Google seminar on online business tools offered Oct. 13
BRATTLEBORO - Building a Better Brattleboro (BaBB), in partnership with Marlboro College Graduate School, will present a Google seminar that provides the tools and resources for Vermont businesses to get online and succeed online at the Marlboro Grad Center, 28 Vernon St., on Oct. 13.
Morning and afternoon sessions will be held at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. This is a free seminar for small businesses run by real Google employees. All area businesses are invited and encouraged to attend.
According to BaBB Exceutive Director Andrea Livermore, the seminar kicks off an important component of a primary project that it had taken on this year, namely the digital upgrade of the entirety of the downtown business community.
“Our hope is to develop a stronger, more cohesive web presence that will translate into increased business,” she said. “We know that 97 percent of Americans look online for local products and services and 63 percent of America's small businesses do not have a website or online presence. These businesses are virtually invisible to many potential customers. We can't afford for Brattleboro to be invisible."
At the seminar, small business owners will learn how to get a free website, run one's small business online, and best practices on marketing one's business online. With professional templates and a few easy steps, businesses can create and publish a website in less than 60 minutes.
For more information, or to register for the seminar, go to sites.google.com/site/vtgyboreg. If you can't make it to the seminar, you can get your free website and hosting online at www.vermontgetonline.com. For more information, contact BaBB at 802-257-4886 or via email.
Methodist Women host fall rummage sale
BRATTLEBORO- The United Methodist Women of the First United Methodist Church will be holding its fall rummage sale on Saturday, Oct. 15, from 9 a.m. until noon.
New and used clothing will be featured. Prices are not marked. Customers may take what they need and pay what they can.
Monies received are given to both local and Methodist Mission needs, including the Brattleboro Drop In Center, Brattleboro Pastoral Counseling Center, Women's Freedom Center, Morningside Shelter, the overflow shelter, Brattleboro Area Hospice, Windham Child Care, CHABA, and others.
The church is located at 18 Town Crier Drive, off Putney Road, across from the Shell Station. The entry way is handicapped accessible. For information, contact the church office at 802-254-4218 or by email.
Yoga classes offered at BMH starting Oct. 15
BRATTLEBORO - Brattleboro Memorial Hospital will offer an eight-week “Introduction to Yoga” course with Kim Timlege, LMT, starting Oct. 15.
This gentle, beginners' class demonstrates yoga philosophy and the eight-limbed path, along with how to incorporate the practices of mindfulness in yoga. Classes take place every Saturday through Dec. 3, from 9-10:30 a.m., in the BMH Exercise Room.
Timlege is a Certified Kripalu Yoga Instructor and owner and founder of The Massage Studio in Brattleboro. She brings her extensive training and knowledge in therapeutic massage, yoga and meditation to help students bring their body, mind, and spirit into balance.
Class size is limited to 12 students. To register, call 802-257-8877 and leave your name and mailing address to receive the release form, which must be mailed back along with the $100 registration fee. Checks should be made payable to Kim Timlege and received by close of registration.
Prouty Center hosts Buddy Walk on Oct. 15
BRATTLEBORO - The Winston Prouty Center is participating in the National Buddy Walk program as part of Down Syndrome Awareness Month in October.
The third annual Brattleboro Buddy Walk takes place on Saturday, Oct. 15, at the town common. Participants include, but are not limited to, people with Down syndrome, their families, friends, teachers, coworkers and other supporters. Anyone, with or without a direct connection to a member of the Down syndrome community, is welcome to attend.
The Buddy Walk was developed by the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) to promote acceptance and inclusion of all people with Down syndrome. Brattleboro will join more than 250 other locations around the nation in this event. Alfred Hughes Jr. will be the Brattleboro Grand Marshal.
Contact Chloe Learey at the Prouty Center at 802-258-7852, ext. 11, or by email for more information.
African supper in West Brattleboro raises funds for youth trip
WEST BRATTLEBORO - All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church is hosting an East African Supper on Saturday, Oct. 15 at 6 p.m. as a fundraiser for the Brattleboro Area Interfaith Youth Group's mission trip to Kenya next spring and as a memorial for Wangari Maathai, the founder of the Green Belt Movement in Kenya, who died of cancer on Sept. 25 at age 71.
The group had been planning to meet for the third time with Maathai during their April 2012 trip. Maathai won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her work in connecting environmental activism with human and social justice and world peace and inspired woman around the world to plant more than 30 million trees to help improve the environment by stopping desertification.
Instead, the group of 10 youth from five different churches in Windham County, accompanied by seven adults, will learn firsthand in Kenya about the Green Belt Movement and lend a hand to children living in the district of Nyeri, who are orphaned by AIDS.
As a memorial for Maathai's work and life, Linda Whelihan, art teacher at Marlboro School, will organize the creation of an artistic tree display in Maathai's honor as a permanent installation in the region.
At 6:30 p.m., the documentary film, Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai will be shown during the meal, and the trip participants will be available for questions.
The price of the meal for adults is $10; children ages 11 and under are $5; ages 5 and under free. The maximum charge per family will be $25. The menu includes traditional meat and vegetarian dishes such as African sweet potato soup, samosas, chicken legs, beef stew, ugali, spicy greens, plantain chips, rice, beans, and dessert of sweet cornbread and fried banana.
