Nashoba Park Shows Gratitude for RCAs During CNA Week
AYER: Nashoba Park Assisted Living came together to celebrate National Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA) Week with a video tribute to their frontline associates featuring the theme “I’m Still Standing” in connection with an arduous two years under COVID. In the video, Nashoba Park’s residents expressed their gratitude and appreciation for the dedication, hard work, and graciousness their Resident Care Associates display each day. They recognized the care that goes into being an RCA and shared messages of love for the supportive caregiving staff.
In addition to regular appreciation events, Nashoba Park also offers professional development opportunities and educational training for associates. Nashoba Park currently offers a variety of opportunities to join their close-knit team. Learn more and apply online at www.nashobapark.com/careers.
PHOTO: L-R: Resident Care Associates Joan Wilcox, Cassia Oliviera and Josana Pires
Some of what's happening in July at Groton Public Library (www.gpl.org)...
Antique Quilts on Display at the Governor Boutwell House
GROTON: A selection of antique quilts from the Groton History Center’s collection will be on view at the Governor George S. Boutwell House in Groton Center on Saturday, July 16 from 11am to 2pm. Visitors are invited to enjoy the quilts, tour the historic home, and relax in the landscaped grounds. The Boutwell House is at 172 Main Street.
The pristine Greek Revival house was built in 1851 for George S. Boutwell (1818 – 1905), then governor of Massachusetts. On her death in 1933, the Governor’s daughter, Georgiana Boutwell, left the family home and its contents including an extensive trove of artifacts and archives to the Groton Historical Society.
While the 19th- and 20th-century quilts are not original to the house, several, authenticated by the New England Quilt Museum, may as well have been. Quilt aficionadas may recognize antique patterns, among them “Broken Dishes,” and a crazy quilt. Local artisans made and donated the more contemporary quilts on display.
Among its many treasures on view are Governor Boutwell’s desk and accoutrements in his study, the lamp over the dining table, and the Edmund Tarbell paintings, on loan from the Tarbell Trust. The quilts will be shown in the airy drawing room downstairs where Governor Boutwell entertained federal and state officials and dignitaries, including President Ulysses S. Grant for a night in 1869.
AYER:The Ayer Transfer Station will be extending its open hours on Wednesday’s until 7pm beginning on July 6. The Transfer Station will maintain its normal operating hours of 7am to 3pm on Saturdays and Sundays.
The Town of Ayer's Transfer Station offers a lower cost alternative to expensive curbside trash collection. The Station, located at 100 Groton Harvard Road, accepts household trash, recyclables, and other waste materials at a centralized location. Access requires an annual permit. Highlights include:
Pay As You Throw trash bags are used to encourage recycling and allow you to manage your waste disposal costs
No additional charge to drop off recycling at our Zero Sort compactor
No additional charge for leaf and brush drop off
No additional charge for compost disposal
The Take It or Leave It shed where you can drop off your used items (good condition) and browse for treasure
Disposal of bulk items including appliances, furniture, mattresses and electronics for a nominal fee
Disposal of tires (nominal fee) and waste oil (no charge)
LUNENBURG: Summer Reading has begun! Stop by the library's Community Room for an amazing program with Ed the Wizard on June 29 - “Reading is Magic” A message from Ed the Wizard: “Reading is Magic is full of new effects that allow volunteers to help where they are sitting. Learn how Ed the Wizard learned it all! Be prepared to volunteer and have fun! Suitable for all ages.” Sign up today to attend this fun event: https://lunenburglibrary.assabetinteractive.com/calendar/the-magic-of-reading-with-ed-the-wizard/.
Orchestra of Indian Hill To Begin 48th Season as Vista Philharmonic Orchestra
“The Vista Philharmonic Orchestra is our flagship ensemble,” said Lisa Fiorentino, Groton Hill Music Center CEO, “and as we prepare to move to our new home in Groton in September, we’re excited to rebrand our orchestra with a bold artistic vision that will excite our long-time concert-goers and invoke a curiosity among those who are new to symphonic music or new to our orchestra and organization.”
"The name Vista Philharmonic Orchestra says that while we are firmly planted in tradition, our eyes are always on the horizon.” - Maestro Bruce Hangenm Artistic Director & Conductor Bruce Hangen, who has led the critically-acclaimed Orchestra since 1997, explained the rationale behind the new name: “The word ‘vista’ means many things, from view and outlook to panorama and perspective. Wonderful vistas abound in our new home, which also opens the door to new experiences in music and different perspectives on what live music experiences can be. The name Vista Philharmonic Orchestra says that while we are firmly planted in tradition, our eyes are always on the horizon.”
The Vista Philharmonic Orchestra will open its season this fall with chamber orchestra concerts in our 300-seat Meadow Hall. Opening weekend features music of Copland and Ravel on Friday, October 21 (sold out) with an encore presentation on Sunday, October 23. A Christmas-themed concertwill take place on Saturday, December 17.
The full orchestra season will begin on Saturday, January 21, 2023 with “Opening Night at the Philharmonic” and the grand opening of The Concert Hall at Groton Hill, our 1,000-seat venue. Maestro Hangen has chosen works by R. Strauss, Mozart, Gabrieli, and Tan Dun, and will conclude the program with Respighi’s spectacular “Pines of Rome.” Other Vista Philharmonic Orchestra season highlights include Rachmaninoff’s ”Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini” with renowned pianist Misha Dichter; Saint-Saens’ “Symphony No. 3 with organist Randy Steere; Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 7”; Dvorak’s choral masterwork “Te Deum”; and the world premiere of a multimedia commission featuring panoramic photography of the region blended with our live orchestra.
Vista Philharmonic subscriptions for the orchestra season and single tickets for the October and December chamber orchestra concerts are now on sale online.
The Vista Philharmonic Orchestra is comprised of 70 experienced professional musicians who also perform and teach in high-caliber organizations and ensembles throughout New England. The Orchestra is known for performing symphonic classics as well as works by living composers, such as Lera Auerbach, Tan Dun, Oliver Knussen, and Rodion Shchedrin. Guest soloists in past seasons have included principal musicians from the Boston, Philadelphia, and St. Louis Symphonies, plus international soloists Eliot Fisk, Ryu Goto, Irina Muresanu, R. Carlos Nakai, Rachel Barton Pine, Anoushka Shankar, James Walker, and Quartetto Gelato. The achievements of the Vista Philharmonic Orchestra have been recognized through numerous grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, major corporations and foundations, and the National Endowment for the Arts. The Orchestra is a member of the League of American Orchestras.
Opening in September, 2022, Groton Hill Music Center is a gathering place for all to experience the highest quality music education – with private lessons, classes, ensembles, and supplemental learning programs for all ages and abilities; world-class professional performances of all genres — from jazz, global roots, and folk to classical masterworks and chamber music; and impactful outreach programs that share the transformative power of music throughout the community.
Designed by award-winning Epstein Joslin Architects of Cambridge, MA, Groton Hill Music Center is, a stunning 126,000 square foot facility featuring a 1,000-seat Concert Hall; the 300-seat Meadow Hall; 35 multi-scaled rehearsal and teaching spaces; a spacious, light-filled lobby; state-of-the-art acoustics; and dynamic architecture on 110 acres of rolling fields. The organization also worked with one of the nation’s preeminent acousticians, Threshold Acoustics of Chicago, to create an outstanding sound environment designed to enhance performances. Learn more at https://grotonhill.org/about-us/learn-more.
