Senior meal served in Halifax
HALIFAX - Friday, May 17, is the next senior meal in Halifax at the Community Hall, located at 20 Brook Road. Lunch will be served at noon, and all seniors are welcome.
On the menu is roast pork, potato casserole, green beans, rolls, carrot salad, and rhubarb dump cake for dessert. A call to Joan is appreciated at 802-368-7733 or email jwcinvt@gmail.com.
Spring rummage sale in Jacksonville
JACKSONVILLE - The Jacksonville Community Church will hold its annual spring rummage, tag, and bake sale on Friday, May 17, and Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at 96 VT Rte. 112.
There will be four rooms of clothing and home goods, plus a huge indoor tag sale and delicious goodies at the bake sale.
Estey Organ Museum opens for season
BRATTLEBORO - The Estey Organ Musem at 108 Birge Street Rear in Brattleboro opens for the season on Saturday, May 18.
The museum's mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret the physical and cultural heritage of the Estey Organ Company and to promote the continued use and enjoyment of Estey organs.
Estey was one of the largest employers in southern Vermont, manufacturing 500,000 reed organs and more than 3,000 pipe organs between 1852 and 1953. Come see (and play) organs that have made it back “home” to Brattleboro from all over the world.
The museum is open Saturday and Sunday afternoons from 2 to 4 p.m. through Oct. 13; parking is free. The entrance fee for non-members is $5; there is no charge for members and young children, and donations are always welcome. More information can be found at www.esteyorganmuseum.org.
Geranium Fest in West Dummerston
WEST DUMMERSTON - The annual Geranium Festival, Book Sale, and Silent Auction to benefit Lydia Taft Pratt Library will be held on Saturday, May 18, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Dummerston Community Center, 150 West St., in West Dummerston Village.
Choose from a colorful selection of geraniums provided by Walker Farm. Browse a diverse mix of hardcovers, trade paperbacks, children's books, DVDs, audiobooks, and a large selection of music CDs, both classical and contemporary.
Visit the library to browse the Silent Auction and bid on works by local artists and writers, gift certificates to area businesses and restaurants, and much more. The Silent Auction runs through June 1 in the Lydia Taft Pratt Library.
For further information, email dummerstonvtlibrary@gmail.com or call 802-258-9878.
Food and plant sale in Guilford
GUILFORD - The Guilford Historical Society annual Plant and Food sale will be Saturday, May 18, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Richmond Auto, at the corner of Route 5 and Guilford Center Road.
A wide choice of plants, flowers, and shrubs from local gardens will be on sale, just in time for spring planting in your flower beds or yard. Delicious home-baked goods including pies, cookies, muffins, and more, by some of Guilford's best cooks, will also be available. Proceeds from the sale help maintain the town's historical buildings and artifacts.
Masons plan open house
BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Masonic Lodge on Main Street will hold an open house on Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Freemasonry is the oldest fraternity in the world and evolved out of the stonemason trade guilds that went back to Biblical times. Members of the Brattleboro Lodge will host a tour of the building, serve light refreshments, and answer questions about the fraternity. All are welcome. For more information, call Steve Farrington at 802-257-0464.
St. Michael's annual Terrific Tag Sale is May 18
BRATTLEBORO - Long lines have often formed outside St. Michael's Episcopal Church at the corner of Bradley Avenue and Putney Road as people waited to enter the “Terrific Tag Sale.” In the past, it was held on a Friday and Saturday each spring. This year, however, it will be held on only one day - Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The church will sell larger items, including all kinds of furniture and antiques, under a tent on the lawn. Downstairs in the church will be quality clothing, household items, jewelry, linens, sporting goods, books, and toys. Hungry shoppers - or those waiting for shoppers - will find baked goods and lunch items.
St. Michael's Episcopal Church is fully accessible. For more information, contact the church office at 802-254-6048 or jeanie@stmichaelsvermont.org.
Talk to focus on the first Vermonters
BELLOWS FALLS - Learn about Vermont's original inhabitants at a program on “The Western Abenaki: History and Culture,” Saturday, May 18, at noon, at the Rockingham Free Public Library, 65 Westminster St.
Presenter Jeanne Brink will discuss who the native people of the state were and how they lived. She will explore the importance in Abenaki society of elders and children, the environment, and the continuance of lifeways and traditions, drawing in part upon her own Abenaki family history.
