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2014 Luncheon Reports
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December 23
President Roger Webb called the meeting of
the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, December 23rd, 2014,
welcomed us all and wished all those celebrating the holiday a Merry
Christmas, and a very Happy New Year to all! Roger mentioned that our speakers’ presentations are open to the public, but no non-members ever come to them because they don’t know which speakers or topics we are having. To rectify this, Roger asked if any member would volunteer to send news of upcoming speakers and topics to the Daily Hampshire Gazette on an ongoing basis. Murray Schuman agreed to undertake this task. Roger reminded the group that we will not meet next Tuesday 30th, because it is the fifth Tuesday of the month. Our next meeting will be in the New Year, on Tuesday 6th. Raffle: Bonnie Isman won the wine and Ellen Kosmer the $10. Announcements: Bonnie Isman announced that Zanna’s in Amherst is offering free gift wrapping in return for a donation to charity – even for gifts not bought at Zanna’s! Speaker: Claude Tellier introduced our speaker Philippe Galaski, who is also a fairly new member. Philippe is a retired physiotherapist, and his topic was "How to take care of your back". Philippe began by asking all those present who had ever had any back trouble to raise a hand – and nearly every hand went up! Philippe said that sitting, as most of us do so much of the time nowadays at both work and play, is more stressful on the back than either standing or lying down. Stretching the back every hour or so is very helpful. When driving, stop the car every few hours and get out and walk about for a few minutes. When standing, rest one foot on a stool and alternate the feet periodically. End a period of standing by stretching your back. Don’t overdo exercises, and stop if they hurt. Avoid snow shoveling if you have back problems. Philippe had many other helpful suggestions, and his talk was very well received by the members. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
December 16
President Roger Webb called the meeting of
the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, December 16th, 2014,
welcomed us all and wished all those celebrating the holiday a Happy
Hanukkah! Roger announced that there will be meetings of the Allocations and Planning Committees after lunch today. Poem: Jacquie Price read a witty poem by Terence Winch called “Social Security”. Raffle: Barbara Freed won the wine and Joan Hanson the $10. Announcements: Ellen Kosmer announced that thanks to the Amherst Cultural Council she had two complementary tickets available for the Amherst Ballet performance of Cinderella. Murray Schumann accepted the tickets. Speaker: As the speaker was about to be introduced, Roger interjected that by a fortuitous coincidence he and Vivienne had met her a couple of weeks ago in Washington DC at the Folger Shakespeare Library where she was appearing in a concert! Carolyn Holstein then introduced our speaker, Alice Robbins, who teaches at the Five College Early Music Program at Mount Holyoke and Smith Colleges. She plays the viola da gamba and cello, is a member of the Oberlin Consort of Viols and plays principal cello as well as viol with our own Arcadia Players and the Washington Bach Consort. She performs with the Folger Consort, Handel and Haydn Society (Boston), Opera Lafayette, and National Cathedral (Washington, DC). Her fascinating talk and demonstration pointed out the differences between the viola da gamba and cello, and the developments of these and related instruments since about 1500. She also demonstrated the differences in bows, and how they are played. She has recorded for Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, EMI-Reflexe, Gasparo, Smithsonian, Telefunken and Naxos. For dates of her upcoming spring concerts see the Five College and Arcadia Players calendars. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
Dec. 2
In the absence of President Roger Webb, Vice-President Andrea Battle
called the meeting of the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday,