Biomimicry for Tweens & Teens: Solutions Inspired by Nature
LUNENBURG: Join Lunenburg Library outdoors in the Children's Garden on Thursday, June 23 from 3-4:30pm as Mass Audubon Wachusett Meadow visits the Lunenburg Public Library to talk about biomimicry in nature! Open to grades 4-8, registration is required.
This program combines biology and technology to empower everyone to think creatively about making a more sustainable human world. Biomimicry is an emerging discipline of emulating nature's best ideas to solve human problems, turning biological strategies into design principles (like how burdock burrs inspired Velcro).
Using a wide variety of local specimens, our Mass Audubon educator will introduce tweens & teens to local, native plants and animals through hands-on observation and investigation. You'll be able to see, up close, the biological strategies plants and animals use to survive. Participants will learn both about and from the natural world. After a short presentation, participants will pick a human problem and brainstorm ways their nature object may provide solutions.
This program will connect tweens & teens to their local nature and will teach how nature solves problems while empowering everyone to create nature-inspired solutions for a healthy planet!
$100,000 Secured in Senate FY23 Budget To Safely Reopen Ayer Playground Earmark Will Provide Town with Funds to Reconstruct Kiddie Junction Playground
AYER: State Senator Jamie Eldridge secured $100,000 to allow Ayer to reconstruct the Kiddie-Junction playground that has been closed. The playground is located at Pirone Park. Last week, the Massachusetts State Senate passed a $49.78 billion budget for Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23). With unanimous support, the budget makes significant, critical and targeted investments in the areas of education, healthcare, housing and community support to meet the on-the-ground challenges brought on by the global pandemic and ongoing financial uncertainty.
In December 2021, the Town of Ayer closed the playground due to MassachusettsDepartment of Environmental Protection tests confirming the presence of arsenic contamination. The playground is currently closed, with a metal fence around the entire Ayer Kiddie Junction.
“These critical funds will help support the Town of Ayer rebuild the Ayer Kiddie Junction, to ensure that the playground is safe for children,” stated State Senator Jamie Eldridge. “The Ayer Kiddie Junction is not just a playground for Ayer families, but is popular for families through the Nashoba Valley region, and I’m proud to secure this state funding, to re-open the playground as soon as possible.”
“On behalf of the Ayer Select Board and Town Manager Robert Pontbriand, I’d like to thank Senator Eldridge for his leadership on this important issue for the Town or Ayer. The playground at Pirone Park has been a favorite spot for our residents for decades,” saidCarly Antonellis, assistant town manager of Ayer. “We are so excited to upgrade the equipment and remediate the soil, so that future generations can enjoy our beautiful Pirone Park. Our thanks, again, to Senator Eldridge for providing real funding for the Town of Ayer.”
The Senate’s FY23 Budget is available on the Massachusetts legislature’s website, by clicking here. Now that the Senate and Massachusetts House of Representatives have passed their respective budget proposals, both branches will now work together, form a conference committee and reconcile differences.
Senator Eldridge Announces High Quality Summer Learning Grants to the Harvard and Sudbury Public Schools Public Schools in Sudbury and Harvard will receive funding for comprehensive summer learning opportunities
HARVARD/SUDBURY: Senator Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton)announced recently two grants awarded to Harvard and Sudbury Public Schools by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Sudbury Public Schools were awarded $100,000 and Harvard public schools received $75,000. The purpose of this state and federal competitive grant is to support the development and expansion of high-quality, comprehensive summer learning opportunities and partnerships in districts to address both the academic and social-emotional impacts of COVID-19 on students.
“My sincere congratulations to the Sudbury and Harvard school districts, and their educational leaders, on receiving the grant. The fund allows these two schools in the district to create engaging summer programs and support students who may have been impacted by the change in learning in the schools, as a result of the pandemic,” said Senator Eldridge.“I want to thank DESE for its work, and providing these grants to the Harvard and Sudbury schools.”
“The Sudbury Public Schools worked incredibly hard to provide a quality education for all students during the pandemic,”said Representative Carmine Gentile (D-Sudbury). “I am delighted to learn that they were chosen to receive this grant to further meet the academic and social emotional impacts which COVID-19 had on our students and deliver comprehensive learning opportunities for students this summer” Gentile added.
“I am so glad to see Harvard receive this funding for summer learning offerings,” said Representative Danillo Sena (D- Acton). Expanding educational opportunities for our students is critical, and I am grateful to DESE for awarding Harvard with this grant."
Schools will use the fund to develop a new summer program and offer at least 150 hours of evidence/research-based programming with a focus on academic and social-emotional learning opportunities. With the grant, schools will offer engaging and interactive programming, including enrichment and recreation activities, that will excite and motivate students to attend, build relationships, and promote youth voices.
Summer learning will be carried out in a culturally responsive, anti-racist, and welcoming environment, through partnerships with community-based organizations for cost and resource-sharing to address the needs of the district and families.
A total of $4,000,000 were awarded to schools across the Commonwealth. The funding was made possible through the state’s summer learning budget, federal Elementary & Secondary Education Emergency Relief (ESSER), and the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) funds.
Guides Needed for PACE Water Chestnut Pull Campaign
AYER: PACE (People of Ayer Concerned about the Environment) would like to know if you would be willing to help in the Campaign to remove the horrible invasive Water Chestnut plants from Grove Pond. They are right now growing in abundance and getting larger every day!
Specifically needed are trained guides in early July, someone(s) who can help guide others in making this an efficient and effective event. Both land-based and canoe/kayak guides are needed. Please note: you and your boats will get messy!
Training will be provided on June 30 from 8:30am to noon. It will include:
Safety information;
How to identify and properly PULL the plant; and
Tackling some logistics together as a team.
If you are willing and able to support this endeavor, you are asked to please sign up for the training as well as signing up for as many sessions on July 7, 8 9 or 10 as you can for the Volunteer PULL Campaign.
If you are not able to make the training but would still like to help out, please sign up on the second link for Volunteers. For more information, contact Laurie Nehringat lnehring100@gmail.com.
Nashoba Park Assisted Living Resident Celebrates Milestone 100th Birthday
AYER: The end of May was an exciting time for Nashoba Park. Jim Blandino rang in his 100th birthday at the Assisted Living Community he calls home, alongside residents, associates and his wife Helen. The community celebrated the occasion with a special ice cream sundae and heartfelt card signed by Jim’s neighbors and friends. They also gifted him a baseball hat and sash that said “100 Never Looked So Good.”
Jim grew up in Lexington and had a career in high-energy physics. He is an alumni of Harvard and is most proud to have attended this prestigious university. When asked to give some advice on how to live a full life, Jim shared, “If you want to live to 100, you have to live right. Try not to live wild.” Jim also noted that he has always said he would live to be 100, and he is pleased to have done just that.
