Hilltown Families 
Suggested Events for November 10th – 16th, 2018
To find out about more event, be sure to visit our Suggest an Event Bulletin Board to see what our readers have recently shared! Have an event to share? Feel encouraged to self-post community events here at any time!
If you have a community event, educational program, or service-learning opportunity happening in Western Massachusetts that you’d like to let us know about, self-post your event at any time on our Suggest An Event bulletin board. The events below are “suggested.” Please take the time to confirm that these events are happening, along with time, place, age appropriateness, and costs before attending.
Serving Western Massachusetts since 2005, Hilltown Families supports development and enhancement of our local economy and community. Local businesses, individuals, schools, and non-profits are encouraged to partner with Hilltown Families through sponsorship and advertising. Let us help get the word out about your after school/homeschool class, event, camp, workshop, fundraiser, business/school, service, open house, volunteer opportunity or general announcement. Deliver your message to thousands of families living throughout the four counties of Western MA while supporting the community development work of Hilltown Families! Click HERE to find out more.
After-School Classes & Enrichment Programs
Reach thousands of families in the region with our 2018-2019 directory! Reserve your space.
Our community is rich in learning opportunities to supplement the interests of children, teens, and life-long learners. We have put together a directory of after-school & weekend classes and enrichment programs happening across Western Massachusetts throughout the school year. Many of these programs aren’t just for kids, so to all the adults out there – feel encouraged to pursue your interests and honor your callings through these enrichment classes, too!
If you have a class or program you would like to have included in our directory, contact us at sales@hilltownfamilies.org to learn about our advertising options and sponsorship packages.
Bulletin Board
Nov. 18
Interested in starting a Girls on the Run program at your school? Girls on the Run is now accepting applications for new sites for our spring season. Come check out what Girls on the Run is all about at our Fall 5k, taking place at Smith College on November 18th at 10:30am! Our 5k is unlike anything else. Upon arrival, you will be swept away by the excitement in the air. Colored hair spray, facepaint, joy and positivity can be seen and felt before the celebratory run even begins. This fall we will be hosting over 500 girls, their running buddies, families and many community members. Come and run, feel inspired and take home a smile you will wear from ear to ear the rest of the day! Register and learn more about the 5k at: www.girlsontherunwesternma.org.
Nov 11
The Milltown Artisan Fair on Sunday, November 11 from 11-5 at Eastworks (116 Pleasant Street, Easthampton) features a juried selection of fine handmade goods by twenty local artists and makers. Jewelry, ceramics, home decor and furnishings in various media, original art and prints, mixed media assemblage, textile art, ornaments, photographs, fashion accessories for children, adults and pets, and more. Free admission. A full descriptive listing of exhibitors may be found at the Milltown Artisan Fair Facebook event page. Contact: milltownartisanfair@gmail.com.
Nov 17
The Holiday Fair at The Hartsbrook School: a seasonal celebration and long-time family favorite in the Valley! Enjoy candle dipping, gingerbread decorating, jump rope making, pony rides, a treasure hunt for young children and holiday shopping from local artisans. Fun for all ages. Experience the wonder that abounds at the fair! Saturday, November 17th from 10 am to 3 pm. 193 Bay Road, Hadley. www.hartsbrook.org
Nov – May
Toddler Story Time at The Common School: Looking for a cozy morning activity for your toddler? Look no further! The Common School will be holding a free Toddler Story Time filled with books, songs, finger plays and a simple snack for children ages 14 months to 3 years. This event will take place once a month with their librarian, JennyKate Marble. This series begins November 8 and continues through May on the first Thursday of every month (note it is the second Thursday in November and January due to school closings). Meet at The Common School library, 521 South Pleasant Street, Amherst, from 9:30-10:30 AM. Please contact Dana Kadish, Director of Admissions, at outreach@commonschool.org with any questions.
Add your class
Reach thousands of families in the region with our 2018-2019 directory! Reserve your space. Our community is rich in after-school learning opportunities to supplement the interests of our children, teens, and life-long learners. We are putting together a directory of after-school & weekend classes and enrichment programs happening across Western Massachusetts to be published on our web site later this month and featured throughout the school year. If you have a class or program you would like to have included in our directory, contact us at sales@hilltownfamilies.org to learn about our advertising options and sponsorship packages.
