Upcoming events: End-of-Life Symposium addresses medical needs; Londonderry Park cleanup night; Clift on doulas; library tag sale; BBB identity theft program; Chester-Andover community meal; Caregivers program at Whiting; oil painting exhibit; and wellness programs in Springfield

For more upcoming events, click here for The Chester Telegraph calendar. To be included in our Upcoming events briefs, email Susan Lampe-Wilson at calendar@www.chestertelegraph.org. Photos welcome. No PDFs, please.

May 20: End-of-Life Symposium addresses medical needs

T

he second is the four-session End-of-Life Symposium will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday May 20 at the Newsbank Conference Center, 352 Main St., in Chester. Each event will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at Newsbank.

• MAY 20: This Medical Needs and Considerations session will be led by Dr. Daniel Caloras and Linda Wilcox, SW, who will address identifying needs, determining your wishes, types of available care and advance directives. Caloras is the medical director of the Visiting Nurses Association Hospice Program; Wilcox is a medical social worker at Springfield Hospital.

• JUNE 3: Session III will address Funeral and Burial Considerations with Lisa Carlson is a renowned author/consumer activist and executive director of the Funeral Ethics Organization. She has written four books about the funeral industry: I Died Laughing: Funeral Education with a Light Touch and Final Rights: Reclaiming the American Way of Death. Carlson will speak on current laws, what to consider for funeral home services and burial options.

• JUNE 17: Session IV will address Legal and Financial Considerations with Bill Dakin, attorney of Dakin and Benelli, PC and Ronald Theissen, CPA, CFA. Both Dakin and Theissen work in Chester and will speak the importance of a will, trusts, estate planning and paying for long-term care.

The sessions are made possible by a $5,000 grant from the Fanny Holt Ames and Edna Louise Holt Fund to the Community Cares Network.

May 21: Clean Up Night at Memorial Park in Londonderry

Memorial Park in Londonderry invites the public to help out on their Clean Up Night from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 21 at 1661 Goodaleville Road, Londonderry. Participants are asked to bring their yard equipment. For more information or directions to the event contact the trustees of Memorial Park at londontown@vermontel.net.

Local author Elayne Clift to speak at Rockingham Free Public Library.

May 22: Local author Clift on doulas

On Thursday, May 22, at 7 p.m., local author and women’s health advocate Elayne Clift will present  What’s a Doula? Facts, Feelings and the Philosophy of Woman Supported Birth  at the Rockingham Free Public Library at 65 Westminster St., Bellows Falls. Clift discuss her latest book, with Christine Morton, Birth Ambassadors: Doulas and the Re-emergence of Woman-supported Birth in America. The book is about women who offer physical and emotional support to birthing mothers.

The program will explain the midwifery model of childbirth vs. the medical model and will discuss some of the politics of birthing in various settings. Film clips of Ina May Gaskin, “the mother of American midwifery,” will be shown.

Clift, who has worked internationally as a women’s health educator, is a volunteer doula at Brattleboro Memorial Hospital’s Birth Center. Brattleboro Memorial Hospital’s volunteer doula program has been in existence since 2003 and offers free doula services to any woman who is having her baby in the hospital’s birthing center.

This program is free and open to the public. For more information call 802.463.4270, email sam@rockinghamlibrary.org, or visit rockinghamlibrary.org.

May 24: South Londonderry Free Library tag sale

The South Londonderry Free Library, 15 Old School St., will hold its one-day Gigantic Tag Sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m on Saturday, May 24 on Thompsonburg Road in South Londonderry. Shoppers will find antiques, books, artwork, plants, collectibles, crafts and cast-offs. There will also be a White Elephant table packed with donated goods that will benefit the library. Food, including sausages, sodas and baked goods, will be available. For more information or to donate White Elephant table, call the library at 802-824-3371.