Nashoba Park Assisted Living Resident Celebrates Milestone 100th Birthday
AYER: The end of May was an exciting time for Nashoba Park. Jim Blandino rang in his 100th birthday at the Assisted Living Community he calls home, alongside residents, associates and his wife Helen. The community celebrated the occasion with a special ice cream sundae and heartfelt card signed by Jim’s neighbors and friends. They also gifted him a baseball hat and sash that said “100 Never Looked So Good.”
Jim grew up in Lexington and had a career in high-energy physics. He is an alumni of Harvard and is most proud to have attended this prestigious university. When asked to give some advice on how to live a full life, Jim shared, “If you want to live to 100, you have to live right. Try not to live wild.” Jim also noted that he has always said he would live to be 100, and he is pleased to have done just that.
Groton Conservation Trust Annual Sunset Party June 9
GROTON: Join the Groton Conservation Trust for their annual Sunset Party at The General Field on Old Ayer Road at 6:30pm on Thursday June 9. Bring your own picnic and blankets/chairs, and we'll supply the live music, oysters and great scenery!
The Hickory Horned Devils, a local old time, bluegrass and Americana band will perform and promise a down home, rip-snortin' good time! And our friend Chris Frothingham will bring his fresh oysters from Great Road Kitchen.
If you're new to Groton, or new to the GCT, this is a fun and relaxing event to meet new friends and neighbors. The General Field is one of the most beautiful spots in Groton, with a big open sky and a spectacular view over acres of green fields. The Sunset Party is GCT's thank you to friends, neighbors and members for their ongoing support.
ShirleyArts! Announces the Return of Summer Youth Musical
SHIRLEY: ShirleyArts! announced the return of their summer youth musical program! For students ages 9 -17 who enjoy singing, dancing, and acting, this educational program will culminate in three performances of “Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach, Jr.” Shirley residency is NOT required. All participants must be fully-vaccinated. Please bring your vaccination card to auditions.
Director/Producer Meredith Marcinkewicz and Stage Manager/Choreographer Merrick Henry will lead the children through auditions, rehearsals, and performances, as well as theater games, music skills, and cooperative team-building activities. Merrick will also serve as health and safety supervisor. Auditions will be Tuesday, June 21 from 3–5pm and 6–8pm. You only need to attend one session. Please arrive early so parents can help fill out paperwork. No preparation is needed for the audition, but you will be expected to stay for the full 2 hours to have time to learn a short song and dance and read from the script. The leading roles include - James, the Narrator, two wicked aunts, and five larger-than life insects. Chorus members will play at least three roles including reporters, sharks, garden club ladies, seagulls, sailors, and more. Everyone who commits to the rehearsals and performances will be cast in the show.
Read-through Rehearsal will be Wednesday 6/22 - 1–4pm. As soon as tuition is paid, students will receive a script and rehearsal CD to start working on at home. Rehearsals will be Monday - Friday July 5 - 22 from 1-4pm. Performances July 22 and 23 at 7pm, July 24 at 2pm.
Auditions, rehearsals, and performances will be held at the Ayer/Shirley Regional Middle School Auditorium, 1 Hospital Road. Participation Fee: Non-members: $200, ShirleyArts! members: $180. (Scholarship money is available.) Tickets to the performances: non-members: $15; ShirleyArts! members: $13.50. Visit www.shirleyarts.infoto pay the participation fee via Paypal beginning June 1. Personal checks and cash are also accepted. Contact mmarcinkewicz@shirleyarts.infofor a registration form and other information.
Nonprofit Groups Conduct Final Push to Protect Prospect Hill Community Orchard
HARVARD: The beautiful Prospect Hill Community Orchard in Harvard is one step closer to preservation after a recent Town Meeting vote to appropriate $100,000 of Community Preservation funds towards the purchase of an Agricultural Preservation Restriction on the property, yet there is still more work to be done, according to one partner to the conservation effort.
The orchard, which is located on Prospect Hill Road, has long been part of the agriculture fabric of the region. Its current owners, Community Harvest Project, donate all fruit grown on the land to area food banks. The orchard is also part of a wildlife corridor that includes the Town's Dean's Hill conservation area, Fruitlands Museum, and the Oxbow National Wildlife Refuge.
A group of conservation partners has been working for several years to permanently protect 70 acres of the orchard from development and ensure the land remains used for agriculture. The protection effort got a boost on May 14, when Harvard voters approved a third round of Community Preservation Act funds for the project. The partners have now secured $2.2 million of the $2.5 million they need. The Town of Harvard and the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) have committed $1.64 million of that total, while three nonprofit organizations—Community Harvest Project (CHP), Harvard Conservation Trust (HCT), and Sudbury Valley Trustees (SVT)—have raised over $500,000.
“Thanks to the Commonwealth, Harvard residents, and early donors, we are very close to preserving this important agricultural land,” said Christa Collins, SVT’s Director of Land Protection. “But we are still over $300,000 short. SVT, CHP, and HCT are now seeking additional funds to close the gap.”
For its part, SVT launched a crowdfunding campaign on May 24, with a goal of raising $105,000. Almost immediately, the campaign received a boost from a group of donors who offered to match the next $30,000 in donations.
“We are thrilled by this generous offer,” said Ms. Collins. “It’s always gratifying to hear from private citizens who are committed to protecting our precious open spaces. We hope this challenge match will inspire others to support the project and ensure this healthy orchard continues to provide fresh, local produce forever.”
She concluded, “Everyone who cares about natural areas, local agriculture, and wildlife habitat is encouraged to visit SVT’s website to learn more and support the protection of this land.” www.svtweb.org/phco
Sandy Pond Beach Reopening
AYER:Sandy Pond Beach will be reopening for swimming on May 28. It will be open on weekends through June 20, and will be open daily from that point until Labor Day, September 5. Hours for swimming will be from 12pm-7pm. Swimming is only permitted when lifeguards are on duty.
During the swim season, use of Sandy Pond Beach is free to residents. Non-residents may use Sandy Pond Beach for a daily fee of $8; $5 for children. Residents must show an ID or Sandy Pond Beach access card to be admitted without paying a fee. Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Parking at the Sandy Pond Beach lower parking area is limited to residents who have a Sandy Pond Beach parking sticker. Sandy Pond Beach access cards and parking stickers can be obtained at Town Hall or the Beach facility during hours of operation.
No smoking allowed.
No dogs are allowed.
Please use only US Coast Guard approved flotation devices.
For more information call the Parks Department at (978) 796-5915 or email parks@ayer.ma.us.
Nashua Street Culvert Replacement
AYER:The Ayer Department of Public Works will be replacing the culvert on Nashua Street between Howard and Taft Street.Work is tentatively scheduled to begin Thursday, May 26 and is anticipated to last a week.
The road will be closed to through traffic during construction hours and reopened at the end of the day. The road will be open to the local residents and public safety vehicles during construction. A detour will be setup using Pleasant Street, as per the attached image.
The Ayer DPW appreciates your cooperation during this important infrastructure project. If you have any questions, please call the Ayer DPW at 978-772-8240 (7:30 to 3:30) or email DPW@ayer.ma.us.
Abstractionist Kellie Weeks Challenges Us with New Works at Gallery Sitka East
SHIRLEY: Abstract-Expressionist painters have a unique opportunity that most other artists never seem to be able to pull off. They are constantly calling on us from two different directions — toward the concrete reality we see around us every day and the elusive dream world, both waking and sleeping, that is always fighting for our attention. That dynamic interplay is offered in several new works of painter Kellie Weeks starting June 3 at Gallery Sitka East.
