Hospice hosts 'Kitchen Table Conversation' on Act 39
BRATTLEBORO - On Thursday, Nov. 16, from 2 to 3:30 p.m., Brattleboro Area Hospice, 191 Canal St., will host a conversation on Act 39, the Medical Aid in Dying Act. In Spring 2023, legislation was passed to allow terminally ill people from out of state to take advantage of it to end their lives. Participants will have the opportunity to discuss this change and the special challenges it may create, as well as talk about Act 39 in general.
What is a Kitchen Table Conversation? Some of the most engaging and interesting conversations happen around a kitchen table. Staff and volunteers with knowledge and experience on this subject will be sitting around the table with participants, and together they will talk in a supportive and congenial atmosphere.
This event is free. RSVP by emailing info@brattleborohospice.org or calling 802 257-0775. Space is limited.
Holiday craft fair at Town Hall
TOWNSHEND - On Saturday, Nov, 18, from 9 a.m. to noon, on the second floor of the Town Hall on Route 30, there will be a holiday craft fair, featuring more than 15 local vendors selling handmade arts, including crocheted products, baby blankets, paintings, and jewelry.
Coffee and treats will be available by donation to support Valley Cares activities programming.
Friends of Brooks Memorial Library host annual book sale
BRATTLEBORO - The Friends of the Brooks Memorial Library will host their annual Friends of the Library Book Sale on Friday, Nov. 24, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, Nov. 25, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Unsold books will continue to be available through December. All proceeds from the book sale go to support programs at Brooks Library. Many items are $2 or less.
The Friends are also raffling off several gift baskets. The raffle ticket prices are one for $2 and three tickets for $5.
Monthly produce distribution in Putney
PUTNEY - The Vermont Foodbank and the Putney Foodshelf co-sponsor a monthly food drop of free produce and some nonperishables on the fourth Thursday of every month from 9 to 9:45 a.m. on Alice Holway Drive (in front of Putney Meadows, the white building across from the Putney Co-op and Putney Fire Station).
Due to Thanksgiving falling on the fourth Thursday, the November Free Produce Distribution will be on the fifth Thursday, Nov. 30. All are welcome. This is a drive-up service. Bags provided.
SEVCA requests input on Community Needs Survey
WESTMINSTER - Every three years, Southeastern Vermont Community Action (SEVCA) conducts a Community Assessment to discern current and emerging community needs in the areas of employment, education, income and asset building, housing, health/social behavior development, civic engagement, and community involvement.
The resulting data will be used by SEVCA's Strategic Plan Committee, which is working with Bright Minds Consulting, Inc., of Columbus, Ohio, to develop a multi-year workplan. Community action agencies like SEVCA are required by their funders to regularly engage in strategic planning to assure that their programs and resources align with the needs of the communities they serve.
The survey can be found online at sevca.org. Paper versions are also available SEVCA locations in Brattleboro, Westminster, and Springfield. The survey will be live through Friday, Dec. 8. More information is available by emailing kdevlin@sevca.org.
Putney Library offers help for stuttering
PUTNEY - The Stuttering Foundation has donated books and DVDs to public libraries across the country, including the Putney Public Library.
Stuttering Foundation books are directed to parents of children who stutter, adults who stutter, speech pathologists, pediatricians, family physicians, nurses, health care professionals, hospitals, schools, clinics, day-care centers, and all those concerned with the problem of stuttering. The DVDs feature some of the world's leading therapists with children who stutter. Since the original publication, Foundation materials have reached millions of individuals worldwide.
"More than three million Americans stutter, yet stuttering remains misunderstood by most people," Jane Fraser, president of The Stuttering Foundation, said in a news release. "Myths such as believing people who stutter are less intelligent or suffer from psychological problems still persist despite research refuting these erroneous beliefs."
Sixteen books and DVDs produced by the 76-year-old nonprofit Stuttering Foundation are available free to any public library. The Foundation has provided free materials to over 20,000 public libraries nationwide. A public library that will shelve them can email info@stutteringhelp.org.
This Town and Village item was submitted to The Commons.