West B Association monthly meeting
WEST BRATTLEBORO - The West Brattleboro Association (WBA) holds its monthly meeting at the Community Room in Hayes Court on Thursday, April 11, at 8 a.m. The Association will review the treasury, its participation in both the town's traffic safety study as it regards Route 9 through West Brattleboro, and the planned gathering of West Brattleboro religious groups.
The group also will review the work plan for the year, the status of West Brattleboro signage, and upcoming events: a chicken barbecue on Saturday, May 25, and the annual Village Day on Saturday, June 22, from noon to 4 p.m.
The WBA has reserved the Chamber window for the week before Village Day, so plans for that will be discussed. There will also be information about the West B Neighborhoods project and the various public building projects affecting the village, and the group will talk about coordinating with arts groups.
Workshop covers options for sharing housing
BRATTLEBORO - A half-day workshop, “The Sharing Housing Option: A Practical Program for Saving Money, Overcoming Isolation, and Living Fully,” will be presented on Thursday, April 11, from 9 a.m. to noon, at the Marlboro College Graduate Center, 28 Vernon St. Registration starts at 8:30 a.m.
Presented by shared-housing consultant, writer, and speaker Annamarie Pluhar, the workshop covers a six-step process that anyone can use to find a safe, compatible housemate. Participants also will explore the emotional, physical, and financial benefits of sharing housing. The workshop is perfect for helping yourself, your clients, friends, and family.
Fee is $50, and includes a copy of Pluhar's book, “Sharing Housing, A Guidebook for Finding and Keeping Good Housemates” (2011).
For more information, call 802-451-1941 or visit www.sharinghousing.com.
Motivate the Troops! Toastmasters meeting April 11
BRATTLEBORO - If fear and shyness around public speaking are holding you back, or are holding someone in your organization back, then Toastmasters is the answer.
BrattleMasters, the Brattleboro-based chapter of Toastmasters International, meets Thursday, April 11, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., at Marlboro College Graduate Center, room 2E, 28 Vernon St.
The theme of this meeting is “Motivate the Troops!” focusing on what it takes to build teams, run successful meetings, and produce dramatic results for your organization.
The club meets the second and fourth Thursday of every month at the same time and location. Guests are welcome and refreshments are provided. There is no pressure to speak, and members are working at their own pace and with assigned mentors to help them meet their speaking and leadership goals.
For more information, visit brattleboro.toastmastersclubs.org.
Friends of Brooks Memorial Library present spring book sale
BRATTLEBORO - Pick among the thousands of hardcover books, paperbacks, DVDs, and audio books for the Big Spring Book Sale to raise funds for the support of the Friends of Brooks Memorial Library. The sale is Friday, April 12, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, April 13, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This is the Friends of the Library's main fundraiser of the year. Remainders will be on sale in April during regular library hours. You can also purchase a raffle ticket for a chance to win the American Girl doll for 2013 based on Jessie Haas's book, “Saige.” Proceeds will go to benefit services of the Children's Room.
Haas will discuss her book in the Children's Room on Tuesday, April 16, at 2 p.m. Raffle winner will be chosen May 1.
For more information, visit www.brookslibraryvt.org/about/support-your-library.
Blessing of the Animals in Dummerston
DUMMERSTON - Dummerston Congregation Church in Dummerston Center is holding a service of Blessing of the Animals on Saturday, April 13, at 1:30 p.m. in the lower yard. Rain date is April 20.
All are invited to bring pets - on a leash or in a container, please - for a brief time of thanksgiving for all creation and hands-on blessing of pets.
This service is part of the congregation's observance of the United Church of Christ 4/1 Earth Campaign: 50 Days of Environmental Education and Action. Dummerston Congregational Church is a Green Justice Congregation of the UCC, and is located at 1535 Middle Rd., Dummerston.
For more information, contact Pastor Susanna Griefen at 802-257-0544 or susanna@griefen.com.
Spring brunch served at Broad Brook Grange
GUILFORD - Guilford's first brunch of the year is Sunday, April 14, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Broad Brook Grange Hall in Guilford Center.
Your hosts, the Guilford School's eighth-grade class, will serve up an all-you-can-eat brunch featuring eggs and omelets made to order, with an abundance of mix-in possibilities. Also on the menu are pancakes, French toast, sausage, bacon, ham and home fries, with Guilford maple syrup; home-baked muffins, coffee cakes, pies, fresh fruit salad, bread for toasting, and a selection of juices, gourmet coffee, teas and milk.
Reservations not needed. Cost is $10 for adults; $8 for seniors, and $5 for ages 2-12. Kids under 2 are free.
This event launches the 17th year of Grange brunches. This fundraiser is a bonus event to support the Guilford eighth-grade class trip to Nova Scotia. This will be the final eighth-grade class in the school's fine history.
Other brunches will be held on Mother's Day, Father's Day, and during foliage season. Broad Brook Grange is at 3940 Guilford Center Rd., four miles west of the Guilford Country Store.
For more information, call 802-257-9474.
