Community events: May 24 through June 2, 2016

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. Notices must be received by noon on Fridays to be eligible for publication the following week.

May 24: Support for parents of tweens and teens

A 6-week Active Parenting of Teens workshop takes place from 5:30–7:30 p.m. on consecutive Tuesdays from May 24 to June 28 at Windham Northeast Supervisory Union at 25 Cherry St. in Bellows Falls. Greater Falls Connections and Windham County Partnership for Success are offering this workshop free for parents or caregivers of children ages 10–19.

This video and discussion program is geared to teen parents and caregivers. The curriculum includes understanding parenting styles, building self-esteem, and reducing the likelihood of risky behaviors. It guides parents in dealing with sensitive issues such as drugs, sexuality and violence.

Quality childcare will be provided with advanced notice. Dinner will be provided.

Sign up by calling Deb Witkus at 802-463-9927 x212, or emailing deb@greaterfallsconnections.org. Find out more about the work of Greater Falls Connections at www.greaterfallsconnections.org.

May 24: Three-session course
on 14th century mystic

Immanuel Retreat Center presents a three-session course on the 14th century mystic Meister Eckhart, at 7 p.m. on three consecutive Tuesdays, May 24 and 31 and June 7. The course takes place at Currier Hall, 12 Church St. in Bellows Falls.

Meister Eckhart (1260–1312 CE) was a Dominican teacher, preacher and mystic whose vision of the path to God is one of the most compelling in Western spirituality. Quotes from Meister Eckhart abound in popular thought and spirituality, but his vision of the spiritual journey is a unified whole, difficult to grasp piecemeal. In this three-session course, the group will put the pieces together until the vision presents itself with its deeper simplicity.

1. May 24: Beginning: Intro & Where We Stand
2. May 31: Middle: The Path to God, Detachment, Letting Go, and Birth
3. June 7: The Ending that is a Beginning: Breathrough, Creation, and Birth II

Robert Bowler leads the course. He is the director of Immanuel Retreat Center, majored in religious studies at Reed College, where he wrote a thesis on Meister Eckhart.

Tuition is $45. Advance registration is required at www.immanuelretreat.org. For more information call 802-460-0110.

May 25: Senior Solutions opens new office, welcomes visitors

The Senior Solutions main office has moved. The public is invited to an open house 3–7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 25 at their new location in the Nolin-Murray Professional Center, 38 Pleasant St. in Springfield.

Drop in and meet its new executive director, the staff and volunteers and learn about their programs and services. Light refreshments will be served.

Update contact files and references to their new location:

Senior Solutions
Address: 38 Pleasant St, Springfield VT 05156
Phone: 802-885-2655
Senior Helpline: 800-642-5119
Website: www.SeniorSolutionsVT.org
Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/SeniorSolutionsVT

May 25: Master gardener presents at Whiting

At 4 p.m. on Wednesday, May 25, Chester’s Whiting Library at 117 Main St. hosts a master gardener talk about gardening.

Cheryl Wilfong a master gardener and a master composter, will share her expertise during “The Well-Controlled Garden. Not!” presentation.

She is the author of The Real Dirt on Composting and The Meditative Gardener: Cultivating Mindfulness of Body, Feelings, and Mind and Following the Nez Perce Trail, a guide to the Nez Perce National Historic Trail in Idaho and Montana.

Whiting Library is accessible, hearing loop equipped. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Monday and Friday, 10 a.m.–8 p.m. on Wednesday, and 10 a.m.–2 p.m. on Saturday. For more information call 802-875-2277 or email whitinglibrary@yahoo.com or  visit its Facebook page, and website at whitinglibrary.org.

May 26: Red Nose Day fund-raiser comes to Chester

On Thursday, May 26, from 8 a.m. through 8 p.m. the public is invited to participate in Chester’s first Red Nose Day event. Participants will walk around the town Green wearing red noses to raise funds in support of a national event whose mission is to help lift children out of poverty.

Walkers are encouraged to ask supporters to make a donation or pledge an amount based on laps completed. Those who prefer to donate rather than walk can support a walker or donate directly by stopping by the registration desk in front of the Free Range restaurant on the Green on the day of the event. Funds raised from the Chester event will be used to help children in the local community.

