The Eastwick Press Newspaper

Eastern Rensselaer County's Community Newspaper

Local News

Summer Book Club At Babcock Lake Beach

By

The Grafton Community Library and Babcock Lake Estates are partnering to host a “Summer Book Club at the Beach” this July and August. The public is invited to pick up the monthly book selection from the Library and then gather at the Babcock Lake Beach Gazebo to have a swim and join in the book discussion.

The first meeting will be Wednesday, July 16, at 7 pm. The featured book will be Homer’s Odyssey: a Fearless Feline Tale, or How I learned about Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat. The second meeting will be Wednesday, August 20, at 7 pm featuring The $64 Tomato. For more details and to order your copy of the books contact the Library at 279-0580 or online at graftoncommunitylibrary.org.

Berlin Volunteer Fire Co. Offers Defensive Driving Course

By

The Berlin Volunteer Fire Company is hosting a defensive driving class offered through the AARP on July 12 from 9 am to 3:30 pm at the Berlin Firehouse at 11 Community Avenue in Berlin.

The public is invited to preregister with Shirley Wager at 658-2893 on a first come first serve basis.

The cost is $20 for AARP members and $25 for others.

Let’s Drum! In Grafton

By

Take your place in the drum circle! Join Capital District musician and educator Jonathan Duda for Let’s Drum at the Grafton Summer Festival on Saturday, July 12, at 11 am. Enjoy a hands-on introduction to percussive instruments like the clay udu jug from Nigeria or the berimbau from Brazil. Participants with all levels of musical ability will have the opportunity to try out instruments played throughout the world in a welcoming setting, no experience necessary.

More information about the program can be found at www.letsdrumprogram.com. This program is sponsored by the Grafton Community Library and is made possible in part through a Community Art$ Grant, a program funded by The Arts Center of the Capital Region through the New York State Council on the Arts, a State agency. Visit www.graftoncommunitylibrary.org or contact 279-0580 for more Library news.

SHS Seeks Goods For Tag Sale

By

Assess your attic. Cull your cupboards. Besiege your basement. Grub out your garage. Your castoffs can help support the Stephentown Historical Society and its programs. Good clean, usable items will be accepted for the July 26 Community Tag Sale to be held at Gardner’s Field on Rt. 22 in Stephentown. Please do not donate computers, computer equipment, televisions, plastic Christmas decorations, records or VHS tapes since they usually do not sell and the Society must then pay to dispose of them properly. Small appliances should be in working order; large appliances and clothing may not be donated. If you have items to donate, please take them to the Heritage Center on Garfield Road on Friday, July 18 and 25, between 1 and 4 pm or call 518-733-5170 to arrange for drop off and with any questions. Please do not leave donations if no one is at the Center.

Selling spaces will also be available for individuals or organizations for $20 so you have time to organize and declutter your own place. Tables, chairs, shade or equipment are not provided. Vendors should arrive no earlier than 8 am on the day of the sale.

The highly visible location is the grassy field south of Gardner’s Coffee Shoppe on Route 22 in Stephentown. This event has attracted a large crowd of shoppers in past years.

The tag sale will be on Saturday, July 26, from 9 am to 3 pm with a rain date of Sunday, July 27.

Win Yankees Vs. Red Sox Tickets At The Grafton Library

By

Tickets are on sale now for the “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” raffle at the Grafton Community Library. Purchase tickets for one dollar each or six tickets for five dollars. The drawing will be at the Library on Wednesday, August 13.

The winner will take home a basket of prizes including two grandstand tickets to the New York Yankees game on Wednesday September 3 at Yankee Stadium versus the Boston Red Sox, a $40 value. Game time is 7 pm. Also in the basket are two Yankee caps, two holographic large tumblers, a Yankee Pez dispenser, a Yankee travel soup mug, soft toy, The Yogi Book and 42 The Official Movie Novel. Stop in at the Library located at 2455 NY Route 2 during regular hours to purchase your raffle tickets. The Library is open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 3-7 pm, Wednesday and Saturday from 10 am-1 pm. The Library is open until 8 pm on Thursday and Friday. Phone 518 279-0580 or visit www.graftoncommunitylibrary.org for news of library programs and events.

Over There: A Remembrance of World War I

By

On Saturday, July 5, at 7 pm Hubbard Hall Projects will present Music from Salem’s first summer season concert “Over There: A Remembrance of World War I.” This concert, which is part of Hubbard Hall’s Celebration Weekend, is in honor of the centennial of World War I and includes Elgar’s Piano Quintet in A minor and Zemlinsky’s String Quartet No. 2. [Read more…] about Over There: A Remembrance of World War I

Hubbard Hall’s Annual Garden Tour

By

The Hubbard Hall Center for the Arts’ annual Garden Tour: Beauty from the Earth, Two Ways, will take place on Saturday, July 12. The tour will be held from 3 to 7 pm, rain or shine. Participants will tour a diversity of fascinating Cambridge area gardens.

This year’s tour features a new twist – each of our talented gardeners has been paired with an equally talented local ceramic artist. You get two tours for the price of one.

Featured Gardens and Ceramic Artists include:

• the ceramic sculpture of Teru Simon;

• the wood fired ceramic sculptures of Jordan Becker in a native garden;

• the sculpture of Leslie Ferst in an Italianate garden, and

• the ceramic birds of Hanni Varosy in a woodland garden.

Admission costs $15. Reserve tickets online at www.hubbardhall.org or by phone at 518-677-2495. Tickets will also be available at the Cambridge Community Garden, on Washington Street, on the day of the tour starting at 2 pm.

There will be a Bonus Event For Garden Lovers – a Garden Yoga Workshop on Sunday, July 13.

Hubbard Hall is located at 25 East Main Street in Cambridge. For more information on this and all Hubbard Hall programs, please call 518-677-2495 or visit our website at www.hubbardhall.org.

Music Under The Trees With The Hill Hollow Band

By

The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is holding a Music Under the Trees event featuring the Hill Hollow Band on Wednesday, July 9, at 7 pm. One of the emerging bright lights in the Capital Region’s grass roots music scene, The Hill Hollow Band performs with a rambling energy that must be seen to be appreciated. Armed with a multitude of instruments, eclectic arrangements and musical influences that span a century, this band has a well earned reputation as local live performance favorites. Get ready to enjoy richly textured arrangements including accordion, mandolin, fiddle, guitars, pedal steel, bass and full harmony vocals. This free concert will be held outdoors. Bring a lawn chair. Light snacks will be available for purchase.

This event is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Dyken Pond Center and made possible with funding by EP&M, Portable and Custom Exhibits. The rain date is July 10. Come early to explore the Center. The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is located at 475 Dyken Pond Road, Cropseyville. Contact us at 518-658-2055 or dykenpond@fairpoint.net for more information.

Wetland Ecology, Jr. Naturalist Program At Dyken Pond

By

The Dyken Pond Environmental Education Center is offering a Junior Naturalist Program on July 9 from 1 to 3 pm. This program will teach Jr. Naturalists all about the different wetland ecosystems located at Dyken Pond Center and include a short hike through the trails. Students will learn about the different plants and animals that inhabit these wetlands as well. A $1 per child donation covers material costs. A complete list of programs can be found at: www.dykenpond.org. Pre-registration is encouraged to help with planning but not required and can be done by contacting the Center at dykenpond@fairpoint.net or 658-2055.