Toastmasters meeting at Marlboro Grad Center May 9
BRATTLEBORO - BrattleMasters, the Brattleboro-based chapter of Toastmasters International, meets Thursday, May 9, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at Marlboro College Graduate Center, room 2E, 28 Vernon St.
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 work at their own pace and with assigned mentors to help them meet their speaking and leadership goals.
For more information, visit brattleboro.toastmastersclubs.org.
West Brattleboro Association to meet May 9
WEST BRATTLEBORO - On Thursday, May 9, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., the West Brattleboro Association (WBA) will hold its monthly meeting at The New England House, 254 Marlboro Rd.
The association will review the treasury, the status of the town's traffic safety study as regards the stretch of Route 9 from Academy School to Greenleaf Street, and its participation in Green Up Day. The group will also discuss the “Neighborhoods Project” and any news regarding Glen Park and Mountain Home Park.
Association members also will review the work plan for the year, including two upcoming events: the Chicken Barbecue on Saturday, May 25, in front of the First Congregational Church, and West B Village Day, slated for Saturday, June 22 on the West Brattleboro common in front of the firehouse.
The group will discuss items to be displayed in the Brattleboro Area Chamber of Commerce window the week of the event.
Also slated for the agenda is an update on the status of West Brattleboro signage; a review of public projects including the West B Fire Station upgrade; and Brattleboro Housing Authority project. As time permits, the WBA will discuss coordinating with arts groups.
The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 13, place and time TBD.
BF Farmers' Market opens for season May 10
BELLOWS FALLS - The Bellows Falls Farmers' Market is getting ready for its 10th season of locally grown agricultural products, prepared foods, crafts, and free music.
The market will run each Friday from 4 to 7 p.m., May 10 to Oct. 11, at the Waypoint Center on Depot Street.
Among this year's vendors are farmers, crafters and prepared-foods vendors from New Hampshire and Vermont. Special events this year include two youth markets, Dairy Day, and a National Farmers Market Week Celebration.
In addition to weekly live music, local handicrafts will be represented at the market the third Friday of each month, tying in with BF3F taking place at galleries and shops downtown. For more information, visit www.bffarmersmarket.com.
The farmers' market accepts both EBT/debit cards and Farm to Family coupons, a program for low-income families that allows for purchases directly from farmers.
For more information about the Bellows Falls Farmers' Market, call market manager Rachel Ware at 802-463-2018 or write [email protected].
BCTV hosts 8-hour Live Auction & Band Jam on May 11
BRATTLEBORO - In true cinematic style, Brattleboro Community Television is going “back to the future” and hosting its first on-air benefit auction in almost 15 years. The auction will air live on Channel 8 on Saturday, May 11, from noon to 8 p.m., and will be streamed live at www.brattleboroTV.org.
Auction proceeds will help offset the cost of BCTV's recent upgrades in equipment and the design and construction of a new broadcast studio.
More than $8,000 in local goods and services will be auctioned to bidders who call 802-441-5545 noon to 8 p.m. Bids will also be accepted on BCTV's Facebook page. Items to be auctioned will be presented in four blocks: at noon, 2, 3:45, and 6 p.m. High-value items will be open for bidding all day.
Between auction blocks, local bands will perform live in the BCTV studio to entertain viewers. Performers include Peter Miles leading off at 12:20, Daniel Kasnitz at 1 p.m., Robin Zegge at 1:35, Tim Johnson and Robin Zegge at 2:05, Electric Fence at 2:20, Dre Hobbs at 3:20, Brad Roth Group at 4, Jimmy Gordon at 4:45, Mike Mrowicki & Amelia Struthers at 5:25, The Melodians (Richard Davis and James Pentland) at 6:05, and Steve West at 7:55 p.m.
Mother's Day Brunch at Broad Brook Grange
GUILFORD - Broad Brook Grange will present its 17th annual Mother's Day Brunch on Sunday, May 12, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Grange hall in Guilford Center. The proceeds allow for continued renovations of the historic building.
The all-you-can-eat brunch features eggs and omelets, any style, made to order. Also on the menu are pancakes, French toast, sausage, bacon and home fries, with Guilford maple syrup. Other treats include home-baked coffee cakes and other baked goods, fresh fruit salad, and bread for toasting. A selection of juices will be available, along with coffee, teas and milk.
No reservations are necessary for the meal, which is priced at $10 for adults; $8 for seniors, and $5 for ages 2-12. No charge for kids under 2.
Guilford Free Library will be selling the last of their raffle tickets during the brunch and will hold the drawing in late morning.
This event is the second brunch of 2013, and is followed by similar events on 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 802-257-1961.
Williamsville Hall serves up brunch on Mother's Day
WILLIAMSVILLE - A Mother's Day brunch will be served at Williamsville Hall on Sunday, May 12, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
On the menu are scrambled eggs, pancakes, and French toast with real maple syrup, bacon and homemade sausage, toast, baked treats, and orange juice, coffee, tea, and milk.
No reservations are necessary for the meal, which is priced at $6 for adults; $3 for kids under 10.
Final Osher lectures on Broadway, Arab Spring
DUMMERSTON-The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI)'s spring series of morning and afternoon lectures concludes on Monday, May 13.
In the morning lecture, Zeke Hecker, a composer and student of music, will examine “Rent” and the rock musicals of the 1990s. The afternoon program, by Lynette Rummel of Marlboro College, will consider the Moroccan regime's attempts to resist the Arab Spring in their country.