Add your school
Hilltown Families Preschool Directory: Are you looking for a preschool that fits your child’s personality and reflects your family’s values? Check out our growing Preschool Directory, covering all four counties in Western Massachusetts, and find the perfect place for your young one! — Have a school you’d like to include in this list? Click here to find out how to have it added.
ADVERTISE HERE: Reach thousands of families in Western MA while supporting the community development work of Hilltown Families! See your summer camp, class, community event, school, open house, audition, homeschool program, workshop, volunteer opportunity, wellness program, local business, after-school class, or non-profit featured here in the Bulletin Board section of our list of Weekly Suggested Events and in our weekly eNewsletter, reaching thousands of families living throughout the four counties of Western MA while supporting the community development work of Hilltown Families! Find out more about our advertising options and how you can partner with Hilltown Families in your online marketing by emailing us at at sales@hilltownfamilies.org.
JOIN OUR TEAM OF CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Interested in becoming a Contributing or Guest Writer for Hilltown Families? We welcome writings that reflect the community-building and educational efforts parents, teens, teachers, artists, activists and community leaders work towards and accomplish, and how that affects, supports and empowers our families. All writing styles welcomed, including local reviews, DIY posts, seasonal cooking/local food, and community-based educational & community service learning opportunities/resources. Send your query to info@hilltownfamilies.org.
LIST OF WEEKLY SUGGESTED EVENTS
November 10th – 16th, 2018
Saturday • Sunday
Monday • Tuesday • Wednesday • Thursday • Friday
Suggest an Event | Cultural Itineraries | Forecast | Museum Passes | Weekly eNewsletter | Farmers’ Markets | Storyhour & Playgroups| Berkshire Family Fun | Advertise/Sponsorship | en Español
Events Happening in the Hilltowns
Saturday, November 10th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
9-10am – HILLTOWN FAMILY VARIETY SHOW: Tune in on your FM dial, or listen live via streaming audio at www.valleyfreeradio.org. Food, glorious food!!! We all eat it, so why not sing some songs about it! Heather Hirshfield and Eddie RosenBerg III, otherwise known as The Green Orbs, take you on a musical culinary journey with songs from artists like Weird Al, The Pop Ups, and Cookie Monster on the menu. Encore of Saturday’s broadcast airs Sunday morning from 7-8am and podcast is posted here on Hilltown Families immediately following Sunday’s broadcast. Listen to the Hilltown Family Variety Show podcasts anytime. Click here select from over 10 years of archived shows!
Saturday, November 10, 10am
ARTS AND CRAFTS/PLACEMAKING
Saturday, November 10, 2-3pm
CHILDREN’S LITERATURE/ASTRONOMY
Mooncakes, or yuebing, are a delicious Chinese pastry made with red bean or lotus paste. Typically eaten during the Mid-Autumn Festival, these treats often have a whole egg yolk in the center to represent the full moon. Grace Lin’s new picture book A Big Mooncake for Little Star tells the story of a little girl, struggling to wait for her mother’s delicious mooncakes! While she waits, she learns all about the phases of the moon. Grace Lin will be reading A Big Mooncake for Little Star and signing books this Saturday. The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. 125 West Bay Road, Amherst, MA (FREE W/MUSEUM ADMISSION)
Sunday, November 10th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
Sunday, November 11, 10am
ARTS AND CRAFTS/PLACEMAKING
Sunday, November 11, 10-11am
SPIRITUALITY/QUAKER MEETING
Sunday, November 11, 11am-12pm
ART STUDIES/NATURE STUDIES
The late 18th and early 19th century Romantic period in music, art, and literature was primarily marked by an emphasis on the emotional state of the artist. As a reaction against the rationalism and industrial logic of the so-called Enlightenment, Romantic artists privileged the intuitive realm and portrayed the natural world as the site of sublime revelation. Thus, artists of this period were drawn to extreme natural phenomena, such as storms, mountain peaks, earthquakes, and volcanoes. Join curator Michael Hartman for lecture on the fascination with extreme nature found in 19th century art. The Clark Art Institute. 225 South Street, Williamstown, MA (FREE W/ MUSEUM ADMISSION)Sunday, November 11, 11am-5pm
ART STUDIES/COLLABORATIVE CONSUMPTION
Sunday, November 11, 2-4pm
ECOLOGY/BEAVERS
Sunday, November 11, 4-6pm
CHILDREN’S LITERATURE/RECEPTION