December 2nd, 2014, and welcomed us all. Andrea announced that the board meeting was postponed until next week, Tuesday 9th. The members commended Gigi Barnhill, who volunteered for the vital post of selling the raffle tickets in Nancy Brose’s place. We welcomed back Allen Hanson from rehab. Allen thanked us for the card we sent him. Raffle: Nancy Gregg won the wine and Tina Berins the $10. Announcements: Isaac BenEzra will be honored in the Town Room of the Amherst Town Hall on Thursday, Dec. 11th from 4:30-6 p.m. The town is celebrating his 18 years of service to Amherst Community Television (ACTV), where in addition to producing his own show he was on the board for 9 years. Ruth Miller whetted our appetites with information on a brunch outing on Sunday, Feb. 8th, to the Griswold Inn, Essex CT. This is the oldest continuously operating inn in the country, open since the late eighteenth century in the quaint town of Essex. Ruth proposes a nearby concert after brunch. For more information, call her at 253-9855 or rkm@admin.umass.edu. Speaker: Claude Tellier introduced our speaker, Renata Bowers from Wisconsin, author of four children’s books in the Frieda B series. These colorfully illustrated rhyming stories for young children up to about age 8 feature a heroine, Frieda B, and her dog Zilla. In each story they have an adventure that illustrates a moral encouraging children to dream big and believe in their dreams. The books may be bought from the website www.FriedaB.com. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
Nov. 25: Jennifer Ladd of the Temenos Retreat Center
President Roger Webb called the meeting of
the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, November 25th, 2014, and
welcomed us all. Tina Berins brought the good news that Isaac BenEzra is now home from rehab, and is very grateful for the cards and good wishes he received. See below under Announcements for a celebration in his honor. Raffle: Jacquie Price won the wine and Bonnie Isman the $10. Announcements: The last performances this fall of the Eric Carle Museum Picture Book Theatre, directed by Therese Brady Donohue, will be presented on Friday Nov. 28 at 2 p.m. and Sat. Nov. 29 at 3p.m. Tickets available at least one day in advance for $6 at 413-658-1126. If you are shopping at Barnes and Noble on Saturday, Nov. 29th, please tell the cashier that you are a supporter of the Jones Library so that 10% of your purchase will go to help the library. Isaac BenEzra will be honored in the Town Room of the Amherst Town Hall on Thursday, Dec. 11th from 4:30-6 p.m. The town is celebrating his 18 years of service to Amherst Community Television (ACTV), where in addition to producing his own show he was on the board for 9 years. Ruth Miller whetted our appetites with information on a brunch outing on Sunday, Feb. 8th, to the Griswold Inn, Essex CT. This is the oldest continuously operating inn in the country, open since the late eighteenth century in the quaint town of Essex. Ruth proposes a nearby concert after brunch. For more information, call her at 253-9855 or rkm@admin.umass.edu. Snapshot: Honore David evoked her childhood in Mexico, where her father was a metallurgical engineer running a business started by the New York Guggenheim family as a silver mine a few miles from the town of Charcas in central Mexico, high up in mountains close to the Tropic of Cancer. There was no highway to Charcas, and the train ran near the town but did not stop there, so people took the train and jumped off when they wanted to visit. Honore was home schooled until she was twelve, when she went off to boarding school in San Antonio. The family lived in a fenced and guarded American colony but were friendly with the nearby townspeople and their mayor, a Yale graduate. Honore’s mother loved gardening, with help from a local gardener. One day the mayor brought a gift of some large plants with beautiful blue flowers which they planted prominently in a flower bed. Unfortunately, these pretty flowers were marijuana, which the mayor was selling in the U.S.! Once discovered, they were torn out of the garden, but not before Honore saved quite a few leaves pressed in a book. After this episode, each time they crossed the border into the U.S. their luggage was given a very thorough going over by American customs. Of course, nothing happened to the mayor! Speaker: Claude Tellier introduced our speaker, Jennifer Ladd of the Temenos Retreat Center on Mount Mineral Road in Shutesbury. Their web site explains that the name Temenos is a Greek word meaning the sacred space surrounding a temple or an altar. Carl Jung used this same word to refer to one’s interior space, where soul-making takes place. Many guests visit first as hikers exploring the trails on the mountain side. With