Red noses can be purchased on site for $1 each and all profits from the sales will go to the Red Nose Day Fund.

On Thursday, NBC hosts a television special to honor the day. To find out what other communities are doing as well as to learn more about the history of this event, go to: rednosedayusa.com.

For additional information, to register or donate, contact Townsend Gilbert at 802-875-1599. Cash donations or checks made out to Think Pos LLC should be sent to Red Nose Day c/o Townsend Gilbert, 76 Wolf Road, Chester, VT 05143.

May 26: 2016 Medicare Boot Camps held throughout area

As a guide for area seniors, Senior Solutions offers information about Medicare throughout southern Vermont. Medicare has strict enrollment periods, and the sessions will help participants make timely decisions about drug plans and supplemental plans as well as many other issues.

This class is appropriate for anyone signing up in the near future. Family members who help elders may also find this class useful. There is no fee, but donations are appreciated.

Space is limited, and reservations are required. Call ahead to be added to attendance list. To register and get full location details, call the helpline at 800-642-5119. Office hours are Monday–Friday from 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m.

The class schedule is:
Brattleboro: Thursday, May 26, 1–3 p.m.
Ludlow: Thursday, June 16, 3–4:30 p.m.
Londonderry: Tuesday, June 21, 10 a.m.–noon
Chester: Tuesday, June 28, 10 a.m.-noon
Norwich: Monday, July 11, 5:30–3:30 p.m.
Woodstock: Thursday July 14, 5–7 p.m.
Bellows Falls: Monday, July 18, 10 a.m.–noon
Springfield: Monday, August 1, 5–7 p.m.
Putney: Thursday, September 15, 1–3 p.m.

May 27: Dominick Cox at Grounded4Life

Join Dominick Cox for a night of music beginning 7 p.m. on Friday, May 27 at Grounded4Life in the lower level of the Chester Baptist Church at 162 Main St, Chester. Originally from the mountains of upstate New York, Cox is a recording artist and founder of the DRIVEN11 ministry, inspiring faith in action through music, speaking, writing, and teaching.

The event is free. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with food, coffee, fellowship and conversation.

Check out the Grounded4Life Facebook page or website at grounded4lifevt.org .

May 27: Community Cares Network holds benefit dinner

Join friends and neighbors for the fourth annual Community Cares Network of Chester/Andover Spaghetti Dinner from 5 to 7 p.m. on Friday, May 27 at the Andover Town Hall at 953 Weston Andover Road in Andover. Pasta with a variety of sauces will accompany a selection of salads, homemade breads and desserts. Musical entertainment will be by the Achenbachs with a selection of tunes from the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s.

Community Cares Network of Chester/Andover Inc. is a volunteer organization that has been helping the senior citizens of Chester and Andover for 20 years. Call 802-875-6341 for more information.

May 30: State honors fallen heroes

The State of Vermont will honor the sacrifice of those have paid for freedom with their lives during its annual Memorial Day Ceremony at 3 p.m. on Monday, May 30 at the Vermont Veterans Memorial Cemetery, 487 Furnace Road in Randolph Center. Gov. Peter Shumlin and the Adjutant General, Major General Steven Cray, will speak at the ceremony.

The ceremony includes a parade of honor guards. The Spaulding High School Junior ROTC Honor Guard Team from Barre and Vermont National Guard Honor Guard Teams will provide military honors, including a firing of three volleys and the playing of “Taps.”

For questions, contact Robert Burke, director, Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs at 802-828-3379 or email: robert.burke@vermont.gov.

June 2: Essential oils as bug repellent and first aid

Gail Mann, yoga instructor and wellness coach for YogaUnbound, returns to Neighborhood Connections in the Mountain Marketplace, at 5700 Vermont-100 in Londonderry, for a presentation on essential oils for wellness and well-being. At 1 p.m., on Thursday, June 2, Mann discusses how to use essential oils to repel bugs, treat insect bites, disinfect wounds and soothe away rashes, cuts and scrapes. There is no charge to attend, but attendees should call 802-824-4343 to register.

Neighborhood Connections is a community-based non-profit social services agency serving individuals and families in the area mountain towns of south-central Vermont. Visit its website at www.neighborhoodconnectionsvt.org.

— Susan Lampe-Wilson