Hilltown Families 
Suggested Events 07/04/09-07/10/09
Photo credit: Sienna Wildfield
SUGGEST AN EVENT
If you have a family-friendly event or educational program happening in Western Massachusetts that you’d like to let us know about, post your event on our “Suggest An Event” page. The events below are “suggested.” Please take the time to confirm that these events are happening, along with time, location, age appropriateness and costs before attending
4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS & PARADE SCHEDULE
Click HERE to see the schedule for firework displays and parades happening in the Hilltowns and the Pioneer Valley.
BULLETIN BOARD
- July 9 – Fireflies are lightening up the skies.
- July 10 – Blueberries will begin to ripen, starting with low bush blueberries.
- July 13 – Listen for Snowy Tree Crickets and Katydids in the evenings.
- July 20 – The song of the cicadas on hot summer days start to be heard.
- August 6 – Look for Yellow Warblers around the thistles.
- August 19 – Have a freshwater stream nearby? Look for scarlet red Cardinal Flowers.
Suggest an Event | Local Forecast | Get Directions | Free Museum Passes | Farmer’s Market | Family Centers (Ages 0-4)|Facebook
Events Happening in the Hilltowns
Saturday – 07/04
- 6-10am – FAMILY RADIO: Valley Free Radio (WXOJ-LP 103.3FM Northampton, MA) offers 4-hours of commercial-free family programing every Saturday, including Spare the Rock, Spoil the Child from 7-9am, and the Hilltown Family Variety Show from 9-10am. Listen via streaming audio at www.valleyfreeradio.org. SRSC can also be heard on The River from 8-10am.
- 4th of July Fireworks & Parade Schedule – Lots and lots of great day long celebrations included in this list.
- Berkshire Summer Arts Festival all weekend in Great Barrington, MA.
- 9:30am-4:30pm – MUSEUM ADVENTURES: Materials Make It! Fibers, Clay and Wood at the Historic Deerfield Museum in Deerfield, MA.
- 11am-5pm – HISTORY: 10th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Militia Co. C Civil War reenactors will be at the Trolley Museum in Shelburne Falls, MA.
Sunday – 07/05
- Fireworks happening on the 5th of July
- 9:30am-4:30pm – MUSEUM ADVENTURES: Materials Make It! Fibers, Clay and Wood at the Historic Deerfield Museum in Deerfield, MA.
- 3pm – FAMILY CONCERT: Dan Zanes and Friends at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in Great Barrington, MA.
Weekdays 07/06/09-07/10/09
For more events happening this week visit our “Suggest An Event” page. There are also fun suggestions on our THINGS TO DO, PLACES TO SEE page. If you know of an upcoming event that you would like to share with other families, please feel encourage to do so by posting it HERE.
Paintbox Theater in Northampton, MA
Winnie-the-Pooh
July 8-11, 10:30
A. A. Milne’s beloved characters Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo Owl are brought to life on the Paintbox stage. Featuring Tom McCabe as A.A. Milne and the audience as Christopher Robin. Will Tigger make an appearance? Of course!
http://hilltownfamilies.wordpress.com/suggest-an-event-or-group-activity/#comment-22758
Liz Jacobson-Carroll said:
Buckland Public Library presents….Pizza Pie & The Sky
For: Individuals aged 10-100
On: Friday night, July 10th, 7-9:00 pm
At: Buckland Public Hall at 17 Upper Street (behind the church)
Celebrate the wonders of summer — and all that leisure time you will have to gaze at the sky — by joining friends and amateur astronomer Paul Cardone of East Longmeadow for an interactive media presentation on deep sky and its infinite possibilities. Paul is a longtime member of the Springfield Stars Club, and is well known for his wry wit and lively presentations to audiences throughout Western Massachusetts. You don’t have to reply in order to come to this free event, but we’ll have more pizza if you do! Email ljacobson-carroll@cwmars.org with the number of folks you will be bringing.
Join us this week for Northampton’s Monthly Art Walk.
Friday, July 10th, 2009 5-8pm
We Want You! Arts Night Out needs your help. We’re looking for volunteers interested in visual and performing arts, marketing, event planning, fundraising and outreach. Let’s make Arts Night Out Awesome! We want your ideas, energy, time and creativity to help get the word out, organize small performances and exhibitions, and staff a downtown Arts Night Out hub. If you’re interested email Julia at: julia@commonwealthcenter.org.