Guilford Historical Society presents local author
GUILFORD - The Guilford Historical Society sponsors a program on Guilford Middle School history teacher Stuart Strothman's recently published novel, “Sackett,” on Sunday, April 14, at 2 p.m. The event is at Guilford Volunteer Fire Department's meeting room, and includes readings and slides by the author.
Set in our own area of the Connecticut River Valley, the book paints a vivid picture of the generations-long conflict between the Native Americans who first lived here and the European settlers who forever changed the character of the land.
Based on historical events and featuring nearly 90 real people, Strothman's tale brings to life a fascinating period often overlooked in conventional histories. The focus is on Elizabeth Sackett, a woman captured as a child from her home in Westfield, grew up in a Native American village, was eventually married, and who raised a son we know as Greylock. Much of the action is set locally, and readers will recognize the West River, Mount Wantastiquet, Turners Falls, and the Great Meadow at Putney. Even Guilford appears.
See these places as the first to live here did: as a home that provided ample game and fish, fertile land for farming along the rivers, and wild food from the forest. Nevertheless, even before the Europeans arrived this far north, there was conflict, as local tribes clashed with the natives of the Mohawk River Valley.
Free and open to the public, and refreshments are provided. The author will sell and sign books after the talk.
For more information, call 802-254-6294.
Women's Freedom Center to show 'The Invisible War' at library
BRATTLEBORO - The Women's Freedom Center presents a free screening and discussion of the award-winning documentary, “The Invisible War” (2012), on Wednesday, April 17, at 6:30 p.m. at the Brooks Memorial Library, 224 Main St.
This film investigates one of America's most shameful and closely kept secrets: the epidemic of rape within the U.S. military. As the film details, a female soldier in a combat zone is more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire.
Focusing on the powerfully emotional stories of rape victims, “The Invisible War” is a moving indictment of the systemic cover-up of military sex crimes, chronicling the women's struggles to rebuild their lives and fight for justice. It also features hard-hitting interviews with high-ranking military officials and members of Congress that reveal the perfect storm of conditions that exist for rape in the military, its long-hidden history, and what can be done to bring about much-needed change.
“The Invisible War” premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, where it received the U.S. documentary Audience Award. The film was also nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 2013 Academy Awards.
BMH, AARP present driver safety class on April 20
BRATTLEBORO - Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and AARP are co-sponsoring a driver safety program on Saturday, April 20, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., in the Brew Barry Conference Room.
This driver's refresher course is for people ages 55 and older and is designed to provide awareness of aging as it affects driving. The class covers normal physical changes associated with aging and provides practical techniques to compensate and review “rules of the road” with an emphasis on defensive driving practices.
Space is limited to 20 participants. Participants are encouraged to bring a lunch. The cost is $12 for AARP members with a membership card; $14 for non-AARP members.
Call 802-251-8425 to register. Fee covers materials only.
Rummage sale in Dummerston
WEST DUMMERSTON - There will be a rummage/tag sale on Saturday, April 20, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Dummerston Community Center, 150 West St., off Route 30.
Items for sale include books, toys, games, kitchenware, clothing, footwear and miscellaneous items. The sale benefits the center's operating and maintenance cost. Coffee and Lester's donuts will be available. The center is handicapped accessible.
For more information, call 802-254-9212 or 802-254-2415.
Woodworking classes offered in Westminster West
WESTMINSTER WEST - As part of an ongoing series of woodworking classes, Twin Birch Woodworking owner Gail Grycel offers spring classes starting the week of April 20 at her studio in Westminster West.
The eight week “Beginning and Intermediate Woodworking for Women” classes are designed for women who want to learn about tools and safety in a supportive environment. Women will have a chance to explore their practical, problem-solving sides, let go of societal and family messages that women can't work with tools, and learn practical, transferable skills.
Grycel is also offering two experimental one-time “self-sufficiency workshops” that have a variation of payment options for those who want to learn about using tools but are strapped for cash. Open to both men and women, payment options can include combinations of cash, barter, and Time Trade hours.
On April 20, an exploratory workshop will be held for those wanting to learn about specific tools.
In May, participants can bring wood items to repair. No experience required.
For more information, visit www.twinbirchwoodworking.com.
Volunteers needed for trail work in Athens
ATHENS - The state of Vermont recently announced that it had acquired some 400 acres in the Athens Dome area to benefit plants, animals, and hikers. The acreage will be known as the Turner Hill Wildlife Management Area [WMA]. The land is home to a rich wetland environment that supports moose, bear, and other animals, as well as the endangered northeastern bulrush.
Those protected WMA lands physically connect to Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association lands that boast an extensive trail system running from Westminster to Grafton. This makes the trail project Pinnacle will hold at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 21, all the more important.
Pinnacle's workday plans call for volunteers to meet at the Ledgebrook Road Kiosk to construct steps up the steep bank of the trail. Anyone interested in volunteering to help with the project should wear waterproof shoes/boots and bring water and some of the following supplies: rakes, shovels, clippers, gloves, and bug repellent.
The rain date is Saturday, May 18. Contact Andy Toepfer at 802-869-3379 or atoepfer@sover.net for information or to let him know you'd like to help. Visit www.windmillhillpinnacle.org for trail maps and information about other upcoming Pinnacle programs.