“My paintings are intuitively created using color, line, and form,” Kellie explains. She seems to want to perceive more and more about the world around her — including that of which we can often catch only fleeting glimpses. Cynics and materialists generally dismiss such interests as pop philosophy or pseudo-science. But this artist — and perhaps all abstract-expressionists a good deal more than representationally inclined artists — does not make judgments about what we might be able to perceive before we even start looking. Such artists just start looking.
One of Kellie’s primary goals is to achieve what she calls “spiritual illumination.” This phrase implies that light, as it were, can be thrown onto aspects of what we may call (for lack of a better word) spirit. Our emotional and intellectual interests and obsessions may be part of this search for the spiritual, but there are many perceptions that we come across only briefly or indirectly. Our dreams or our intuitions of various kinds might be examples of this. Artists seem to be more sensitive to such perceptions than most people are.
Kellie muses, “As we balance the tightrope between birth and death, we continually readjust what it means to be in the here and now.” Life itself is that tightrope. The metaphor is a very stark one, and obviously somewhat frightening. The present is a hectic mixture of memories, fears, hopes, daydreams (and nightdreams), as well as immediate concerns of the moment. All these influences are continually pushing and shoving artists around to acknowledge many different kinds of perceptions, and of different ways of expressing them in their artwork.
Sometimes we are roughed up by all those thoughts and feelings, and sometimes we are comforted by them. Abstract art is one of the few ways human beings have to express the totality of that mix of perceptions and emotions. In her paintings, Kellie is capturing a moment in that jumble. Abstraction, however, does not try to explain the experience in rational terms. It does not merely “re-present” the objects that the artist looks at, but instead goes straight to the thoughts and feelings aroused by the world around her and expresses them in pure form and color.
Kellie has worked primarily in encaustic over the last ten years or so. But recently she has been working with oils and cold wax, which is new for her and has presented new challenges and new joys. She has confronted other changes during the last year too. Although her basic approach has continued to be abstract, she has been developing more and more in the general area of floral still life.
Yet the representational still life works of this show seem to occupy both worlds. “Reaching,” for example, clearly presents us with a form that can be described in geometrical terms as an upwardly expanding cylinder. Most of us, however, would see it and simply say, “It’s a vase.” We might also regard the field of dark color in the lower part of the picture in geometrical terms — it is a mass of brown and grey aligned horizontally below a background of thrillingly bright colors above. But we’d also be tempted to simply say, “It’s a table.” But where the “flowers” ought to be, contained in that vase, we don’t in fact see flowers. Rather, we see a burst of orange and pink that may as well be described as fire. Yet we cannot be quite so glib about that judgment, because that bright color merges with its own background of yellow and white and a very, very faint blue that doesn’t remind us of fire at all. The cumulative effect of the painting is both to comfort and confuse us. On the one hand, we can say, “This is a picture of a vase set on a table.” But we can also describe it as a battle between dark colors pulling the image down in the lower half of the painting and bright colors blasting it up in the upper half. The painting is itself a sort of competition between representation and abstraction, and it doesn’t really allow us to complacently dismiss it as one artistic approach or the other. It continues to fight its own little battle within itself and keeps pulling us in, involving us and challenging us.
While “Reaching” provides us with the impression of flowers — or rather an imaginative reinterpretation of flowers — “Lil Happening” gives us flowers straight up. While the other picture shows us flowers turned into fire right before our eyes, this painting shows us what we might go so far as to recognize as tulips. The paint is applied liberally to the surface, so that the picture takes on the character of a sculpted relief that we are accustomed to seeing in oils. There is a richness here, a concrete quality that differs greatly from the imaginative, fleeting quality of the flowers turned to fire. These rich, plump petals almost “feel” comforting, like a big meal, while the fiery flowers are full of spice — a sort of assault on the senses. The artist displays a versatility here that seems to come from the very act of confronting very different experiences. The flowers on fire are liable to scare us a little, perhaps primarily because the image itself is fleeting, like an elusive memory or the fragment of a dream only half-remembered. The lush, light-raspberry-colored flowers, by contrast, are no threat at all. They put us at our ease. They make us smile.
This exhibition of new works of Kellie Weeks will open at Gallery Sitka East from 4:30-6:30pm on Friday, June 3. Art lovers can find more information about Kellie and her work at www.gallerysitka.com and at sites such as artsy.net and instragram.com, among others.
notloB Parlour Concerts Presents Evie Ladin
HARVARD: On Thursday, June 9, Banjo player, singer, songwriter, percussive-dancer, choreographer and square-dance caller, Evie Ladin will be performing at Fivesparks, located at 7 Fairbank Street at 7:30pm. Ladin has always been surrounded by music – credit to her upbringing as daughter of an international folk dance teacher, and an old-time folk music devotee, she grew up thinking that playing music, dancing, singing with others was what people do. Though entrenched in the traditional cultural arts of Appalachia, her home was in New York City, Baltimore, now Oakland – in cities, not mountains. But tradition bearers came through and played in her living room, with weekends spent at music festivals and house parties. Evie’s performances, recordings and teaching reconnect Appalachian music/dance with other African-Diaspora traditions, and have been heard from A Prairie Home Companion to Lincoln Center, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass to Celtic Connections. Evie tours internationally with Keith Terry and her Evie Ladin Band; and has produced numerous albums and instructional DVDs.
Writing clever, engaging songs, for her neo-trad kinetic roots band with Keith Terry & Erik Pearson, in 2019 they released two CDs: the band’s fourth album of adventurous originals, Caught On A Wire, and Riding the Rooster, totally traditional, raging fiddle/banjo duets, quickly followed by a 2020 EP of favorite cover songs Playing Our Hand. In the percussive dance world, Evie directs the moving choir MoToR/dance for live performance and award winning dance films Ain’t No Grave and The Storm, is Executive Director, artist and choreographer with the International Body Music Festival, and an ace freestyle flatfooter. She is a 2020 Jubilation Fellow, awarded to artists with an exceptional talent for bringing joy to people through music and movement. In the traditional music world, Evie calls rowdy community square dances, and teaches clawhammer banjo, old time harmony singing and more. An electric and entertaining live performer, Evie really enjoys balancing performance with facilitating arts learning in diverse communities.
Admission is by free-will offering, adults $20+, teens and seniors $15, well-behaved children $10 suggested. 100% of the donations go to the artist. Please make reservations online at http://notlobmusic.eventbrite.com
Spring Auction to Benefit the Healing Garden Cancer Support Center
HARVARD: The Healing Garden will be hosting an online fundraising Auction May 22 through May 26. The public is welcome to bid on many fabulous items such as; trips (Captiva, Nantucket), experiences (Fly Fishing, Wine Tasting, Forest Bathing), services (Acupuncture, Massage) and beautiful items (handmade jewelry, art) which have been donated by local businesses and supporters of the Healing Garden. Items are being added daily to the auction. Visit the Healing Gardens website and follow the links to view and bid on the auction items! All proceeds from the auction benefit cancer programs, which are offered free of charge, to cancer clients and their caregivers.
