Community events: Feb. 25 through March 2, 2017

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@chestertelegraph.org. Photos welcome. No PDFs, please. Notices must be received by noon on Fridays to be eligible for publication the following week.

Feb. 25: GM Club hosts snowshoe/ski on Mt. Antoine

The Green Mountain Club invites those interested to join in snowshoeing or skiing on Mt. Antoine. Participants will meet at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25 at Shaw’s in Manchester or 9:30 a.m. at Merck Forest parking lot at 3270 Route 315 in Rupert.

Snowshoe or ski up to Mount Antoine for a great view and return the same way. Bring extra clothing, lunch, snacks and fluids. The round trip is 5 miles with an 820 feet elevation gain. Call Keld Alstrup at 802-362-1422 or alstrupkeld@gmail.com to reserve a spot. The club guide can refuse anyone who doesn’t show up with appropriate clothing or gear.

Feb. 25: Folklorist speaks on Daisy Turner

Vermont folklorist Jane Beck shares the story of the Turner family: a multi-generational saga spanning two centuries, which played out across three continents on Saturday Feb. 25 at 1 p.m., at the Rockingham Library at 65 Westminster St. in Bellows Falls.

Daisy Turner related her father Alec Turner’s stories of the family’s past to Jane Beck. Turner’s captivating narrative covers the early 19th-century British-African trade, shipwreck, birth of a biracial child, slave trading, enslavement, plantation life, escape, Civil War, moving north, battling racism, buying land and settling on a hilltop in Vermont that became a family center. Turner also shared personal story, a powerful and rare account of the African-American experience in New England from the 1880s forward.

Beck’s book, Daisy Turner’s Kin, an African-American Family Saga, is based on 60 interviews with this daughter of slaves.

Sponsored by the Friends of the Rockingham Library, this Vermont Humanities event is free and open to the public. To register or for more information, call 802-463-4270, go to www.rockinghamlibrary.org or stop by the library.

Feb. 27: Pushing the Limits of Survival discussed

A discussion on Pushing the Limits of Survival will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 27 in the Rockingham Library’s meeting room.

Community discussion around science themes is the goal of this program, with retired marine biologist Peter Bergstrom facilitating. February’s topic is  Pushing the Limits of Survival as developed in Paolo Bacigalupi’s novel The Water Knife and explored in video clips with the author and everyday people. Jamaican Jewelz provides a light meal. Space is limited and registration is encouraged. Pick up a copy of The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi at the library’s front desk.

Pushing the Limits is a four-part reading, viewing and discussion program funded by the National Science Foundation. This program brings together books and video featuring authors, scientists and everyday people who thrive on exploring the natural world.

More events are planned for the following months:

Monday, March 20
Connection: Erik Larson, Thunderstruck

Monday, April 17
Knowledge: Dimitra Papagianni, The Neanderthals Rediscovered

These events are free and open to the public. This national program has been developed by a team of library professionals, scientists and filmmakers.

To register or more information, go to rockinghamlibrary.org, call 802-463-4270, email programming@rockinghamlibrary.org or stop by the library at 65 Westminster St. in Bellows Falls.

Feb. 28, March 1: St. Luke’s holds Shrove Tuesday supper, Ash Wednesday services

The day before Ash Wednesday is Shrove Tuesday. Historically, Shrove Tuesday is a day when people would use up food that could not be eaten during Lent. Leftover eggs and butter made their way into pancakes.

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church celebrates Shrove Tuesday with its annual pancake dinner at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 313 Main St. in Chester.

The evening features pancakes, sausage patties and fruit salad. The supper is free and all are welcome. However, there will be baskets on each table for a free-will offering to benefit Episcopal Relief and Development.

There will be two Ash Wednesday services at St. Luke’s on Wednesday, March 1 with Holy Eucharist and Imposition of Ashes at noon and 6 p.m.

Details can be found at www.stlukesepiscopalvt.org.

March. 1: Trivia night at Rock Library

Reserve a table at the Friends of the Rockingham Library’s third annual Books, Brains and Beer Pub Trivia Night at Rockingham Library at 65 Westminster St. in Bellows Falls. The St. Patrick’s Day-themed event is from 4–6:30 p.m. on March 11. Donovan’s Pub provides a cash bar, serving soft drinks, beer and wine for the evening. The Trustees and Friends provide complimentary treats. John Bohannon will be the master of ceremonies. A basket of Irish goodies will be raffled.

Pre-registration is required before March 1. To pre-register or for more information, call the library at 802-463-4270, email programming@rockinghamlibrary.org, go to rockinghamlibrary.org or stop by the library. Proceeds will benefit the library programs.

March 2:  Film, discussion on ‘Black America Since MLK’

The Rockingham Free Public Library, in partnership with Vermont PBS, will screen the film Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 2 followed by a discussion facilitated by Dottie Morris, associate vice president for Institutional Diversity and Equity at Keene State College, and Chuck Pizer, Vermont PBS’s community engagement coordinator.

The film looks at the last five decades of African-American history since the major civil rights victories. Drawing on eyewitness accounts, scholarly analysis and rare archival footage, the film illuminates our recent past and paints a complex portrait of black America since 1965, while raising questions about the future of the African-American community—and the nation as a whole.

The film is approximately 30 minutes long and will be followed by a discussion. The program is free and open to the public. For more information, call the library at 802-463-4270, email programming@rockinghamlibrary.org, go to rockinghamlibrary.org or stop by the library at 65 Westminster St. in Bellows Falls.

— Susan Lampe-Wilson