a doctorate in international education, Jennifer Ladd first visited Temenos in 1990. Jennifer is now on the Temenos Council, their governing board. The retreat center is non-profit and non-denominational, very ecologically aware, and determined to tread lightly on the earth. There is no electricity or plumbing, Heating is by wood stove, and there are outhouses instead of bathrooms. Retreatants and other guests stay in either the main lodge or one of a number of cabins, all of which are simply furnished. A variety of guests stay at Temenos, including families, religious groups, and others eager to experience the simplicity, silence and beauty of nature on this mountainside. The fees are very modest, and on a sliding scale so that guests may pay whatever on the scale is comfortable for them. Volunteer donations and labor make up for any shortfall they may experience financially. Volunteer helpers and workers are always welcome: see the web site www.temenosretreatcenter.org or call 413-367-9779. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
Nov. 18: Don Courtemanche, executive director of the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce
President Roger Webb called the meeting of
the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, November 18th, 2014, and
welcomed us all. Roger noted that the lighting has been somewhat improved in our new dining-room, and there is now a coat-rack for us to use near the food serving tables. Rachel Hare Mustin shared greetings from former member Janet Lussier, now happily living in North Carolina. She and her husband have a new house, but are still planning to build on more remote land they own in the mountains there. Raffle: Elsie Fetterman won the wine and Nancy Brose the $10. Activity: Docent-led tour of the current exhibit of Matisse drawings at the Mount Holyoke College Art Museum on Friday, November 21st at 2:00 PM. Free, donations welcome. Directions: From route 116 south, turn left onto Park Street at the first stop light with the post office on the right. Park at the bottom of the hill next to the green houses. Let me know if you are interested so I can tell the museum how many are coming. Thanks.- Larry Siddall 549-0547 or lsiddall@crocker.com. Announcements: Wed. November 19th, Classical Legacy Lecture James Hankins, Harvard University and General Editor of the I Tatti Renaissance Library: "The Virtue Politics of the Italian Humanists." 4:00 p.m. Reading Room. Free and open to the public. No reservations required. The Eric Carle Museum Picture Book Theatre, directed by Therese Brady Donohue, will be presented on Saturday Nov. 22 at 2 p.m. and Fri-Sat. Nov. 28-29 at 2 p.m. and 3p.m. Tickets available in advance at 413-658-1126. Ruth Miller whetted our appetites with information on a brunch outing on Sunday, Feb. 8th, to the Griswold Inn, Essex CT. This is the oldest continuously operating inn in the country, open since the late eighteenth century in the quaint town of Essex. Ruth proposes a nearby concert after brunch. For more information, call her at 253-9855 or rkm@admin.umass.edu. Speaker: Claude Tellier introduced our speaker, Don Courtemanche, executive director of the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce. Don took over his position in April, moving from Springfield where he ran the BID – Business Improvement District. He and his wife and four rescue dogs still live in Springfield, in a large house which they fixed up, only to have it badly damaged by the tornado. Starting life in Connecticut, Don first worked as town manager of New Britain, where he worked on raising the downtown from a condition of blight to a more vital situation. He is interested in town histories, and brings this interest with him to each of his locations. He recently started a column in the Amherst Bulletin which will appear every other month. He would love to live in Amherst, if he could afford it. He feels that mom and pop stores are vital to a town’s health, and urged the members to buy something from one of the smaller local stores during the holiday season. He thinks that the newly proposed retail and residential complexes for downtown will be very important for Amherst’s success, although he does not believe that any more parking structures are yet needed for downtown. For the Chamber, he hopes to involve young people including students as quasi-members, and to also involve retired business people in a new program he’s calling A+ Memberships, where their interest and knowledge may continue to promote the health of the community. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
