V28-N02 October 2019

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Amherst Citizen

THE AMHERST CITIZEN • 1

VOLUME 28 – NUMBER 2

OCTOBER 2019

Postal Customer

THE

PRSRT. STD. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit No. 10 Amherst, NH ECR WSS

www.amherstcitizen.com • OCTOBER 2019 •

AM H E R S T , N E W HAM P S H I R E ’S C O M M U N I TY N E W S PAP E R

Amherst Garden Club Morning Program – November 7th

Holiday Floral Demonstration

Join the Amherst Garden Club for a holiday floral demonstration presented by Lisa Aquizap, owner of Fiacre Design in Concord, Lisa’s work includes garden and container design, horticultural lectures, and educational work- Holiday decoration shops. This year she also began selling her own field and greenhouse grown cut flowers and opened a retail shop. Fiacre Design is named after Saint Fiacre, the patron saint of gardeners. Lisa’s mission is to share her knowledge and love of gardening with others, especially children, and as such much of the work she does is not for profit. More details about the demonstration will be posted on the Amherst Garden Club web site as the date approaches. The garden club meets Thursday, November 7 at the Messiah Lutheran Church, 303 Route 101, Amherst. The business meeting will start at 9:15 am, followed by refreshments at 10:00, and the presentation from 10:30-11:30. The public is welcome to attend with no fee. Evening Program – November 7th

NH’s Winter Birds

NH Audubon’s “Backyard Winter Bird Survey” is a citizen science project that has been collecting data on the state’s birds since 1967. In this program, Dr. Pamela Hunt uses the Survey’s data to il- Pam Hunt lustrate how populations of our common winter birds have been changing over time. In the process, we’ll explore many other aspects of bird biology. If you feed bids during the winter, you will be fascinated with the data Pam has collected over the years. Pam Hunt has been interested in birds since the tender age of 12, when an uncle took her to Brigantine National Wildlife Refuge in NJ. She went on to earn a B.S. in biology from Cornell University, M.A. in zoology from the University of Montana, and a Ph.D. from Dartmouth College in 1995. Pam came to NH Audubon in 2000 after five years as adjunct faculty at Colby-Sawyer College in New London. In her current position as Avian Conservation Biologist, she works closely with NH Fish and Game to coordinate and prioritize bird research and monitoring in the state, and also authored NH’s “State of the Birds” report. Specific areas of interest include habitat use by early successional birds (particularly whip-poorwills), conservation of aerial insectivores (e.g., swifts and swallows), and the effects of events outside the breeding season on long-distance migrants. The meeting will take place at 7:00 pm at Parkhurst Place, 11 Veterans Road, Amherst, NH. The public is welcome to attend with no fee.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE Letters............................... 2 Town News............................ 4 Recreation............................ 4 Library.................................. 5 & 6 Obituaries............................. 8 Arts & Entertainment............. 7 Region.................................. 9 Mont Vernon......................... 12 Next Issue: November 2019

Students Walk-Out at SHS

Amherst Town Library

Not-So-Scary Halloween Party with Steve Blunt PHOTO BY SHS STUDENT BELLA BLOOD

Students Stage Walk-Out to Express Environmental Concerns AMHERST -- Under a bright sunny sky on September 27th, about 250 Souhegan High School students staged a 30 minute walk-out of classes to express their concern for the environment and how little was being actively done to protect it for future generations. Speakers helped to focus the awareness and opportunities to get involved. Senior Simonne Dodge, one of

the leaders of the walkout, gave a very informative and thoughtful overview of the status of the movement worldwide and locally. The audience was asked “What does this event mean to you?”, “What changes are you personally willing to make?” and “Are you willing to share your voice, because every single voice matters?”.

The students were very attentive, listening carefully and offering encouragement. A number of posters offering opportunities for the students to commit to both support and “changes” were available and were quickly filled with signatures and ideas for change at the High School and in the community.