The Virginia Thurston Healing Garden Cancer Support Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing integrative cancer care through therapeutic services and educational programs for all people in Massachusetts with a cancer diagnosis. For more information, visit www.healinggardensupport.org or call (978) 456-3532.
Town of Ayer DPW YouthWorks Program Accepting Applications for Summer 2022
AYER:The Town of Ayer Department of Public Works is accepting applications for DPW YouthWorks Program. YouthWorks is a four-week summer job program for Ayer and Shirley residents who will be at least 14 as of June 27 and will be enrolled in high school next year. The goal of the Program is to serve as a young person’s first job experience and provide exposure to the world of work and job responsibilities.
Participants will work on supervised public works related jobs throughout the Town for two four (4) week sessions June 27 through July 22 and July 25 through August 19. Participants will work 30 hours per week and earn minimum wage during their time in the Program. The Program provides four workers per session with one supervisor; tools, transportation, and personal safety equipment will be provided by the Ayer DPW.
How do you apply? Download the application form here. Applications are due by June 3, 2022.
Ayer Crafts Gathering Program: Make a Card...Take a Card!
AYER: Make and take some beautiful handmade cards during the Ayer Crafts Gathering at Stone Soup Kitchen, 41 Littleton Road! On Saturday May 14, from 10am to noon, Debbie will be guiding beginners through the process of making creative cards and other artwork, with many new materials and tools supplied through a grant by the Ayer Cultural Council. Children are welcome, along with their adults. Drop in as you choose, or stay for the whole event! Those who have attended the monthly Gatherings before can tell you that they're fun, but wait till you see all the new supplies! For parking, pull into the large lot in the back, and head for the door by the accessibility ramp.
Cannon Theatre Presents The 39 Steps in New Devens Theater Space
DEVENS: The Cannon Theatre is presenting The 39 Steps, a parody adapted by Patrick Barlow from the 1915 novel by John Buchan and the 1935 film by Alfred Hitchcock.This production is directed by Erik P. Kraft, and features a brilliant cast of 7 actors playing almost 150 characters: heroes, villains, men, women, children, and even the occasional inanimate object. This often requires lightning-fast quick-changes and occasionally for the actors to play multiple characters at once. Thus the film's originally serious spy story is played now mainly for laughs, and the script is full of allusions to (and puns on the titles of) other popular Hitchcock films.
This work will be staged in The Cannon Theatre’s brand new performance space in Devens, which opened in early April 2022 after a 2-year pandemic hiatus thanks to the kindly donated architectural services by studio J2, and very generous funding from The Elizabeth B. McGraw Foundation. Join them in celebrating this wonderful new arts venue, and the madcap fun May 13, 14, 20 and 21 at 7:30 pm; May 14, 15, 21, and 22 at 2:00 pm.
Tickets are available online at www.thecannontheatre.org, and are $25 for adults; $20 for students/seniors.
Construction Update - East Main Street Reconstruction Project FINAL PAVING
AYER:The East Main Street Reconstruction Project is nearing completion. The following work is anticipated this week. Note, the work is weather dependent and schedule could change.
Wednesday, May 4:
The Contractor will conduct pavement milling of the side streets and approaches to East Main Street. Approximately 50-feet of each side street will be milled.
No detours are planned.
Thursday May 5th:
The Contractor will pave top course of the side streets.
No detours are planned.
Friday May, 6:
The Contractor will pave top course on East Main Street
In order to complete this work quickly and before the weekend, work will begin at 6am. A detour in the westbound direction (i.e. from the Rotary toward Main Street) will be clearly marked on Sandy Pond Road, Central Avenue, and Columbia Street.
Eastbound traffic will be accommodated on East Main Street as one lane will be paved at a time.
There will be traffic delays. Seek alternative routes. Police details will be onsite to direct traffic and detour signage is in place.
The road will be open to local traffic, the Ayer Town Library, Pirone Park and Ayer Court House.
This project is being managed by MassDOT and the Ayer DPW will be providing construction updates to provide work status and traffic impacts.
MCC Mechanical Engineering Student Places First in U.S. Competition
LUNENBURG: Middlesex Community College Mechanical Engineering student Isaac Venezia of Lunenburg won first place at the 2022 American Technical Education Association (ATEA) 3 D Futures Competition. His award-winning project was a 3D printed robotic arm that he designed and built himself. For his achievement, Venezia will receive $1,500 and Middlesex will get a plaque.
“I am very honored to receive first place,” Venezia said. “Competitions like this are important because they allow students to apply the theoretical concepts learned in courses to physical projects. Opportunities like this can help a student gain experience and recognition.”
Venezia started at Middlesex as a Dual Enrollment high school student. After buying a 3D printer, he signed up for the Solid Modelling I course taught by Cristopher Algarra, MCC’s Chair of Engineering. Venezia’s goal was to learn more about 3D printing and its accompanying program SolidWorks.
“Professor Algarra wants his students to succeed and is always willing to give us opportunities to go above and beyond the course requirements,” he said. “I am very grateful for the help, encouragement and opportunities he has given me.”
Throughout the semester, Venezia would talk through his project with Algarra and show him the updated versions. While Algarra helped him complete the video and application, Algarra believes it is Venezia’s self-determination that won him the prize. “My main goal here was motivating him to continue engaging with the work,” Algarra said. “I’ve been working in the mechanical engineering area for a long time, he’s very advanced. He wants to learn, so I give him all the resources we have available.”
The project went through a series of changes before Venezia submitted the final product. One of the first stages was a robotic gripper, that turned into a small robot arm, and ended up as a larger arm. To make it work, Venezia used “stepper motors” and designed his own 3D printed gear reductions with timing belts and worm gears – something that he calls “far more difficult” than the first version of his project.
It was Algarra who inspired Venezia to enter the competition. From the start of his time at MCC, he has helped his students to extend their learning outside of the classroom. In 2019, he led his students to a third-place win at the ATEA competition. “Winning competitions sets an example of the quality of students we have at the community level,” Algarra said. Algarra believes that these experiences also give students the opportunity to practice using programs before transferring to four-year institutions. In addition to providing a competitive edge when applying for jobs, it shows them how to follow guidelines in the same way they would in a job and connects students to real-world experiences. Venezia said, “It certainly inspires me to continue learning and working on engineering projects.”
Protection of Prospect Hill Community Orchard on Harvard Town Meeting Warrant
HARVARD: During their 2022 Town Meeting on May 14, Harvard voters can take another important step toward the protection of Prospect Hill Community Orchard on Prospect Hill Road. Article 21 will ask residents to contribute $100,000 of Community Preservation Act funds toward the purchase of an agricultural preservation restriction on 75 acres of the orchard. This will bring the Town’s total contribution to $400,000, which will combine with $2.1 million from the Commonwealth and private donors to permanently conserve the land for agricultural use. More details are available at www.svtweb.org/phco.
Construction Update - East Main Street Reconstruction Project
AYER: The East Main Street Road Reconstruction Project is nearing completion. The following work is anticipated in the coming weeks:
Remainder of this week (thru April 29): The Contractor will be adjusting manholes and catch basin grates to proper elevation for final grade.