November 11: Near-Death Experiences
Vice-President Andrea Battle called the
meeting of the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, November 11th,
2014, and welcomed us all on behalf of President Roger Webb, who is in
Great Britain. Andrea wished all veterans well, both club members and their families, and thanked them for their service on this Veterans’ Day, the centennial anniversary of the commencement of World War I. Andrea thanked the Amherst Club Trivia Bee team members, Arthur Kinney, Tony Papirio, Charles Stevenson and Andrea herself, who all battled nobly in this year’s Trivia Bee benefit for the Amherst Education Foundation. Andrea also thanked Ruth Miller, whose “cat-” themed costumes for the team won a prize in the first round. Barbara Freed urgently needs someone with P.R. experience to help advise the Spring to Life committee. If you can help, or can suggest someone else who could, please contact Barbara. Phyllis Lehrer congratulated Barbara Freed and Glen Gordon, both musicians participating in the Valley Light Opera presentation of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Yeomen of the Guard. Raffle: Tony Papirio won the wine and Miriam Dayton the $10. Activity: Visit to the Mount Holyoke College Art Museum on Friday, November 21, at 2:00 PM. Docent led tour of selected works including the current Matisse exhibit. Free. Let Larry Siddall know if you are interested at 549-0547 or lsiddall@crocker.com. Parking is available near the museum across from the greenhouse or on the other side of the stream. Directions: from route 116, turn left onto Park Street at the first stop light with the post office on the right. Turn right at the bottom of the hill next to the greenhouse. Announcements: The Rotary Club of Amherst, Massachusetts runs a multimedia auction involving the entire community. Local businesses donate their products, local celebrities host the TV auction, and the proceeds are returned to the community through charitable grants to agencies doing good throughout our area. The Auction has already started online at amherstrotaryauction.org; and the finale will be televised live on November 14, 6-9 pm & November 15, 12-9 pm. The Valley Light Opera presentation of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Yeomen of the Guard, with performances on Fri.-Sun. November 14, 15, and 16 at the Academy of Music in Northampton. Sunday performance at 2 pm, others at 8 pm. The Eric Carle Museum Picture Book Theatre, directed by Therese Brady Donohue, will be presented on Saturdays on Nov. 15,22 at 2 p.m. and Fri-Sat. Nov. 28-29 at 2 p.m. and 3p.m. Tickets available in advance at 413-658-1126. “Amherst Coming Together” - Friday Nov. 14th at 5:30 p.m. at the Unitarian Meeting House. A Community conversation with Barbara Love, with a light supper. A really good event! Jones Library Book Fair, Sat, Nov 15, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Jones Library. Gently used books plus local authors including Dan Lombardo, former Curator of Special Collections. Enjoy playing bridge? Come to the Amherst Senior Center on Wednesdays. Drop in from noon-3 p.m. Speaker: Psychologist Ginny Sanders spoke on the near death experience. A Mount Holyoke alumna with a Ph.D. in psychology from Harvard, Ginny’s interest in the subject was awakened by reading the best-selling autobiographical book Proof of Heaven, a neurosurgeon's journey into the afterlife, by Eben Alexander, M.D. published in October 2012. She expanded on her interest by reading a study of the subject, Life After Life, written by psychiatrist Raymond Moody, a report on a study in which Moody interviewed 150 people who had undergone near-death experiences (NDEs. On the basis of his collection of cases, Moody identified a common set of elements in NDEs: · an overwhelming feeling of peace and well-being, including freedom from pain. (b) the impression of being located outside one's physical body. (c) floating or drifting through darkness, sometimes described as a tunnel. (d) becoming aware of a golden light. (e) encountering and perhaps communicating with a "being of light". (f) having a rapid succession of visual images of one's past. (g) experiencing another world of much beauty. Moody wrote a second book, Reflections on Life After Life, in 1977. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
