Boys & Girls Club kicks off 20th anniversary celebration
BRATTLEBORO - On Friday, May 3, at 5 p.m., the Boys & Girls Club of Brattleboro will hold a kickoff event for its 20th anniversary celebration.
Join past and present club members, staff, volunteers and board members as they begin their celebration of 20 years inspiring youth in the greater Brattleboro area. They will be showing off their 20th anniversary banner and t-shirts, as well as doing tours of the Flat Street clubhouse and having cake. Questions? Call 802-254-5990, ext. 109.
Stroll hosts Women's Expo at River Garden
BRATTLEBORO - On Saturday, May 4, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Strolling of the Heifers presents A Women's Expo at the River Garden, 157 Main St.
Downtown Brattleboro's River Garden will open its doors at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 4, for this free, fun, casual event, which is open to the public.
Vendors and exhibitors, many of them women-owned businesses, will be on hand with health and wellness products and services, home goods, clothing and accessories and more.
For more information, contact Strolling of the Heifers' River Garden coordinator Vicki Friedman at 802-246-0982 or [email protected].
Herricks Cove Wildlife Festival marks 20th year
ROCKINGHAM - Presented by Ascutney Mountain Audubon Society, Vermont Fish and Wildlife, and Great River Hydro, the 20th annual Herricks Cove Wildlife Festival returns to Rockingham on Sunday, May 5.
An early morning bird walk led by expert birder Don Clark kicks off the festival at 7 a.m. See migrating birds close up at the bird banding station by the Vermont Center for Ecostudies starting at 7 a.m. Wildlife presentations, events. and booths are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Expect to see live birds and wildlife, programs and exhibits, special programs for kids and a kids' activity tent, and enjoy nature walks and demonstrations by local wildlife artists. Learn from and about local organizations doing work on wildlife and environmental projects and enjoy local food vendors for lunch, snacks, and drinks.
Herricks Cove is located off Exit 6 of Interstate 91. Take Route 103 east to Route 5 North. After crossing the Williams River, turn right on the Herricks Cove Road. Requested donation for admission is $2 per person or $5 for the family. Details at amasvt.org/herricks-cove-wildlife-festival.
BF Woman's Club hosts high tea
BELLOWS FALLS - The Bellows Falls Woman's Club will host its third High Tea, to help underwrite its high school scholarship, on Sunday, May 5, at the Masonic Temple on Westminster Street, from 3 to 5 p.m.
Sweets and savories made by club members will be served, along with tea and other beverages. Walden Withum will provide background harp music. The $20 tickets are available at Village Square Booksellers.
In addition to the tea, tickets for a raffle of two gift bags of certificates to local businesses and donated items, valued at $250, and a gift bag donated by the Vemont Country Store, will be sold for $1 each or 6 for $5. The drawing of the winning tickets will be held at the club's next meeting on May 14. Raffle tickets will also be available from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Temple on the day of the tea; you do not need to attend the tea to buy raffle tickets.
Pain relief course starts May 7 at Grace Cottage
TOWNSHEND - If your life or the life of someone you love has been hijacked by pain, you're not alone. Pain affects more Americans than diabetes, heart disease, and cancer combined. In fact, one out of every three U.S. adults lives with chronic pain triggered by arthritis, chronic fatigue syndrome, disc problems, fibromyalgia, headaches, sciatica, or other causes.
Medical experts at the Mayo Clinic, together with the team at The Teaching Company, crafted a research-based guide to coping with chronic pain, providing access to the same knowledge that has made Mayo Clinic's highly successful pain management programs so effective.
On Tuesdays, from May 7 to June 11, from 1 to 2:30 p.m., SASH Coordinator Jessy Cudworth will facilitate a six-week “Great Course” - The Mayo Clinic Guide to Pain Relief - at Grace Cottage Hospital. The program is free and open to the public. Call Cudworth to pre-register for the class or for more information at 802-365-4115, ext. 108.
Library hosts AARP Fraud Watch programs
WEST DUMMERSTON - This spring, the Lydia Taft Pratt Library and the Dummerston Community Center are co-hosting two AARP Vermont Fraud Watch Presentations. Elliott Greenblott, AARP Vermont Fraud Watch Coordinator, will present the programs at the Community Center, 150 West St.
On Tuesday, May 7, at 6:30 p.m., Greenblott will present “Fraud, Scams, and Con Artists: Coming to a Computer Near You.” On Tuesday, June 4, also at 6:30 p.m., he'll talk about identity theft, with an explanation that examines how and why it occurs, instructions on taking protective steps, and what to do if it happens.
These programs are free and open to the public. Contact the library at 802-258-9878 with questions.
Hospice presents program on loss, dying, and death in later life
BRATTLEBORO - On Tuesday, May 7, from 2 to 4:30 p.m., Brattleboro Area Hospice will present the Hospice Foundation of America's Annual National Living with Grief Program, “Aging America: Coping with Loss, Dying and Death in Later Life.”
This free, educational teleconference, open to the community, is made possible in part through the generosity of the Brattleboro Retreat. It will take place in the Retreat's Education Conference Center, One Anna Marsh Lane. Two hours of continuing education credit are available through the Hospice Foundation of America.
This program is about coping with loss and coming to terms with death and dying as people age. It will help counselors and others working with bereaved persons to identify and examine transformative experiences in the wake of death loss.
A panel of individuals with expertise in this work will discuss the content of the program following the presentation. They include Janice Malin, MSW, a therapist in Brattleboro who works with the elder population, Richard Orlan, M.D., a local physician who specializes in geriatrics, and Patty Dunn, Hospice Care Coordinator at Brattleboro Area Hospice.
Registration for this free event is appreciated, but isn't necessary. Contact Lars Hunter, Brattleboro Area Hospice Bereavement Program coordinator at 802-257-0775, ext. 104, or [email protected].
BMH Auxiliary to hold annual spring event
BRATTLEBORO - The Brattleboro Memorial Hospital Auxiliary will hold its annual meeting at the Brattleboro Country Club on Thursday, May 9, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Special guest speaker Melanie Choukas-Bradley, author, naturalist, and certified forest therapy guide, will give a talk on the physical and psychological benefits of forest bathing - “exploring the meditative practice of reconnecting with nature and disconnecting from daily distractions while incorporating the wondrous world of the wild.”
Choukas-Bradley, who grew up in Saxtons River, where her father was the headmaster of Vermont Academy, is a long-time contributor to The Washington Post and other publications, and she has appeared as an author and guest expert on NPR's All Things Considered and Morning Edition.
The author of several books, including The Joy of Forest Bathing, she will be speaking about the benefits of the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing. She will be available to sign copies of her book after her talk.
This event is open to the public. Tickets are $20 (includes appetizers and cash bar). To reserve your spot, or for more information, contact Barb Henry at 802-257-0688 or [email protected].