Community news for the Vernon edition
South Windsor Historical Society presents Heritage Day
SOUTH WINDSOR – Heritage Day, a celebration of town and colonial history and community, will be staged again on Saturday, Sept. 30, by the South Windsor Historical Society. The event, in its 15th year, will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Burden Field at the north end of Main Street.
Admission and parking is free but donations are welcomed. One of the great attractions is the bake sale of home goods, cakes, breads, pies and cookies, including offerings for children to buy, cookies, brownies and such.
Other attractions include Historic wagon rides up Main Street, sponsored by the Wood Memorial Library; and Museum. Docents will be providing history of the houses along the way.
The event also features the historic Governor’s Horse Guard with demonstrations and pony rides, colonial crafts by The Society of the 17th Century, and entertainment by the The Grass Routes Bluegrass Band, South Windsor Community Chorus, and The Sweetest Key a cappella singers.
Historical displays include Native American skills and a 1/3 model of the Bissell Ferry. Crafts and games for children, colonial-style, will take place.
Blessing of the Animals taking place at St. George’s Episcopal Church
BOLTON – The Rev. Chris Rose will be blessing all animals who are brought to St. George’s Episcopal Church on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 11 a.m. Social distancing will be observed during the blessing. The annual Blessing of the Animals will take place outside the church in the parking lot at 1150 Boston Turnpike. In addition to the traditional types of pets (dogs, cats, gerbils, fish, turtles, birds, etc.), the more exotic type pets will be blessed.
All animals are welcome and must be either on a leash or in a cage. Stuffed animals and photos of pets will be blessed, too. Further information is available at 860-643-9203 or email stgeorges@stgeorgesboltonct.org.
Book clubs to meet in Manchester
MANCHESTER – On Thursday, Oct. 5, at 2 p.m., the Walking Book Club, reading The Hacienda by Isabel Canas, will meet at the Manchester Public Library, 586 Main St., in the Mary Cheney Library Lobby.
Attendees will take a two-mile walk to and from the library, making stops for discussion. The walk is rain or shine, but in extreme weather, call the library at 860-645-0821. Call the library to register. Copies of the book are available at both buildings.
The newest book club offered at Manchester Public Library, the Happily Ever After Book Club, will have its next meeting on Thursday, Oct. 5, at 6:30 p.m. at Whiton Branch Library on 100 North Main St.
Read and discuss some of the most talked about books of today, as well as some perennial favorites and sleeper hits. On Oct. 5, discuss “The Hating Game” by Sally Thorne. No registration is required for this free program. Copies of the book will be available at both library buildings.
The Check ‘Em Out Book Club will meet Monday, Oct. 9, at 6:30 p.m. at Manchester Public Library. The club will discuss “The Haunting of Alejandra” by V. Castro. Copies of the book are available at both library buildings for check out. No registration is required for this
free program for adults.
Road race entry fees to increase Oct. 1
MANCHESTER – Manchester Road Race officials are reminding potential entrants that the registration fees for the annual Thanksgiving Day run will increase on Oct. 1.
The entry fee is $32 for runners who sign up online by 11:59 p.m. (EST) on Sept. 30. It increases to $37 on Oct. 1, and to $42 on Nov. 18.
Runners can register online at www.manchesterroadrace.com. Registration closes on Nov. 21, and no entries will be accepted on race day.
Participants who sign up by 11:59 p.m. (EST) on Oct. 9 will receive personalized race bibs with their names printed on them.
Race officials are also offering a virtual option for those who cannot be present in Manchester on Thanksgiving Day. Runners can use a GPS-equipped app on their smartphones to run the race remotely anywhere in the world. More details about the Virtual Manchester Road Race are available at www.manchesterroadrace.com. The 87th Manchester Road Race will be held at 10 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 23).
“Gardening is Painless” program taking place in Glastonbury
GLASTONBURY – The Glastonbury Council of Garden Clubs is bringing Neal Sanders back. In 2019, he delighted his audience with a humorous talk entitled Gardening is Murder. On Oct. 2 at 5:45 p.m. he will return to the South Glastonbury Congregational Church, 949 Main St., and entertain with “Gardening is Painless.”
This event is free and open to the public. The Council will be collecting donations to Glastonbury Gives,an initiative created by Glastonbury Social Services to assist residents in need and one that is funded entirely by contributions.