November 4: "All Out Adventures," a talk by Executive Director Karen Foster and Program Director Sue Tracy
President Roger Webb opened the meeting. Guests: Elsie Fetterman's guest was Dr. Deborah Reed, an audiologist who is applying to become a member. Announcements: Roger announced that our Trivia Bee team won the award for best costume, with cat costumes designed by Ruth Miller. "Renaissance Food" will be the talk at the Renaissance Center on Wed, Nov 5, at 4 p.m. Refreshments to follow. Mount Holyoke College Art Museum Fri, Nov 21 at 2 p.m. will be the November Club Activity. Contact Larry Siddall. "White Like Me," Tim Wise's acclaimed film, Thurs, Nov 6, at 7 p.m. at Jones Library. Jones Library Book Fair, Sat, Nov 15, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Jones Library. Gently used books plus local authors including Dan Lombardo, former Curator of Special Collections. Speaker: "All Out Adventures," a talk with illustrations by Executive Director Karen Foster and Program Director Sue Tracy. This non-profit organization provides various year round outing programs to develop health and community for seniors and people with disabilities, including veterans. The activities include kayaking, biking, skating, camping, snowshoeing, and the like at local locations and state parks. The special bikes and other equipment used are also sold by All Out Adventures. Many volunteers help out, including Greenfield Community College students. Several club members have been involved, including Philippe Galaski , a founder and President, Paul Bacon, a former Board Member, and Roger Webb and Vivienne in the Kayak-a-Thon. Raffle: Returns today went to the Endowment Fund since it was the first meeting of the month. Joan Hanson won the wine. Philippe Galaski won the $10. Rachel Mustin, Scribe for the Day. |
Oct. 28: Vanja Malloy, the new Curator of American Art of Amherst College
Oct. 28: Vanja Malloy, the new Curator of American Art of Amherst College President Roger Webb called the meeting of the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, October 28th, 2014, and welcomed us all. Andrea Battle noted that she is now stepping down from the task of choosing speakers, and handing over to Claude Tellier. The members thanked Andrea for her super work in this area. Roger noted that former club member Harry Brooks is now back in Amherst living at the Arbors. Harry would welcome being contacted by old friends. We were all sad to learn that Isaac Ben Ezra broke two bones in each foot and is now in rehab for two months at Health South, 222 State Street, Ludlow MA 01056, in room 150, phone 413-308-3550. He is busy in the daytime but would welcome visits between 4- 8 pm, with a call beforehand. We were glad to hear that Judy Brooks is now home and feeling better, and has been seen at the pool! We also noted Phyllis Lehrer’s birthday was yesterday! Guests: Ellen Kosmer introduced Arthur Kinney’s guests, scholars from Germany at the Renaissance Center Angelika Zirker and Matthias Bauer. They will present a free talk on Wednesday Oct. 29th at 4 pm in the Renaissance Center on “Authorship and Co-Creation in the English Renaissance: From George Herbert to Shakespeare." Amherst News: Jim Wald brought us news from the Amherst Select Board, noting that this last week was stellar in that the governor visited us, and we received three large grants, including money to bury overhead wires in the Kendrick Park area. Raffle: Elsie Fetterman won the wine and Larry Siddall the $10. Speaker: Andrea introduced our speaker, Vanja Malloy, newly appointed curator of American art at the Mead Art Museum at Amherst College. The Mead is sponsoring a bus trip to the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem on Sat. Nov. 15, where Vanja will lead a tour of the exhibit, Calder and Abstraction: from Avant-Garde to Iconic. For more information on this trip, contact Kathy LeBeau at 413-542-2551 or at klebeau@amherst.edu. Her very interesting talk focused on how Calder’s engineering training suffused his art with ideas from contemporary physics, astronomy and geometry. His mobiles reflect Einstein’s perceptions of the dynamic universe, with stars and atoms in motion: Calder’s creations add the fourth dimension of movement to the three dimensions used by previous sculptors. Announcements: Roger noted that the Amherst Club will be fielding a team, as usual, in this year’s Trivia Bee that benefits Amherst Education Foundation. The event is this Thursday October 30, 7:00 pm at