Brink, who holds a master's degree in Native American Studies, works as a consultant to schools and organizations. She is also a traditional basket maker and co-author of a Western Abenaki language guide.
This free program is made possible through a grant from the Vermont Humanities Council and is co-sponsored by the Rockingham Historic Preservation Commission and the library. Contact the the library at 802-463-4270, www.rockinghamlibrary.org, or programming@rockinghamlibrary.org.
BF Rotary Club to hold annual Penny Sale
BELLOWS FALLS - The Bellows Falls Rotary Club will hold their annual Penny Sale on Saturday, May 18, at the Bellows Falls Union High School auditorium in Westminster.
Doors open at 5:30 p.m., and the first of the Penny Sale's three action-packed series starts at 6 p.m. Refreshments will be provided under the direction of Parks Place Community Resource Center. More than 300 prizes have been donated by area businesses to ensure a fun time for all.
The Penny Sale is the Rotary Club's major fundraiser, with proceeds used for community projects and programs such as Our Place Drop In Center, Parks Place, and the Warming Shelter. Additionally, scholarships are provided for graduating students, as well as support for both the inbound and outbound foreign exchange student program.
Spring migration bird walk at Hogback
MARLBORO - On Sunday, May 19, from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. at Hogback Mountain Conservation Area on Route 9, join naturalist Cherrie Corey for a morning walk to meet the arriving songbird wave and other harbingers of spring.
Tune in to the plumage and song of each species and learn to notice where they prefer to perch and sing in the landscape. The route will take hikers through several distinct and varied habitats, each with its own signature community of songbirds and plant life.
This is about a 2-mile loop, with 500 feet of elevation change. Meet in the field behind the white Distillery building on the south side of Route 9, just west of the gift shop. Questions? Email hmca@hogbackvt.org or visit hogbackvt.org.
Workshop looks at ways to combat human trafficking
WEST BRATTLEBORO - On Sunday, May 19, from 1 to 4 p.m., at First Congregational Church, 880 Western Ave., the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community and the Brattleboro Area Interfaith Alliance will join together to present a training to help people understand how to combat human trafficking. This training is free and open to the public.
The presenter is Linda Joy Sullivan, a member of the Vermont House with vast experience and knowledge on this topic, who will offer a training to help us understand this complex issue and begin to figure out how people at the grassroots level can help end this crime against humanity.
Sullivan has designed outreach programs for victims, designed and delivered training programs for judges and attorneys, served as an expert witness on every aspect of this topic, and directly supported victims of human trafficking. For more information, email humantraffickingtraining@bajcvermont.org or call 802-257-1959.
Celebrating ferns at Dutton Pines
DUMMERSTON - The “Unfurling of the Ferns” Celebration will take place on Sunday, May 19, from 1 to 4 p.m., at Dutton Pines State Park on Route 5. Co-sponsored by the Vermont Department of Forest, Parks and Recreation, it is a fundraiser for the Dummerston Conservation Commission. Refreshments will be provided.
Author and forester Lynn Levine and illustrator Briony Morrow-Cribbs will discuss fern identification, and state forester Tim Morton will discuss the history and forest community of Dutton Pines, taking people on walks around the park. There will be music by Amelia Struthers and Mike Mrowicki, the duo known as Vermont Timbre.
Attendees will be encouraged to explore the park with Levine's newly published field guide, Identifying Ferns the Easy Way: A Pocket Guide to Common Ferns of the Northeast, with 20 percent of the sale price of the book during the event donated to the Conservation Commission.
'Civil Rights for All' banner raising at Co-op
BRATTLEBORO - We Celebrate Democracy/Civil Rights for All, a local group dedicated to positive nonviolent public action for democracy and civil rights for all people, and the Brattleboro Food Co-op will host a banner raising on Tuesday, May 21, from 5 to 6 p.m.
Noted photographer David Shaw will do a photo shoot of the event, and Southern Vermont Samba will provide the musical accompaniment. A postcard will be made from Shaw's photograph that will be available at the Co-op and to participants who sign up for it. A wall calendar for 2020 is planned, which will include the postcard photo from the Co-op.
All who attend are asked to agree to behave nonviolently in word and deed. For information and to help with the banner raising, contact Woody Bernhard at woodybernhard48@gmail.com or call 802-257-0236.