Tuesday October 29, 2019 3:30 PM to 4:30 PM Children’s Room

AMHERST – Put on your costume and come join the fun! We’ll have a craft, beanbag toss, and, of course, some great music with our favorite library musician, Steve Blunt. Maybe Miss Sarah will tell a not-so-scary story... Don’t miss this chance to get a little more wear out of that fantastic costume!! For kids of all ages. No registration required. Library Programs on pages 5 & 6 u

Come Learn Something New at First Annual Makers Game Fair, October 12 at Amherst Middle School AMHERST -- If you ever find yourself wishing your kids would come out from behind the video game console and play games with people IRL (in real life), the first annual Makers Game Fair may be just the event for your family. The Amherst Makerspace is combining a celebration of making things and making memories with tabletop miniature and board games. The fair runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is free. All ages are welcome. A $5 gamer badge enables the badge holder to play in games. Nominal fees will also be charged for workshops. Food will be available for purchase from Smokehaus Barbecue and Sub Zero Nitrogen Ice Cream. “We are expanding the concept of a regular Maker Fair (celebrating all those who make things) and highlighting the fact that people who make things and those who make complex game stuff are really similar,” explains Terri Behm, Amherst Makerspace Founding Member. “We are excited to provide some workshops and demos that showcase using tools commonly found in a makerspace, like 3D printers, to produce game-related pieces.” Fans of the hit Netlix show “Stranger Things” know the band of middle school

friends like to bond playing the fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) Dungeons & Dragons (D&D). While D&D is still going strong and picking up new players, it is only one of many popular RPGs. Amherst Makerspace Board Member Dave Valentine has been hosting RPG game days for more than a year. He describes the fair as “a game day on steroids.”

Some of the games and workshops that will be featured:

• GMT Games Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea with award-winning game designer Mark McLaughlin • Trilaterum Games Encounter at Sarin’s Rim with game designer Tim Colonna • Damned Human Race by Indie game designer Gabriel Landowski • Warlord Games Test of Honour with game master Bill Greenwald (with terrain by Things from the Basement) • Osprey Games Gaslands (modified version) with game master Mike Paine • Warlord Games Tank Wars with game master Allan Martel Continued on page 4 u

The Makers Game Fair runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Amherst Middle School

Good Stuff Sale at Congregational Church Amherst Land Trust Hosts Sixth Annual Joe English Twilight Challenge of Amherst – October 4th and 5th AMHERST -This well-organized sale, formerly called the Fall Rummage Sale, will feature clothing, jewelry, toys, games, puzzles, books, linens, small household items and home decorations at very reasonable prices. On Saturday morning, all remaining items will be available at $5.00 a bag! Time and place: Friday, October 4, 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, October 5, 9:00 a.m. to noon. The church is located at 11 Church Street, Amherst. Use the side entrance.Questions? See the church website (ccamherst.org) or contact the church office at 673-3231.

Members of the Woman’s Association at the Congregational Church display some of the variety of items available at the October 4 & 5 Good Stuff Sale

AMHERST -- On October 12, 2019, the Amherst Land Trust will host its sixth annual full-moon fundraising race, the Joe English Twilight Challenge. Teams and individuals are invited to register for solo and team-relay races around a groomed 2.62-mile woodland track, with day-of-event registration starting at 3:30 pm and the first race at 5 pm. Directed by a team of experienced marathon, road-race, and cross-country organizers, the event is designed for people out for both fun, family time, and achievement. The festival-like race routes runners with every lap through the music-filled

arena at Freestyle Farm, where spectators can help runners to refresh with food and drink. The event draws people ranging from elite ultra runners to kids in school groups. Participants can compete as solo runners or in two- to five-person teams. This year the event features five options: a 6-hour ultra marathon, marathon, half marathon, and team relays for both the half marathon and 6-hour ultra. In the relay events, Mark and Lynne Bjorgen of Amherst won the half-marathon relay in 1 hour, 38 minutes, a course record. Brian Lavoie, Susan Cassidy, Nicole Gibeault, and Heather Lavoie, the

Eastern Bank team, won the marathon relay in 3 hours, 8 minutes, also a new course record. Says George Bower, longtime race director, “We get rave reviews from everyone from ultra runners, to energetic kids, to marathoners, to outdoor and fitness enthusiasts.” He urges new registrants to run for both fun and to support conservation. New for 2019 is the six-hour ultra relay. The directors have also struck a new medal for the race. The all-metal, five color, custom-cast, Joe English figurine puts the event on par with other regional races Continued on page 5 u


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V28-N02 October 2019 by The AMHERST CITIZEN - Issuu