the Middle School. Ruth Miller has designed the costumes, our team will be Arthur Kinney, Andrea Battle, Charles Stevenson, and Tony Papirio. Hope to see you there. UMass Renaissance Center First Sunday Concert Series 2:00-4:00pm on Sunday, November 2nd. AyreCraft ~ Vocals by Donnie Cotter and lutes played by Robert Castellano and Meg Pash. Reading Room. Free and Open to the public. No reservations required. Ellen reminded us all to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 4th. She urged members to support the increase of Community Preservation Act dues, and offered to discuss this issue with anyone interested. The CPA money has recently included paying toward the restoration of the Unitarian Meeting House Tiffany window, and preserving low-cost housing in town. The Valley Light Opera is presenting Gilbert and Sullivan's The Yeomen of the Guard, with performances on November 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, and 16 at the Academy of Music in Northampton. Sunday performances at 2 pm, others at 8 pm. _________________________________ University Women - New York City Bus Trip - Wednesday, November 19, 2014 Bus will leave Amherst at 7:00AM SHARP - Cost $38.00 from the parking lot by T. J. MAXX (next to Stop & Shop) and leave New York at 7:00PM. Drop off in New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art and Theatre District RETURN PICK-UP announced by the driver Full refunds given before November 12th. (Bring your own bus snacks) PLEASE SIGN UP BY FRIDAY * NOVEMBER 1ST * For more information call Shirley Stevens at 253-7269 or email apstevens317@gmail.com REMEMBER: to reserve the bus, we must receive your check before 11/1/14. For reservations, fill out this form and send with a check payable to University Women to: Shirley Stevens, 13 Sutton Court • Amherst, MA 01002 NAME: ___________________________________________ PHONE:__________________________ ADDRESS:_____________________________________ EMAIL: ______________________________ No. of Tickets: Total Enclosed: $ (full refund before the 12th) _______________________________________________________________________________ Enjoy playing bridge? Come to the Amherst Senior Center on Wednesdays. Drop in from noon-3 pm. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
Oct 21: Prof. Whitney Battle-Baptiste (UMass Anthropology): Archaeology in the Bahamas
Oct 21: Prof. Whitney Battle-Baptiste (UMass Anthropology): Eleuthera, Bahamas and Archaeology there Our usual scribe Linda Honan was unable to attend today. I asked for a volunteer, and after an uncomfortable silence Joan Hanson volunteered. Since Joan and Jacquie Price (and my long-suffering wife) are always the ones to volunteer when nobody else does, I asked for somebody else – preferably someone who does not already volunteer on the board. The silence was deafening. When we joined the club, we all agreed to volunteer from time to time to help with running the club, and especially to help with the annual fundraiser. Unfortunately, some members have forgotten or choose to forget, leaving the burden on others. If we want our club to be vibrant, it is incumbent on all of us to do our bit – encourage friends and acquaintances to join as new members (otherwise the club will slowly die), help the less fortunate members of our community by volunteering with the fundraiser, etc. Since we had no volunteer today, I announced that we would not have any lunch notes this week. But one of our newer members, Tony Papirio, has stepped in and created these notes from memory. Thank you Tony - did you finish the wine yet? Roger
President Roger Webb called the meeting of the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, October 21st, 2014, and welcomed us all. Jacquie Price announced that there are committee sign up sheets on every table for the upcoming Cabaret fund raising event and encourage members to sign up for a committee if they hadn’t already done so. Larry Siddall announced that there are still tickets available for the upcoming Amherst Club activity: Arcadia Players All Beethoven Program, On Sunday, October 26, 3:00 PM at the Wesley Methodist Church Hadley, MA He said to contact him for reduced admission. Guests: Rachel Mustin introduced her daughter Carolyn, who resides in Los Angeles California. Andrea Battle introduced our Associate Member Ms. Tartakov Andrea Battle introduced our speaker, Dr. Whitney Battle-Baptiste, an Historical Archaeologist and Associate Professor of Anthropology