Newfane Garden Club to meet
NEWFANE - The November meeting of the Newfane Garden Club will take place on Thursday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m., at the Newfane Congregational Church.
Andrew Morrison will be presenting a program on invasive plants and the dangers they present. Morrison is working on his Ph.D. in this area at Antioch College. Members and guests are encouraged to bring any dried weeds from their garden for identification. Guests are welcome.
Bereavement group offered at Grace Cottage
TOWNSHEND - Grace Cottage's Behavioral Health Specialist Caroline Chase will facilitate a seven-session bereavement group for those who have experienced the loss of a partner. The free series runs from Nov. 5 to Dec. 17, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., at the Grace Cottage Community Wellness Center on Route 35.
Support groups like this one can offer an emotional connection to those who may feel isolated from friends and family, according to organizers. For more information or to register for the group, please call our Community Health Team at 802-365-3715, ext. 6.
AARP driving classes offered in Brattleboro
BRATTLEBORO - The AARP Driver Safety Program, a classroom driver refresher course, will be offered in Brattleboro at multiple locations.
The course explains changes that occur in vision, hearing, and reaction time as people age and incorporates recent brain study information. Driving safety tips are presented with focus on changes in vehicles and roadways that impact driving safety. Course content was revised in 2014 to address recent changes in Vermont law.
The next classes offered in the Brattleboro area will be Friday, Nov. 6, at the Brattleboro Senior Center, starting at 9:30 a.m.; Saturday, Nov. 7 at the Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, starting at 9:30 a.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 14 at Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend, starting at 9 a.m.
The fee for the class is $20 ($15 for AARP members). Some major auto insurance carriers in Vermont offer discounts to participants in the program. Meal service is only available at the Brattleboro Senior Center. Participants at all sessions are free to bring their own lunch.
Those interested in taking the course or with questions regarding the AARP Driver Safety Program should call or email Elliott Greenblott at 802-254-4489 or egreenblott@gmail.com.
Local group presents events on Syrian refugee crisis
BRATTLEBORO - Brattleboro Solidarity will show Letters to Al Yarmouk, a film documenting ordinary civilian life inside the besieged Al Yarmouk camp, one of the great humanitarian catastrophes in the Syrian crisis, on Friday, Nov. 6 at 6:30 p.m., in the Fireside Room at Centre Congregational Church on Main Street.
On Nov. 13 at 6:30 p.m. at Centre Church, Brattleboro Solidarity will follow up the Nov. 6 film with a conversation via Skype with Qaes Saed, one of the founders of the Jafra Foundation - originally established inside the Yarmouk camp to assist local and displaced populations.
Brattleboro Solidarity is a group of area activists who meet monthly and work to connect the conditions and and forces seen internationally to those influencing lives here at home. For more information, contact brattleborosolidarity@gmail.com.
Ski, Skate & Snowboard Sale is Nov. 7
BRATTLEBORO - The Annual Phil Dunham Ski, Skate & Snowboard Sale, directed by the Brattleboro Recreation and Parks Department and the Brattleboro Outing Club, will be held Saturday, Nov. 7, from 8 to 11 a.m., at the Gibson-Aiken Center, 207 Main Street.
The event attracts those interested in selling or buying snowboards, skis, ski boots, poles, and bindings (both downhill and cross country), skates, and winter sports clothing and hockey equipment. People who wish to enter items in the sale must bring them to the Gibson-Aiken Center on Friday, Nov. 6, between noon and 7 p.m. only.
Any winter sport article can be listed for sale, but only 20 items per person will be accepted. Equipment brought in for the Ski-Skate & Snowboard Sale will be checked for DIN numbers. This means that sports shops might not service those items without a DIN number. Equipment that does not have a DIN number will be marked with a red dot on the price tag.
All those who displayed articles in the sale must return to the Center on Monday, Nov. 9, between noon and 6 p.m. For more information, contact the Brattleboro Recreation and Parks Department Office at 802-254-5808 between the hours of 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Windham hosts harvest supper, square dance
WINDHAM - The annual Harvest Supper & Square Dance to benefit the Windham Community Organization will be held on Saturday, Nov. 7, at 5 p.m., at the Windham Meeting House, 26 Harrington Rd.
The traditional supper of ham, butternut squash, baked beans, scalloped potatoes (also gluten-free version), sweet breads, rolls, and assorted homemade pies will be served. Square dancing for the entire family, called by Sally Newton, will begin after supper.