Week of May 2: The Contractor will conduct pavement milling of the side streets connecting to East Main Street. Approximately 50-feet of each side street will be milled from East Main Street.
Week of May 9th: The Contractor will perform final paving. Additional notices will be distributed prior to final paving to indicate any traffic detours required. After paving there will be signage, pavement markings, and other finishing work.
Please travel with caution during construction. This project is being managed by MassDOT and the Ayer DPW is providing construction updates to provide work status and traffic impacts. If you have any questions, please contact the Department of Public Works at 978-772-8240.
Folk Revivalist David Massengill Solo Acoustic Concert in Harvard
HARVARD: Mark your calendars for a unique acoustic concert experience on May 6 at Fivesparks when notloB Parlour Concerts will present the one and only David Massengill. Massengill, storyteller, songwriter and picture-book maker, “emigrated” from Bristol, Tennessee to the Greenwich Village folk scene in 1976 with a dulcimer and a dream of bohemian nirvana. He was a key figure in Jack Hardy’s Fast Folk which featured Suzanne Vega and Shawn Colvin and which produced 115 issues of The Fast Folk Musical Magazine, now part of the Smithsonian collection.
Massengill’s song-writing style ranges from tragic mountain ballads to the lure of tender love songs and iconic political narratives. “The Great American Dream”, written in Reagan’s America with each verse sung in the voice of a different worker, is even more poignant today. His songs have been recorded by Joan Baez, David Bromberg, Chad Mitchell, the Roches, Lucy Kaplansky, Tom Russell, Nanci Griffith and his mentor, Dave Van Ronk.
Massengill's best-known songs include: "On The Road to Fairfax County", recorded by The Roches and by Joan Baez; "The Great American Dream," performed with Joan Baez and others at a tribute to Mike Porco, former owner of the famed Greenwich Village club Gerde's Folk City; and "My Name Joe", about an illegal immigrant restaurant worker. For some years after he began recording, Massengill maintained a day job as a restaurant dishwasher. He also contributed his poignant dulcimer-centered version of "The Crucifixion" to 2001's multi-artist double-disc tribute to Phil Ochs, What's That I Hear.
In addition to his skills as a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and both virtuoso and educator on the Appalachian dulcimer, he is also a prolific author-illustrator of pocket-sized children's books and has performed and recorded children's music. Massengill toured frequently with long-time friend and fellow songwriter Jack Hardy as a duo called the Folk Brothers, until Hardy's death in 2011. As a music educator, Massengill is famed for presenting his "Taking the Dull out of Dulcimer" workshops at festivals and music gatherings around North America, and is one of the instrument's prime proponents in the field of melding traditional and contemporary music styles (including alternate tunings); and is a mentor to many in the dulcimer and folk community in general.
Concert admissionisby free-will offering, adults $20+, teens and seniors $15, well-behaved children $10 suggested. Please make reservations online at http://notlobmusic.eventbrite.com. The concert will be presented at FIVESPARKS, 7 Fairbanks Street, the restored 1890 town library building. Doors Open at 7pm. The gallery capacity is 90, but will be reduced by 50% as a COVID precaution. Read the Fivesparks COVID policy at www.fivesparks.org/covid-19.
Ayer CPA Updating the 5 year Community Preservation Plan
AYER: Ayer's Community Preservation Committee is updating the 5 year Community Preservation Plan, which is used to guide the allocation of Community Preservation Act Funds. The Community Preservation Committee (CPC) would like your input to help determine goals and priorities for allocating CPA funds in the four CPA funding categories: 1) active outdoor recreation; 2) community housing; 3) historic preservation; 4) open space and passive recreation. There will be a Virtual Public Forum on May 4 at 7pm. To register for this event please click here.
6th Annual Clear Path for Veterans New England Motorcycle Ride 5/22
WINCHENDON/DEVENS: Along with American Veterans Motorcycle Club (AVMC), join in on May 22 at 9am for the 6th Annual Clear Path for Veterans New England Motorcycle Ride to the Veterans Cemetery in Winchendon. This ride will take place through some of the most scenic roads in the area. Pre-purchased tickets are entered into a drawing and one lucky winner will receive a great prize. Riders - $20; Non-Riders and Passengers - $15. All proceeds benefit Veterans in the local area through programs and services provided by Clear Path for Veterans New England. Join us to learn more about this great organization. THE EVENT IS RAIN OR SHINE! For tickets or to make a donation, visit https://give.clearpathne.org/event/armed-forces-motorcycle-ride/e396602
Fitchburg Art Museum’s Beloved Summer Tradition Returns
FITCHBURG: Calling all artists who live or work within 30 miles of Fitchburg! Apply now to be a part of one of the oldest juried exhibitions in New England— the 86th Regional Exhibition of Art & Craft at the Fitchburg Art Museum! This annual tradition celebrates the creativity of artists in the community, and they're thrilled to have Jameson Johnson, founder and editor-in-chief of Boston Art Review, as this year's juror. For more information about the jurying process, eligibility, registration, and more, click here.
The deadline to register and submit your artwork is May 22, 2022. The registration fee is $30, which includes a one-year individual membership to the Fitchburg Art Museum.
The exhibition opens Friday, June 24 and closes on Sunday, September 4.
Construction Notification - Birch and McDowell Water and Drain Improvements
AYER: The Ayer Department of Public Works (DPW) will be replacing the water main on Birch and McDowell Streets from the intersections of Sandy Pond Road to the dead ends. This project will replace the aging pipe with a new 6-inch ductile iron water main. New water services to the houses will be installed from the new water main to the property line (property line to the house is the homeowners’ responsibility). New drainage structures will also be installed within the right-of-way at the beginning of each street.
Work will begin in late April and is anticipated to last 6-8 weeks. Work will begin with installation of temporary water main, followed by replacement of the water main and water services. The temporary water main will be installed just off the edge of the road, some pavement cutting may be required. The temporary pipe will be buried in shallow trenches or installed at grade and covered for a proper ramp across driveways. If required, the DPW will coordinate with homeowners to transfer to the temporary water main. Additional construction notices will be distributed as the work progresses. The road will be open to the local residents and public safety vehicles but expect delays.
The Ayer DPW appreciates your cooperation during this important infrastructure project. If you have any questions, please call the Ayer DPW at 978-772-8240 (7:30am to 3:30pm) or email dvanschalkwyk@ayer.ma.us.
Tweens & Teens Cooking Program at Lunenburg Public Library
LUNENBURG: Hey Tweens & Teens! Do you enjoy good food? Like to cook? Join the Lunenburg Public Library's series of cooking classes with Brittany, a Registered Dietitian with Hannaford's Supermarket! Classes will be held virtually from 4:30-5:30pm on Thursdays, May 5-26. Brittany will walk through how to prepare delicious and healthy dishes inspired by your favorite Disney movies! Weekly recipes and lists of needed ingredients will be supplied by the library so that you will be prepared to fully participate in each class. Registration is necessary and the age requirement is 10-14 (grades 4-8). Please note that each class has a separate registration. Register for 1, 2, or all of them! There must be adult supervision for these classes as students will be using kitchen tools and a stove for preparing their recipes. The good news? The goal for each class is to prepare a dish for that night's dinner! Register by visiting www.lunenburglibrary.org, or by emailing Susan at selbag@cwmars.org.