at UMASS Amherst. Talk: Dr. Baptiste spoke on her work in community based archaeology on Eleuthra Island in the Bahamas. She told of the make up of the population there: the indigenous Lucayan people, the Loyalists, cotton plantation owners from the American south who were transplanted there by Britain after the Revolutionary War, and the Africans, who were there as slaves. Her research site, the Miller Plantation, was ill suited to cotton farming and was abandoned by it’s owner Mrs. Miller, who bequeathed it to eleven families living there. Her talk concluded with a description of the struggles of the descendants those heirs to preserve their heritage by establishing it’s historical significance in the history of slavery and the slave trade, in a place where the real estate is highly coveted by wealthy celebrities, including Oprah Winfrey as well as Britain’s Royal Family. Raffle: Tony Papirio won the wine and Claude Tellier the $10
Scribe – Tony Papirio |
Oct 14: Talk about the big,new Fundraiser Gala on March 14th
Oct 14: Talk about the big,new Fundraiser Gala on March 14thPresident Roger Webb called the meeting of
the Amherst Club to order at noon on Tuesday, October 14th, 2014, and
welcomed us all. Roger noted that Barbara Freed will lead us in a discussion on our new fundraiser immediately after lunch. We will break into committee groups for this. Snapshot: Tony Papirio evoked childhood memories of happy family gatherings and solitary explorations in the beautiful lush garden behind his Papirio grandparents’ home in downtown Pittsfield. The garden occupied every inch of the yard, and was edged with fruit trees enclosing the vegetables and flowers needed by a large Italian family. In recent years he visited the ancestral village in the Abruzzi and found that his grandfather’s boyhood home had a very similar enclosed garden – except that this one was near a castle overlooking the Mediterranean and edged by mountains! Raffle: Dee Waterman won the wine and Tony Papirio the $10. Fundraiser Discussion: Barbara Freed and co-chair Jacqui Price led a discussion of the newly-designed fundraiser “Spring to Life – A Cabaret for Community” to be held on March 14th, 2015 at the Hadley Farms Meeting House. There will be 28 tables of 8 and we must fill them to make our financial goals. Barbara urged everyone to start alerting people in the community to this new fundraiser immediately, to build up awareness. As Jacqui said, we would all like a fundraiser that required less work – but this one isn’t it! Everyone who isn’t already in a fundraising committee is urged to join one or more now. Further planning and procedural discussion will continue in future weeks. Announcements: On Sunday, Oct. 19th at 5 p.m. the Roger L. Wallace Excellence in Teaching Award Dinner will be held at Valentine Hall, Amherst College. Dinner, Award and Dessert. Tickets are $35 – see Andrea Battle or call 516-749-5056. “Amherst Coming Together” - Monday Oct. 20th at 7 p.m. Barbara Love is the speaker at the Unitarian Meeting House. A really good event! Hallowe’en Costume Party – Potluck on Sat. Oct. 25 at 6 p.m. at Phyllis Lehrer’s. RSVP to 253-5179. Arcadia Players is presenting an All Beethoven concert on Sunday, Oct. 26 at 3 p.m. at the Wesley Methodist Church, North Maple Street in Hadley. Tickets 413-586-8742 or online at mktix.com/ap. Roger noted that the Amherst Club will be fielding a team, as usual, in this year’s Trivia Bee that benefits Amherst Education Foundation. The event is on Thursday October 30, 7:00 at the Middle School. Ruth Miller has volunteered to design costumes – which is where we have historically had the most success. Arthur and Andrea have volunteered to put their vast knowledge of trivia to effect in the team. We need two more volunteers. Arthur has the 16th and 17th centuries well covered, Andrea knows all about the 20th century, but as usual we are a little weak on 21st century trivia. If anyone who would like to volunteer, or who has a grandchild who might be able to answer all those questions about rap musicians, please let Roger know. The Eric Carle Museum Picture Book Theatre, directed by Therese Brady Donohue, will be presented on Saturdays on Nov. 8,15,22 at 2 p.m. and Fri-Sat. Nov. 28-29 at 2 p.m. and 3p.m. Tickets available in advance at 413-658-1126. Enjoy playing bridge? Come to the Amherst Senior Center on Wednesdays. Drop in from noon-3 p.m. Your scribe, Linda Honan |
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