WHEATLAND — Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat will celebrate United Nations World Bee Day on May 20 with an online Facebook live broadcast.
At 11 a.m., Bob “The Bee Man” Roe will give virtual participants a tour of the six hives of bees currently living at The Prairie. He will open a hive and look for brood, eggs and honey, hopefully seeing the queen. After that, Roe will take questions from the audience.
Roe, a retired painter who has been a beekeeper for about 14 years, said he sometimes has as many as 45 hives. “Every year I learn more and things change.”
Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat is a ministry of The Congregation of the Humility of Mary in Davenport. The Sisters of Humility plan to use the honey Roe collects from the bees at the Prairie. The Sisters said in a press release that they are “excited to have raw honey that contains a blend of local pollen, that strengthens a person’s immune system, and can reduce pollen allergy symptoms.”
Registration is not required, and a Facebook account is not necessary to participate. The live broadcast will take place at https://www.facebook.com/PrairieRetreat.