The Town of Ayer Asks You to Please Conserve Water
AYER: Important Notice: In order to protect the Town’s water resources and drinking water supply, the Ayer DPW is asking everyone to conserve water and comply with the Town outdoor water restrictions:
Mandatory – no outside water use between 9AM and 5 PM
Mandatory - Odd / Even Outside Water Restriction (even numbered street address water on even numbered dates and odd numbered addresses on odd numbered dates)
Voluntary - curb outside water use and conserve water as much as possible
Voluntary - no outside water use on Sundays
The Ayer DPW will be monitoring outside water use and will be enforcing the mandatory water restrictions, including ticketing / fines / water shut-off for violations. For information or questions, contact Dan Van Schalkwyk P.E., Public Works Director 978-774-8240; dvanschalkwyk@ayer.ma.us.
Nashoba Symphonic Band Presents Spring Moments to Remember
BOLTON: The Nashoba Symphonic Band, under the direction of David Wayne Bailey, will present its Spring concert, Moments to Remember, on Sunday, May 1 at 3pm in the auditorium of Nashoba Regional High School, Route 117 (GPS Green Road). The program features the area premiere of the “Afro-American Symphony” by William Grant Still, in a transcription written for the band at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Also being performed will be “Hymn for the Innocent” by Julie Giroux, Vincent Persichetti's “Divertimento for Band,” and a unique mini-tone poem for band, “City Rain'” by Judith Land Zaimont. All Nashoba Symphonic Band concerts are free and open to the public.
The eighty-piece Nashoba Symphonic Band is a program of the Nashoba Friends of music consisting of students, faculty, parents and musicians from Bolton, Stow, Lancaster and surrounding communities. Conductor David Wayne Bailey is a resident of Concord. The band performs four concerts each season, featuring the foundation pieces of the literature, recents compositions and music from films and theatre as well as classic marches. Nashoba Symphonic Band is supported in part by grants from Berlin, Bolton, Hudson, Marlborough and Stow Cultural Councils, supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.
An Evening with Worcester Poets Laureate, Juan Matos & Adael Mejia
LUNENBURG: Join the City of Worcester’s Poets Laureate, Juan Matos and Adael Mejia (pictured) on Thursday, April 14th 6:30pm - 7:30pmat the Lunenburg Public Library, for an evening of poetry. Juan and Adael will read some poems, talk about the Worcester Poet Laureate program, and share information about poetry events and opportunities in Central Massachusetts. This program is open to all ages. Registration is required as seating is limited. Sign up at: https://tinyurl.com/yc5nf5bj or by heading to April 14th on the Lunenburg Public Library's website, lunenburglibrary.org.
Ayer Real Estate & Personal Property Bills Due May 2
AYER: The Fiscal 2022 fourth quarter Real Estate and Personal Property bills are due May 2, 2022.You can pay or lookup your taxes online by clicking here. The fee to pay a bill using an e-check is $.50. This is less than a postage stamp and you get an instant receipt. If you have any questions or concerns, please email tax@ayer.ma.us.
Spring Hydrant Flushing Begins Week of April 11, 2022
AYER: The Town of Ayer Department of Public Works - Water Division will begin our semi-annual Hydrant Flushing Program the week of April 11, 2022. The flushing will take place on weekdays between the hours of 3pm and 9pm. During flushing you may experience reduced water pressure and some discoloration of your water. The discoloration should subside within 24 hours. If you are still experiencing problems after this 24 hour period, please call 978-772-8240.
The Towns’ flushing program is considered mandatory maintenance and will be conducted as efficiently as possible. This maintenance program allows us to continue to provide the residents with water that is as aesthetically appealing as possible.
Walk or run for Loaves & Fishes on May 1, 2022 No One Should Go Hungry
DEVENS: Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry, Inc. is hosting the second annual Spring Into Action 5K walk and fun run to raise funds to help Loaves & Fishes feed neighbors in need. Participants can walk or run in-person on May 1st or virtually between April 24th and May 1st.
You’re invited to be part of this fun event! There are many ways to get involved:
Start a team, join a team or register as an individual fundraiser
Sponsor a team or an individual participant with a donation
Be a business sponsor to help cover the cost of the event so all donations go to Loaves & Fishes’ mission or donate refreshments or prizes
The in-person event will take place on Devens, starting in Rogers Field. You’ll be able to start the walk in-person between 10am and 2pm and you should plan to finish by 4pm. There will be a fun run for children ages 12 and under in the field at 1pm. To register, visit https://lfwalk.org/campaign/2022-spring-into-action-5k/start-fundraising.
Loaves & Fishes provides nutritious food to those in need in Ayer, Devens, Dunstable, Groton, Harvard, Littleton and Shirley.
Ayer CPA Survey Open Thru May 13
AYER: The Community Preservation Committee is in the process of updating its five-year Community Preservation Plan. Part of this process is to survey town residents on what you feel should be the goals and priorities for allocating CPA funds in the four CPA funding categories: Active outdoor recreation; Community housing; Historic preservation; Open space and passive recreation. This survey will be open until Friday, May 13th.
Join Shirley Council on Aging for First Walk Massachusetts Challenge Registrations Open: www.walkmachallenge.com
SHIRLEY: Join the Shirley Council on Aging for their first walk challenge, sponsored by the Mass Council on Aging. This free family-friendly challenge runs May 1 - October 31, 2022and is open to anyone age five and over. Individuals who complete the challenge receive raffle prize entries for them-selves and our Senior Center. Individual prizes include gift cards of Visa ($50), Amazon ($25) and Dunkin’ ($10). Councils on Aging prize levels range $250-1,000! Anyone aged 5-59 years old is encouraged to sponsor an older adult of their choice!
Each participant chooses from one of four pre-determined challenges.
1. TURNPIKE CHALLENGE: Complete 126.6 miles to celebrate the length of the Massachusetts Turnpike from Boston to Lee. 2. COMMONWEALTH CHALLENGE : Complete 351 miles to celebrate the number of cities and towns in the Commonwealth. 3. 1788 CHALLENGE: Complete 88 days to celebrate the year Massachusetts became the sixth state. 4. SHORELINE CHALLENGE: Complete 192 miles to celebrate the length of the Massachusetts shoreline.
For more information or help with registration, contact Shirley Council on Aging, 9 Parker Road - 978-425-1390.
Consequences of Genocide Denial: The Armenian Genocide
DEVENS: On April 16 at 1pm, Ara A. Jeknavorian, Ph.D., of the Merrimack Valley Armenian Genocide Education Committee, will present "Consequences of Genocide Denial" at the Fort Devens Museum. The presentation provides a discussion on the causes and impact of the Armenian Genocide on 3000 years of Armenian Civilization in eastern Turkey, and how its denial by its perpetrators has led to subsequent genocides.
At the risk of infuriating Turkey, President Biden formally announced in 2021 that the United States regards the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by Turks more than a century ago to be a genocide — the most monstrous of crimes. Mr. Biden was the first American president to make such an announcement, breaking with predecessors who did not wish to antagonize Turkey, a NATO ally and a strategically pivotal country straddling Europe and the Middle East. While this announcement carries enormous symbolic weight-equating the premeditated mass murder of 1.5 million Armenian men, women, and children from 1915-23 to the atrocities committed in Nazi-occupied Europe, Cambodia and Rwanda-its incomprehensible continued denial and the lack of accountability by the Turkish Government can be linked to enabling subsequent cases of man’s inhumanity to man.