May 28: Identity theft prevention presentation At Wilder

The Better Business Bureau will give a presentation on how to prevent identity theft and on protecting yourself from scams from 4:30–5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 28 at Wilder Memorial Library, 24 Lawrence Hill Road in Weston. This is a free program open to individuals, as well as businesses and organizations. Space is limited, so those interested are encouraged to RSVP. For more information, visit www.wildermemoriallibrary.org or their Facebook page. To RSVP, call 802-824-4307 or email wilderweston@gmail.com.

May 31: Chester-Andover Community Meal open to all

The next Chester-Andover Community Meal will be take place at noon Saturday May 31 at St. Luke’s Church, 313 Main St. in Chester.

The meal — which isn’t a potluck or a soup kitchen — is open to all members of the public to nurture the community through fellowship and food. It is free of charge, although cash donations will be used for supplies for the meals.

 If you would like to volunteer to help with set up or clean up, contact Jane Davis at 875-1855, or Edie Brown at edieandwally@hotmail.com.

May 31: Help for Caregivers program at Whiting Library

Representatives from Senior Solutions will lead a free information session for caregivers at the Whiting Library, 117 Main St. in Chester, 1 to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 31. This meeting will describe the resources, services and grants available to help plan for future care needs, and to address current challenges such as elder depression, loneliness and caregiver stress. At the meeting there will be an opportunity for caregivers to let Senior Solutions know what kinds of assistance and information they most need. This advice will guide future offerings. Caregivers who cannot attend are urged to give input via a short survey at www.SeniorSolutionsVT.org. If you need help getting respite care for your loved one so you may attend the meeting, call the Senior HelpLine as soon as possible at 800-642-5119.

Senior Solutions is the non-profit Area Agency on Aging that serves Windsor and Windham Counties.

June 5: Oil Painters of America annual exhibition

The Oil Painters of America will hold its 23rd National Juried Exhibition of Traditional Oils at the Bennington Center for the Arts, 44 Gypsy Road, Bennington from June 5 to July 27. An opening reception will be held for artists, collectors, and the public from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, June 7. OPA is considered to be one of the premier art organizations in the country.

Only 200 artists are selected to be a part of this exhibition. Total awards for this year’s National Exhibition are expected to exceed $75,000, including a $25,000 Gold Medal award.

The public is invited to view these works throughout the exhibition period. All pieces are for sale. Gallery viewing hours during this event will be Sunday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

In addition, painting demonstrations and other educational events will take place throughout the opening weekend beginning Wednesday, June 4 through Sunday, June 8. The public is welcome to attend these ticketed events but should register in advance.

To register online or to preview the paintings, visit our website at www.oilpaintersofamerica.com or call 815-356-5987. For information on how to purchase one of the paintings in the exhibition please call Bennington Center for the Arts at 802-442-7158.

There is no cost to attend the reception or exhibition. For information, call 802-442-7158 or go to: www.oilpaintersofamerica.com.

June: Free wellness programs in Springfield

Springfield Medical Care Systems is accepting registration for its free wellness programs taking place during June.

• Tobacco Cessation meets at 5:30–6:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, June 3, 10, 17, 24 in Room A2, at Springfield Hospital, 25 Ridgewood Road, Springfield. The group workshops are facilitated by tobacco treatment specialist Sue Norton-Weber and Robin McNamara.

• The Healthier Living Workshop for Long-Term or Ongoing Pain meets from 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m. on Thursdays June 4, 11, 18, 25, July 2 and 9, on Level 3 at the Springfield Health Center, 100 River St., Springfield. Learn how to manage pain so you can get on with living a satisfying, fulfilling life.

• Healthier Living with Chronic Conditions will meet Fridays, June 19, 26, July 3, 10, 17, 24 from 10 a.m.–12:30 p.m. at the Springfield Hospital Library, 25 Ridgewood Road, Springfield. This program will help attendees learn to manage chronic disease and improve their quality of life.

There is no charge for all programs but registration is requested. Contact the SMCS Community Health Team for more information or to register, by calling 802-886-8946 or emailing cht@springfieldmed.org.

—Edited by Susan Lampe-Wilson