Community Sing Led by Penny Schultz
At the Community Sings, we celebrate the capacity to make music through song that is our birthright. Rounds, part songs, chants and spirituals from a wide variety of cultures carry us into worlds of beauty, humor, sadness and joy.
All ages and abilities are welcome.
Tuesday July 7th
6:30-8pm followed by potluck supper
At Earthdance in Plainfield, MA
Suggested donation – $5/person (children free)
The Northampton Center for the Arts annual Works on Paper
juried exhibition opens on Friday, July 10, with a festive reception
during Arts Night Out, 5-7pm.
The public is invited to view the works on display in both the East and West galleries, representing 40 artists from the community. The 60 pieces that comprise the exhibit offer a full range of possibilities for works on paper, including pastel, watercolor, printmaking media, acrylic and oil, collage, multimedia, scanography and photography.
Sun & Thurs: Magic & Music @ the Colonial in Pittsfield, MA
Sunday, enjoy A Night of Magic, a Las Vegas style family show full of grand scale magic & illusion and unmatched audience interaction. Bill Blagg III (http://www.billblagg.com) is breaking the mold of the typical magician: critics refer to his show as Second City meets David Copperfield. Thursday, the Colonial hosts the legendary Glenn Miller Orchestra, founded by the most successful of all the big bandleaders back in the Swing era of the 1930s and ‘40s. Currently led by trombonist Larry O’Brien, the 19-member band continues to play the original Miller arrangements that keep exciting fans around the world.
A Night of Magic | Sunday, July 5 | 2pm & 7pm | The Colonial | 111 South Street | 997-4444 | $40/$15
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Monday-Friday: Kids in the park & online!
Two great activities for children are happening this week & beyond. The City of Pittsfield’s Summer Playground Program provides a variety of drop-in recreation activities for city children at no cost. Playground leaders create safe, supervised & fun-filled environments with activities including sports, games, arts and crafts, & nature activities. Also next week is “computer college for kids” camp at BCC. Your child will “travel” to any place on the planet using the internet, learning research skills, & creating a travel brochure and short presentation to tell you about their “virtual vacation.” Recommended for children entering fourth, fifth or sixth grade in September.
Summer Playground Program | Monday, July 6-Friday, August 14 | 9am-12pm, 1-4pm | The Commons, Clapp Park, Pitt Park, and Deming Park | 236-8888 | FREE!
Virtual Vacation Camp | Monday, July 6-Friday, July 10 | 9am-12pm | Berkshire Community College, Field Administration Center | 1350 West Street | 499-4600 | $150 for the week
Sat & Sun: Celebrate the 4th of July Weekend!
Called one of the ten best Fourth of July parades in the country by USA Today, Pittsfield’s annual Independence Day parade, held this Saturday, is legendary for its outstanding musical acts, balloons and floats & its hometown feel. Continue the 4th of July celebrations with baseball & fireworks at Wahconah Park. And on Sunday, check out the annual Berkshire Charity Auto Show benefitting United Way: antique and original vehicles, modified cars and trucks, Corvettes, street rods, muscle cars and motorcycles from 1972 or earlier will be on display and entered for competition.
Pittsfield Fourth Of July Parade | Saturday, July 4 | 10am | Downtown Pittsfield | FREE!
Baseball and Fireworks | Saturday, July 4 | 6:30pm game; fireworks afterwards | Wahconah Park | 105 Wahconah Street| $5-$9
24th Annual Berkshire Charity Auto Show | Sunday, July 5 | Berkshire Medical Center’s Hillcrest Campus | 165 Tor Court | 698-3195 | $4/Free 11 & under
http://www.berkshireautoshow.com/
Cup & Top Cafe in Florence, MA
Tuesday July 7th @ 4:00 pm
THE MUDCAKES – Kindie Rock from Australia
http://www.themudcakes.com/
Australian singer/songwriter SHERRY RICH and her Boston born partner RICK PLANT swing effortlessly from the sounds of the tropics through to 70’s funk, garage pop, surf music, reggae and bluegrass. Parents will identify with lighthearted songs that celebrate the ups and downs of raising a family.
“Who would’ve thought the best kids americana album in recent memory would come out of Australia?” -Zooglobble, 2009 (FREE)