To make reservations or for more information, call 802-254-9377, or email Jesse deVries. Tickets will also be available at the door until sold out.
Apple pie workshop offered at Scott Farm
DUMMERSTON - An heirloom apple pie workshop with Laurel Roberts Johnson will be held on Saturday, Oct. 15, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., at the Scott Farm on Kipling Road.
Laurel Roberts Johnson was the owner of the Queen of Tarts Old-Fashioned Bakery and former pastry chef at the award winning Restaurant du Village, both located in Chester, Conn. She is known for her seasonal pies, simple old fashioned desserts and unique cookies and studied Baking and Pastry Arts at the Culinary Institute of America.
Participants will learn how to prepare flakey pie dough and effortlessly roll out pie crust using the right recipe and technique. Pies will be prepared and baked, using heirloom apples from Scott Farm. The $40 price of this workshop includes the pie you bake, the dough you make, and a take-home tote of heirloom baking apples.
Reservations are requested, Contact Kelly Carlin by email or call 802-254-6868.
Whitingham Historical Society to hold annual meeting
WHITINGHAM - The Whitingham Historical Society will hold its annual meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at 7 p.m., in the Jacksonville Municipal Center.
Howard Coffin, well-known Vermont author and historian of the Civil War, will present a program called “Vermont and the Civil War.” As our nation marks the 150th anniversary of the beginning of that war, Vermont families recall stories of their forebears who fought at Gettysburg and other famous battlegrounds, of triumphs and disasters, and hardships borne by families at home in Vermont.
Anyone who has diaries, letters or records that shed light on Vermonters' roles in the war effort and sites in Vermont where supporting activities were carried out, is urged to bring them to share at the meeting. The program has been designated a Vermont Humanities Council event. All are welcome, admission is free and the building is handicapped-accessible. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call Betsy McKinley at 802-368-2376.
'Secret Life of Bears' presented at RFPL
BELLOWS FALLS - On Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 7 p.m., at the Rockingham Free Public Library, join Forrest Hammond, from Vermont Fish & Wildlife, for a talk about black bears in Vermont and the challenges they face, especially from future development in the state.
The black bear is the smallest of the three bear species found in North America, and it's the only bear we have in Vermont. These bears prefer wild areas and are relatively shy animals and seldom seen by people, though if natural food supplies are low, you may find them near your bird feeders or garbage cans.
Hammond will discuss the role the public can play in protecting bear habitat and in determining how many bears exist for the future.
This program is free and open to the public. For more information, call the library at 802-463-4270 or visit www.rockingham.lib.vt.us.
14th annual Empty Bowl Dinner to benefit Our Place
BELLOWS FALLS - Our Place Drop-in Center is now collecting bowls and auction items for its 14th annual benefit Empty Bowl dinner and auctions Sunday, Nov. 6, at Alyson's Orchard in Walpole, N.H.
“Gather and Share” is the theme of this year's soup supper event that begins at 5 p.m. with an auction preview and social hour. A highlight of the event is each attendee's selection of a handmade bowl to take home as a reminder of those who struggle to put food on the family table.
Proceeds of the dinner go towards supporting the food programs of Our Place, which include a food shelf, a daily breakfast and lunch, and nutrition education.
The oldest such event in the area, the Our Place Empty Bowl has been a major fundraiser for the food shelf and daytime shelter. Potters from all over the state have donated handmade bowls, and local restaurants and other food preparers have prepared soups and other food items for the event. In addition, local businesses and individuals donate items and services for both silent and live auctions.
Tickets for the Empty Bowl are $30 and will be available at Village Square Booksellers in Bellows Falls, Real to Reel Video in Walpole or by calling Our Place at 463-2217.
Senior lunch served at Putney Cares
PUTNEY - The October Senior Luncheon at the Putney Cares Activities Barn takes place on Tuesday, Oct. 25, at noon.
On the menu this month is chicken stew, herb biscuits, pumpkin pie, and coffee and tea. Locally produced food is served whenever possible for these lunches.
Call 802-387-5593 or email them at putneycares@svcable.net with your reservation, or if you would like to volunteer. Sponsored by Putney Cares Board and The Council on Aging.
Design-a-Plate returns to Brooks library
BRATTLEBORO - The 30th annual Design-a-Plate workshop will be held on Friday, Oct. 21, at Brooks Memorial Library.
Stop in any time between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to make a 10-inch melamine plate, 20-ounce melamine bowl, or both. Each item costs $6. Cash and checks made out to Brooks Memorial Library are accepted. Plates and bowls will be ready for pickup in early December, just in time for holiday gift giving.
Design-a-Plate is great for children of all ages and a fun measure of your child's changes through the years. Some favorite design ideas include tracing your child's hand and writing his/her name and the date; making a special plate for a family member or pet; or marking a special event of the past year.
The workshop will be held in the Meeting Room on the top floor of Brooks Memorial Library. For more information, call the Children's Room at 802-254-5290, ext. 110, or visit www.brooks.lib.vt.us, and click on the Children's Room.