Don White to perform at South Congregational Church
EAST HARTFORD – South Congregational Church, 1301 Forbes St., hosts a return performance of singer/songwriter, comedian and storyteller Don White, on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $15 in advance at southucc.org/events, and $20 at the door. Cost is $5 for children and teens. Light refreshments will be served. South Church is handicap accessible and parking is available behind the building. Follow the paved walkway from the parking lot to enter the church. For additional information, contact lindarus@hotmail.com or call 860-645-0894
“Reunited” David Coate group to perform in Rockville
ROCKVILLE – Jacob’s Well Coffeehouse will feature the “reunited” David Coate Group on Friday, Oct. 6. Doors open at 7 p.m., with live music starting at 7:30 p.m. The event will be held in the Union Church sanctuary, 3 Elm St. Admission is free, and dress is casual.
Coate is a contemporary Christian music singer, songwriter, worship leader, and producer based in Pembroke, a suburb of Boston. He was educated in classical guitar at the Kansas City Conservatory of Music and educated in keyboard/piano at Berklee College. Over the years, he has recorded 11 CDs in the rock/pop genre, the most recent being Inside Out.
The David Coate Group toured during the 1980s and 1990s, performing songs from the first three albums, Time Keeps on Running, State of the Heart, and Still Small Voice. The current band includes three members of the original group: bass player Mike Sarni, keyboardist Maurice Brule and David Coate on vocals and guitar. New to the group are Doug Reilly on drums and Katie Duff on vocals. The last time the entire group performed in Vernon was during JesusFest 2007.
The event will also be live streamed on YouTube and re-broadcast on the Community Voice Channel. For details, call 860-871-6500 or visit www.JacobsWellCoffeehouse.com.
Vernon Friends of the Library to meet in October
VERNON – The next meeting of the Friends will be held on Thursday, Oct. 5, at noon at the Rockville Public Library, 52 Union St. The guest speaker will be Liz Bologna, executive director of Arts Center East.
At the library’s request, the Friends now provide the Booklist Reader found monthly in the library. It provides not only adult novels but also children’s and teens novels and books suggestions.
The Friends will have a table at the Strong Farm Harvest Festival on Sunday, Oct. 22, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Pet fair taking place in Vernon
VERNON – The Friends of the Saxony Dog Park will hold its annual pet fair on Sept. 30, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the American Legion Post 14 on West Street.
Tables for vendors of pet and non-pet items are $40, and merchants keep all profits. Also accepted are donations of gift baskets and gift cards to be given as drawing prizes. For more information, contact Lynda Waldron at Lynda.r.waldron@gmail.com. For ticket sales for drawings, contact Bob Deane at mrblackjak53@gmail.com. Tickets will be sold on site. For safety precautions, pet owners are asked not to bring their dogs.
Dionysus Theatre Company hosts gala celebration
TOLLAND – Dionysus Theatre Company (DTC) was established in 2013 by Gabbi Mendelsohn as a collaboration with Arts Center East in Vernon and over the past ten years DTC has made a name for itself running as a black box theater.
In May of this year the company produced its final show at the Hartford Turnpike location when its relationship with Arts Center East came to an abrupt end. This began a period of uncertainty for DTC.
Sometimes uncertainty can lead to new opportunities which proved true for this company. During this time of change, the theater community, especially the members of Windsor Jesters, rallied around DTC which allowed them to move forward with its fall production of Seder by Sarah Gancher. Their current location is non-traditional which enhances what DTC does best: reimagining how the play, the audience, and the stage intersect.
They are continuing with their Gala Celebration, originally planned for last May and now scheduled as a kick-off for its opening night celebration of Seder on Friday, Oct. 6. They look forward to expanding to a permanent location in the future. For now, look for Dionysus Theatre Company at its temporary location, 45 Industrial Park West. Visit dionysustheatrecompany.org for more information about donations, the gala, and Seder tickets.
“Unspoken” to perform in Rockville on Oct. 1
ROCKVILLE – Union Church will host a free concert by the internationally-acclaimed Christian pop/rock band “Unspoken” on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m. at 3 Elm St. Admission is free and open to the public. A freewill offering will be taken to help with expenses. This event is Unspoken’s only Connecticut gig during their 2023 tour.
Unspoken is a band made up of leader Chad Mattson on vocals, Jon Lowry on guitars, keyboards, bass guitar and vocals, and Ariel Munoz on drums.
Mattson grew up in a small town on the Maine coast. He became a drug addict, ending up living in the basement of a drug house with rodents running past his mattress on the floor. “There’s so much shame and guilt,” he recalls, “but there was a little voice inside me that said God wasn’t finished yet.” He moved back home, and his mother found a man to lead a Bible study for Mattson and his friends. Everywhere he went, someone was telling him about Jesus. “The beautiful thing about the Gospel is that wherever you’re at in life, that’s exactly the place in which God opens His arms to us,” he says. For details, call Union Church at 860-875-2559 or visit www.UnionChurch.community.