The event costs for $10 for adults, $5 children under 12, or $25 per family. Donations for the band are welcome, and guests can cast their ballot for the Windham Library's photo contest, Capturing the Beauty of Windham. All are welcome.
Hogback habitat rehabilitation effort wraps up for season
MARLBORO - On Sunday, Nov. 8, from 9 a.m. to noon, volunteers will gather for the fifth and final work day for this fall on Hogback Mountain to improve wildlife habitat in the conservation area.
The focus will be on clearing the former Great White Way ski slope in order to rejuvenate the early successional habitat that developed when the ski area closed in 1986.
Volunteers are needed to wield loppers, haul brush, and operate chain saws and may bring their own favorite tool or borrow one. Volunteers will meet in the field behind the white A-frame building on Route 9 just west of the gift shop. More information can be found at hogbackvt.org.
Osher lectures conclude
DUMMERSTON - The Brattleboro Chapter of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) will hold the final program in its series of fall lectures on Monday, November 9.
In the morning program, Tom Toleno will discuss education in Africa today, with special attention to his work at Mzuzu University, Malawi. In the afternoon lectures, Joe DeFelice, filmmaker and founder of Riverbank Media, in Dorset, will discuss the properties and artistic uses of water on film.
All lectures will be held at the Vermont Learning Collaborative, 471 US Route 5, Dummerston. Parking and handicapped access are available, and light refreshments will be served at the lectures. For further information, call 802-257-8600 or toll-free 866-889-0042.
Heat pump workshop offered in Brattleboro Nov. 9
BRATTLEBORO - Cold climate heat pumps have rapidly emerged as a promising technology for Vermont. Residents are invited to a workshop to learn about heat pump options for both hot water and space heating to see if they make sense for homes, businesses, or rental properties.
These devices provide heat and domestic hot water using 25-50 percent less energy than conventional systems. They are environmentally-friendly as well, 87 percent free of carbon emissions when the electricity comes from Green Mountain Power. Heat pumps can also be combined with solar electric panels to provide 100% renewable energy.
Residents can learn more about heat pumps at a free workshop on Monday, Nov. 9, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., at the Marlboro College Graduate Center, 28 Vernon St.
Matt Sargent, an energy Consultant with Efficiency Vermont, will review the latest in heat pump technologies, the relative economics of using heat pumps versus other fuel sources, successful case studies, and other resources to help you. Heat pump distributors will be on-site to share information. The doors open at 5 p.m., and light refreshments will be provided.
The workshop is free and open to the public, but seating is limited and registration is required. To register, or for more information, contact Paul Cameron at pcameron@brattleboro.org or 802-251-8135.
Brattleboro Sunrise Rotary to host trivia night
BRATTLEBORO - On Monday, Nov. 9, the Brattleboro Sunrise Rotary Club will host a Charity Quiz Challenge from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at American Legion Post 5 on Linden Street to benefit Brattleboro Time Trade.
Teams comprised of four to six players are invited to compete each month for a cash prize. The entry fee of $20 per person (cash or check) includes a dinner entrée prepared by Entera Artisanal Catering and donation to the charity. For more information or to register your team, visit Ashriver@pdsclaw.com.
The Brattleboro Sunrise Rotary Club meets every Wednesday morning at 7:15 at the American Legion Post 5. More than 40 members of the club work toward improving the community through business and civic partnerships that benefit area programs serving a variety of charitable causes. The public is welcome.
Daughters of Isabella to hold installation
BRATTLEBORO - The Daughters of Isabella, Ave Maria Circle #128, of Brattleboro, will hold its installation on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 7 p.m., at Rand Hall on Walnut Street. All members are urged to attend. The group is a charitable organization of Catholic women.
The new officers are: Regent, Lois Dunham; Vice Regent, Kathleen LeClair; Past Regent, Rebecca Koski; Financial Secretary, Kathi Renaud; Treasurer, Gail Stankiewicz; Recording Secretary, Stephani Carey; Scribe, Elizabeth Snyder; Chancellor, Jean Dunham; Auditors, Kathleen Saunders and Connie Weldon; Monitor, Juliet Branson; Banner Bearer, Bernice Dominique; Guard, Yolanda; and Custodian, Cindy Camara.
Senior lunch served in Chesterfield
CHESTERFIELD, N.H. - The Chesterfield Senior lunch will be held on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at the Chesterfield Town Hall at 12:30 p.m.
A turkey dinner will be served. Reservations must be made before Monday, Nov. 9, at 603-363-8348. A $5 donation is suggested. The HCS nurse will be available from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to take blood pressures. All veterans are welcome.