This program is free and open to the public. The Fort Devens Museum is located on the 3rd floor of 94 Jackson Road. For more information please email info@fortdevensmuseum.org.
The Conservation and Treatment of Three Groton History Center Portraits
GROTON: In gradual and insidious ways, paintings deteriorate with age. Exposure to light, dust and other factors play their roles in transforming a once-lucid surface into one of darkened and blotched obscurity. The restoration and preservation of such delicate surfaces require specialized skills, techniques, and sensitivity. What this process looks like will be the subject of art conservator Corrine Long’s behind-the-scenes glimpse into the work of restoring the three 19th-century Shattuck family portraits hanging on the Groton History Center’s Boutwell House walls.
Long and colleagues at the GFStudio in Malden began work after a Town Meeting vote awarded the $11,400 funding recommended by the Community Preservation Committee for the restoration and preservation of these significant treasures of the GHC’s collection. The project, conceived and carried out by Carolyn Perkins and Bobbie Spiegelman of the GHC Collections Committee, and Executive Director Kara Fossey, represents yet another step in the GHC’s mission to bring its collections into the light for the public’s enjoyment.
Long will illustrate the dramatic physical and visual improvements to these paintings wrought by GFStudio’s skilled conservators. Gianfranco Pocobene, studio owner and Chief Paintings and Research Conservator at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, will be on hand to answer questions. Join us for this informative and lively talk on April 9 at 2pm at the Groton Center, 163 West Main Street. The event is free and open to the public, thanks to the Commissioners of Trust Funds.
The public is invited to take a closer look at the beautifully restored portraits of Margaret Shattuck Brigham, her husband George Bingham, and hanging alongside, the portrait of Polly Sawtelle Shattuck, wife of Luther Shattuck, grandson of Job Shattuck, one of the leaders of Shay’s Rebellion. Call 978-448-0092 or email info@grotonhistory.org to schedule a visit. The GHC is open Mondays and Thursdays, 10am to 3pm.
USO-style Dance to Benefit Fort Devens Museum
DEVENS/SHIRLEY: Join the Fort Devens Museum on April 30 from 6-10pm for a USO-style dance! Honor Veterans of “The Greatest Generation” and celebrate the Allied Victory in World War II. This 1940s-themed dance, held in the historic War Memorial Building in Shirley, will feature live music, refreshments, and a cash bar. The War Memorial Building is located at 8 Church Street and is wheelchair accessible. Buy tickets now online or at the museum at 94 Jackson Road.
There will be a dance lesson and dance contest. Enjoy period music by Dan Gabel and the Abletones, an authentic 11-piece Big Band. Guests will enjoy the American classic Dagwood sandwich and additional light refreshments. To make for an authentic 1940s event, the space will be decorated with the familiar designs of cans of SPAM and glass bottles of Coca-Cola. The War Memorial Building in Shirley is home to the Shirley Legion Post and World War II and other military memorabilia will be on display.
Civilian and military period dress is encouraged, but certainly not required. Tickets are $40/person, $75/couple, and $35/military (active and retired) and are available at www.fortdevensmuseum.org/events. World War II Veterans are free, please contact the museum for details.
This event is in partnership with the Greater Boston Vintage Society which is an organization that both hosts and promotes vintage events in New England. For more information call 978-772-1286 or email info@fortdevensmuseum.org.
What's coming up (& more) at Groton Public Library - www.gpl.org
AYER: The Town of Ayer and Devens are reconstructing the area of West Main Street as part of a MassWorks Grant. The project consists of water, drainage, street, and sidewalk improvements. The project limits are shown on the attached figure and include a portion of Sculley Road as well as West Main Street and the Verbeck Gate.
The Town will be posting construction updates on the Town website at www.ayer.ma.us, at Town Hall, and via email for those who subscribe. To subscribe to email alerts, scan the QR code or go to www.ayer.ma.us/subscribe.
Work Anticipated during the weeks of March 28th and April 4th:
Work will commence on Monday, March 28th and will be conducted daily between the hours of 7:00 AM and 4:00 PM.
The Contractor will be mobilizing equipment, saw-cutting pavement to prepare for trench excavation, installing erosion controls, beginning drainage and water utility installation.
One-lane of alternating traffic will be maintained at all times. The road will be fully opened at the end of each work day, please use caution as their will be varying road conditions. Paving of trenches will occur on Friday’s. Police detail officers will be onsite as required to direct traffic. Traffic control and parking restrictions will change as the project progresses and future notifications will be distributed.
The Town of Ayer appreciates your cooperation during this important infrastructure project. If you have any questions, please call the Ayer DPW at 978-772-8240 (7:30am to 3:30pm) or email DPW@ayer.ma.us.
"The Power of Angels" 2022 Kitty Angels Fundraiser
AMHERST, NH: Plans are in the works for another fabulous fundraiser for Kitty Angels, Inc. This year’s event will take place on April 30 and May 1 from 9am-5pm. The kitties and vendors have taken the necessary precautions and are excited to have you get out of the house and come visit with them for some fabulous finds, great “free” entertainment and most important of all, to help Kitty Angels! The weekend festivities are being held at Treasures Antiques, 106 Ponemah Road (Rt. 122).
Look for all your favorite vendors, including artist Eric Nickola, dba WolfpacStudios, Artist Lori-Ellen Budenas of Respect the Wood, Monica Gesualdo of Trading Faces, Food Vendor B’s Grumman Grub, Jewelry designers - Freedom Jewelry & Heart’s Design Jewelry. Forever Clean Soaps, Morel Woodworking, Baby Snuggz, SoGo Metal Art, Scroll-N-Tole, Happy Cat Creations, Vinyl Revival, Dusty Finds, The Spirit of Cacao, Puckerbrush Life, Anthony Acres, Color Street, Paws & Spas, Heavenly Goddess, Usborne Books, Fudge & Stuff, Lynda’s Felted Critters, Tupperware, Custom Care Designs, Amherst Animal Hospital and many more. Updates will be made when available. Interested in becoming a vendor at the event? Contact Sherry or Rick at (603) 672-2535.
The bands and soloists for the event, consist of keyboardist/band member Joey Peavey, Side Effects, Diamond Edge Band, North Sound Duo, Levi Maxwell with Jeff Damon, Sunset Rhythm and Wildwood.
Featured throughout the fundraising weekend and into the month of June, is an electrifying raffle of numerous and diverse prizes, all generously donated by local and national businesses, professional sports teams, private individuals and some of the awesome on-site vendors.
Kitty Angels, Inc. is the sole beneficiary of this event. They are a no-kill cat shelter and are made up of all unpaid volunteers, dedicated to rescuing stray and abandoned cats and kittens, furnishing them with treatment for injuries or other health issues and then placing them into new forever homes with compatible owners. They are a non-profit, 501(C) 3 charitable corporation where all donations are fully tax-deductible and every penny of every donation is used in the caring of cats.
