was the top-ranked U.S. venture capitalist for 1995–1999. In 2012, President Obama appointed him to represent the U.S. at the United Nations. In 2018, he received the NEA Friend of Education Award—prior recipients include Thurgood Marshall and LBJ.

5
24
August

Dan McGowan

Monday August 24, 2026 - 5:00 pm

Topic: Politics in the Ocean State

Dan McGowan - is the Boston Globe’s founding journalist behind the Globe’s Rhode Island bureau. He writes Rhode Map, a daily politics and civic life newsletter, which reaches more than 100,000 subscribers and is the most widely read news product in Rhode Island. Known for his deep source reporting and sharp political analysis, McGowan covers the people, power and institutions shaping Rhode Island’s future - from the State House to City Hall to education, economic development, and the occasional intersection of politics, parenthood, and sports. He also hosts Rhode Map Live; the Globe’s in person conversations series featuring newsmakers and policy leaders. His work has earned some of the region’s top journalism honors, including the 2026 New England & Press Association award for “Serious” Columnist of the year, two Rhode Press Association Columnist of the Year awards and a New England Emmy for investigative reporting. He is a frequent guest on PBS Lively Experiment and other media outlets in the area. McGowan is an adjunct professor of journalism at Boston University.

5
31
August

Anne Patterson

Monday August 31, 2026 - 5:00 pm

Topic: How Artists Create and Fabricate

Anne Patterson - is a multi-disciplinary artist based in Brooklyn. Her body of work consists of paintings, sculptures and installations that combine sculpture, architecture, lighting, video, music and scent. Patterson has exhibited her art and installations at museums, galleries, theaters and concert halls around the world including New York City; Los Angeles; Chicago; Washington DC; San Francisco; Pittsburgh; Aspen, CO; Italy; Denmark; and Spain. In 2023, Patterson created Divine Pathways, her largest work to date measuring 75’ x 25’ x 125’. Murmuration, created for Christ Church Cathedral in Cincinnati consisted of over 1000 metal birds that flew from one end of the nave to the other. Her theatrical productions have included major venues across the US. Patterson has been awarded multiple CODAworx CODAawards and received a Creative Capital Award in 2008. She is a fellow of the Hermitage Artists Retreat.

  • Get in touch

    If you would like to get in touch with us directly,
    please use the following contact details below:

    Tel: 401-742-9108  
    Website: www.southferrychurch.org

  • KEEP THE BEACON BRIGHT

    Today the stewardship of the South Ferry Church has passed to the Friends of the South Ferry Church, a group of concerned citizens. We are a 501(c)(3) charitable organization and are dependent on our many donors for the annual costs of maintaining and improving our historic building and grounds.

    Recognizing the building's priceless and irreplaceable part of the architectural historic heritage of Rhode Island, the Friend's mission is to protect the South Ferry Church from alteration or deterioration.