We are fortunate to have some of the most beloved children’s literature authors and illustrators right here in the Valley, including Jane Yolen and Mo Willems. Of course, we also have the nation’s first museum solely dedicated to picture book art. Join the Eric Carle Museum, R. Michelson Galleries, and some of our area’s amazing writers and illustrators for the 29th Annual Children’s Illustration Celebration! R. Michelson Galleries. 132 Main Street, Northampton, MA (FREE)
Monday, November 12th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
Storyhour & Playgroups: East Longmeadow, Pelham & Whately
Monday, November 12, 7am-11pm
ART STUDIES/IMMIGRATION
As thousands of migrants walk north through Central America seeking better lives, the Walk Unafraid project is working to empower marginalized communities and build solidarity through art. Art That Speaks, an exhibition by Guatemala born artist Clemente Sajquiy, is part of the Walk Unafriad project, featuring handmade lawn signs addressing a number of social justice issues. Sajquiy’s work will be on display until November 15. For more information about Art That Speaks and Walk Unafriad, visit Art That Speaks. Fuel Bistro. 293 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA (FREE)
Tuesday, November 13th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
Tuesday, November 13, 7:30pm
HISTORY/HORTICULTURE
While we may take fruits and vegetables for granted, the variety and accessibility of fresh produce in pre-industrial societies was severely limited. Additionally, genetically modified crops and chemical pesticides have created monstrously large and unnaturally uniform vegetables. The truth is that the types of vegetables that were common even in colonial America would be unrecognizable to us now. At this meeting of the Pelham Historical Society, Ruth DiBuono, Coordinator of Horticulture at Old Sturbridge Village, will be discussing the history of vegetables in New England. Pelham Library Ramsdell Room. 2 South Valley Road, Pelham, MA (FREE)
Wednesday, November 14th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
Wednesday, November 14, 10-11:30am
PLACEMAKING/PARENT GROUP
Wednesday, November 14, 10am-1pm
NATURE STUDIES/HIKE
Bogs are important and unique ecosystems. Perhaps most significantly, bogs function as carbon sinks, reservoirs that accumulate and store carbon. Carbon sinks can remove carbon from the atmosphere through the process of carbon sequestration. As the amount of carbon in our atmosphere rises to levels never before seen during human history, the concept of carbon sinks is being explored and applied in a variety of natural and artificial circumstances. If you’d like to learn more about bogs and enjoy a lovely hike, don’t miss Bob’s Way Hike, a moderate hike through bogs and wetlands. Monterey, MA (FREE)
Thursday, November 15th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
Thursday, November 15, 3pm
FILM STUDIES/FILM FESTIVAL
The Northampton Film Festival is creating community through film! With 48 films being screened over four days, at nine venues in Northampton, you won’t want to miss this celebration of film and our vibrant, creative community. From local to international, the festival features films from many different genres and styles, including several collaborations between filmmakers and local community groups. For more information and a complete list of films and locations, please visit The Northampton Film Festival. Downtown Northampton. Northampton, MA ($)Thursday, November 15, 3:30-4:30pm
LOCAL HISTORY/CIVIL RIGHTS
Abolitionist hero Sojourner Truth spent more than ten years living and working in Florence. During this time, she was part of a community of abolitionists and women’s rights advocates and met with luminaries such as Frederick Douglass, David Ruggles, and William Lloyd Garrison. Come learn all about Sojourner Truth’s life in Florence at this event, which will examine children’s books based on her life and discuss the ongoing significance of her legacy. Forbes Library. 20 West Street, Northampton, MA (FREE)Thursday, November 15, 6-7:30pm
COMMUNICATION/CLIMATE CHANGE
Research shows that not many people talk about climate change with friends and family. This is part of the problem. But how do we talk about an issue as profound as climate change? How can we bring ourselves to discuss issues like short-term extinction? If we are going to be prepared for the challenges that are coming, we need new tools to think, talk, and act. At this talk, UMass professor Ezra Markowitz will be discussing research on the importance of interpersonal communication around the issue climate change and suggesting ways we can begin to respond to this unprecedented situation. Hitchcock Center for the Environment. 845 West Street, Amherst, MA (FREE)
Friday, November 16th, 2018
Click HERE to discover classes. Click HERE to find out about other community events. Click HERE to leave a comment about upcoming events.