Morning lectures are 10 a.m. to noon. Afternoon lectures from 1 to 3 p.m. All will be held at the Southeast Vermont Learning Collaborative, 471 Vermont Route 5, in Dummerston. Parking and handicapped access are available. Light refreshments will be served.
For further information, call 802-257-8600 or toll-free 866-889-0042.
Marlboro College Graduate School offers free Results-Based Accountability workshop
BRATTLEBORO - Are you struggling to tell the story of the value of your organization or program to potential supporters? Come learn the basics of Results Based Accountability (RBA), a simple framework that allows one to develop performance measures and communicate an organization's contribution to the community.
“Got Results? Results-Based Accountability” will be presented at Marlboro College Graduate School on Vernon Street on Tuesday, May 14, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. This workshop is free. Register at www.mixmay.eventbrite.com.
Sue Graff is the presenter. Currently Director of Community Investments at Marlboro, she was a program coordinator with Brattleboro Area Prevention Coalition. She has also worked with Sojourns Community Health Clinic, New York Cares, and Gay Men's Health Crisis in New York City. A representative of the United Way of Windham County, which utilizes RBA, will share their experiences, answer questions and provide more resources.
BF Woman's Club meets on May 14
BELLOWS FALLS - The final meeting of the Bellows Falls Woman's Club for this year will be held on Tuesday, May 14, at the United Church of Bellows Falls, at noon.
The executive board will host a potluck luncheon. Club members are assigned food based on last names: A-K, ready-to-serve hot dish; L-Mc, salad; and Mi-Z, dessert. The board will provide beverages and rolls.
Guests will be General Federation of Women's Clubs-Vermont President Midge Tucker, of the Ludlow-Okemo Club, and Nancy Hobart, South East Director GFWC-VT, member of the South Royalton Woman's Club. She will install two directors, 2013-2015, for the local club.
'Ride of Silence' honors victims of cycling accidents
BRATTLEBORO - On Wednesday, May 15, all are invited to participate in a “Ride of Silence” to honor bicyclists who have been injured or killed in crashes involving motor vehicles.
The Ride of Silence is an annual event that happens on the same day across the United States and around the world. Since 2007, the Ride has been organized by the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition (VBPC) to draw attention to the need to improve the safety of Vermont's roadways for all users. In 2013, the Ride will take place in more than a dozen Vermont communities.
In Brattleboro, the Ride of Silence will begin at the Chelsea Royal Diner at 6 p.m. and proceed through downtown, to Exit 3 and back for a reading of names of crash victims at Pliny Park at 6:50 p.m.
The Ride will then continue to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, Living Memorial park, and back to the Chelsea. Riders can join and leave the single-file procession at any point. Bicyclists are encouraged to wear black or red armbands, flags, or helmet adornments. The names will be read aloud to emphasize the high price of unsafe infrastructure and unsafe behavior.
For detailed schedule or other information, contact Doug Cox at [email protected] or 802-257-1024.
Talk on ticks and Lyme disease presented May 16
BRATTLEBORO - The public is invited to a presentation on ticks and Lyme disease, sponsored by the University of Vermont Extension Master Gardener program, on Thursday, May 16, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., at the Marlboro College Graduate Center on Vernon Street, in Room 2 East.
Babs Lynde will host the presentation will discuss these topics: the varieties of ticks, which ones give you Lyme disease, and how to identify tick markings, as well as advice on preventing Lyme disease and how to live with the disease.
Register for this talk at [email protected].
Guilford Plant & Bake Sale set for May 18
GUILFORD - The Guilford Historical Society will hold its annual Plant & Bake Sale on Saturday, May 18 , from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Richmond's Garage at the corner of Route 5 and Guilford Center Road, one mile south of Exit 1 off Interstate 91 and across from the Guilford Country Store.
The sale will feature plants - all moderately priced and locally raised - and a variety of baked goods from some of the fine cooks in the Guilford area. Pies, cookies, and other delicacies will be offered.
Persons willing to donate plants are asked to pot them in advance of the sale and then bring them to Richmond's Garage between 8 and 9 a.m. on sale day. Baked goods should also be brought at that time. If donors of plant or baked goods have questions, they may call Mary Sargent at 802-257-0004 or Shirley Squires at 802-254-2468.
Meals on Wheels volunteers needed
SPRINGFIELD - Senior Solutions is seeking drivers to deliver Meals on Wheels to elders on weekdays in Windham and Windsor counties, especially in the towns of Wardsboro, Jamaica, Windham, Newfane, and Townshend.
To volunteer and help seniors in your area, call Anila Hood at 802-885-2655.
County Democratic Committee seeks summer intern
BRATTLEBORO - The Windham County Democratic Committee (WCDC) is now accepting applications for the 2013 Summer Internship for Grassroots Organization.
The intern will work under the supervision of the WCDC chairman. Responsibilities include identifying and recruiting Democratic Party leaders in various towns of Windham County, and assisting these persons, as needed, with the organization of their respective town democratic committees, and other duties.
The internship will start in mid- to late-June and lasts eight weeks. Stipend of $75 per week, plus housing for the eight weeks if desired. Twelve to 15 hours per week is expected. The intern must be a licensed driver and have access to a vehicle for transportation around Windham County.
For more information, call WCDC Chair Bill Johnson at 802-257-1020, or email [email protected]. Interested persons may email their resume and at least three references to the same e-address. The application deadline is Friday, May 17.