Friday, November 16, 12:15-12:45pm
LOCAL HISTORY/LECTURE
The Second Great Awakening is what historians call the dramatic period of Protestant revival in the United States during the early 19th century. While attempts to return to a more “pure” or “primitive” form of Christianity had always been a large part of the religious climate in the United States, the Second Great Awakening reflected a growing discomfort with the skepticism and rationality of the so-called Enlightenment. Memberships in evangelical denominations swelled and interest in the emotional, ecstatic, and supernatural aspects of Christian worship increased. Within this climate and following the traumatic events of the Civil War, the Spiritualist movement developed. Through mediums and seances, Spiritualists believed that they could establish definitive proof of life after death. The Spiritualist movement had a huge impact on the culture of the Pioneer Valley. Come learn all about this unique moment in local history with UMass professor Robert Cox. Amherst History Museum. 67 Amity Street, Amherst, MA (FREE)Friday, November 16, 6-8pm
GAME NIGHT
Games are universal. Every human community in history has had some kind of game played by children and adults. When you think about it, it’s no surprise: in addition to fun, games teach us a lot about positive social interactions. Games teach problem solving, dramatically increase communication skills, foster cooperation, and reduce stress. Establishing a family game night can also be a great way to build new family traditions. Even better, come have a game night with your whole community and create a new tradition for everyone to share! Family Game Night at Berkshire Children and Families is a great opportunity to gather with old friends and make new ones. Berkshire Children and Families. 480 West Street, Pittsfield, MA (FREE)Friday, November 16, 7-8:30pm
HISTORY/CIVIL RIGHTS
Harriet Beecher Stowe’s 1852 novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin is perhaps the most influential book in the history of the United States. An active abolitionist, Stowe was a supporter of the Underground Railroad and wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin as a powerful condemnation of slavery. The novel galvanized the abolitionist movement in the north and was by far the best selling book of its era, both in the United States and Great Britain. The impact the novel had was so profound that Abraham Lincoln was rumored to have said, upon meeting Stowe, “so this is the little lady that started the great war.” Despite the enormous historical importance placed on Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the story of the man who inspired the novel has been largely forgotten. Josiah Henson, a slave from Maryland, spent 41 years as a slave before escaping to Canada with his family. Don’t miss this free screening of the film “Josiah: the Story that Sparked the Civil War,” followed by a discussion with filmmaker Jared Brock. Northampton Community Arts Trust. 33 Hawley Street, Northampton, MA (FREE)Friday, November 16, 7-10pm
PARENTS NIGHT OUT/TEXTILES
Come enjoy an evening of music, dancing, drinks, and art. To celebrate the artists who contributed to the exhibit “Homespun ~ Hilandería: 100 Years of Textile Arts in Holyoke,” Wisteriahurst Museum is hosting a party, where guests can meet the artists and check out the exhibit one last time. In honor of the exhibit and Holyoke’s rich history in the textile industry, guests are being invited to wear something homemade! Wisteriahurst Museum. 238 Cabot Street, Holyoke, MA ($)
Hilltown Families’ list of Suggested Events is supported in part by grants from the Belchertown, Buckland, Chicopee, Hadley, Plainfield, Shelburne, Westhampton, and Worthington Cultural Councils, local agencies which are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.
