New Lebanon

All of these events are free and will take place at the library which is located at 550 State Route 20.

February 9, 23 (event is every other Monday)

Study the Constitution – 7:00 pm. Bi-weekly discussion group focusing on the study of the Constitution. Interested participants should bring their questions and be ready to share their opinions.

February 13

Valentine Dance Party – 7 pm. An evening of romantic acoustic music with Divinitress. Dancing, Valentine sweets and crafts for kids. Donations for the performer appreciated.

February 17

Kids Stuff: Animal Tracks – 2 pm. Join us to learn about track patterns, identify the animals that made them and make plaster casts of local animals. All materials provided.

February 18, 25 (Wednesdays)

Small Wonders Storytime – 10 am. Songs, movement activities and age-appropriate stories for our younger patrons and their caregivers. For toddlers up to 35 months.

February 18, 25 (Wednesdays)

Preschool Story Hour – 11 am. Story hour includes crafts, songs, and movement activities. For 35 months to 5 yrs.

February 19

Family Crafts Night – 6:30 pm. Join us and make a heart suncatcher. All materials provided. For ages 5 and up.

February 20

Afternoon Movie for Kids – 1 pm. Join us for a screening of the current film suitable for the whole family. Call for title.

February 20

Tom Abdow in concert – 6:30 pm. An evening of acoustic folk, country and rock music. Donations for the performer appreciated.

February 21

Paws-to-Read – 9 am. Therapy dogs come to the library and children read to their furry friends. And, of course, the dogs listen! Please call to register.

February 24

Block Party: Legos in the Library! – 4 to 5:30 pm. Lego club for kids. We provide the Legos and will display all creations in the library until the next club.

The Library is at 550 State Route 20, New Lebanon, NY. For further information please contact Jeannie Bogino at (518) 794-8844.

“Floral Arranging” with Anne Schomaker on Monday, February 23 from 10 am to Noon at the North Chatham Free Library.

Surround yourself with the beauty of Spring flowers in this hands-on workshop.  Join our beloved Anne Schomaker from the Garden Club of Kinderhook.  Materials will be provided but please bring clippers.  To register: Please call the library at 766-3211, email at nclibrary@fairpoint.net or stop by the library at 4287 Route 203 in North Chatham.

Funded in part with a Grant from the Fund for Columbia County, a fund of Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation. This program is part of our Adult Series: Enriching Life and Increasing Knowledge. It is free and open to the public.

Author Dr. Conrad Vispo To Speak At The New Lebanon Library

Dr. Conrad Vispo will discuss his book “The Nature of the Place — A History of Living with the Land in Columbia County, NY” at the New Lebanon Library on Thursday, February 12, at 7 pm. The reading will be followed by Q & A and signing.

The book, which is a culmination of over five years of hard work, extends an exciting invitation to explore the rich heritage and nature of Columbia County. It describes local forest, field, soil and waters both from the perspective of the diversity and beauty of their inherent nature and also in terms of the way the human head and hand has, for better or worse, left its mark.

Dr. Vispo is a wildlife ecologist with the Farmscape Ecology Project, a research and outreach branch of Hawthorne Valley Association. He received a Ph.D. in wildlife ecology, specializing in nutritional ecology, at the University of Wisconsin. He studied the ecology and management of a tropical freshwater fishery with the Wildlife Conservation Society and Venezuela’s Fundacion La Salle for several years before co-founding Hawthorne Valley’s Farmscape Ecology Program. With that program he has been exploring the role of agriculture in providing habitat for native species and the importance of native (or at least wild) species in providing ecological services to farms. He was born and raised in Canaan.

All are welcome at this free event.

Folk Duo Divinitress Performs At New Lebanon Library’s Valentine Dance

Local acoustic folk duo Divinitress will be performing at the New Lebanon Library on Valentine’s Eve – Friday, February 13, from 7 to 9 pm. The duo will be performing a program of romantic music. Dancing will be encouraged and light refreshments will be served.

Divinitress consists of singer-guitarist Tistrya Grace, who has spent ten years performing at coffee houses and festivals, and versatile Berkshire singer-songwriter Erin Laundry. They play a combination of original songs along with popular covers. Their blend of harmonies and acoustic instruments give the duo a unique and uplifting sound.

This event is free and open to the public, although donations for the performers are welcome.

Father and Son Author Team To Speak At The New Lebanon Library

Local authors Michael and Diego Mongue will appear at the New Lebanon Library on  Monday,  February 16 at  2 pm, to talk about their quarterly comic book series, Awesome Robot Science Fiction Action Comix. The talk will be followed by Q& A and discussion, after which Michael and Diego will sign copies of the book.

Awesome Robot started as letters left in Diego’s school lunches. Messages of encouragement like, “Have a great day at school” or “Eat your lunch and work hard” soon morphed into stranger missives, such as “Don’t eat cake from the cafeteria garbage pail.” These notes were accompanied by illustrations that eventually became the Awesome Robot series, the story of Dennis the Robot and his anthropomorphic misadventures. The story and renderings marry the musings of a prepubescent boy and the satirical commentaries of his outsider artist father.

Michael Mongue is an artist residing in Williamstown, MA. His work has been shown at the Left Bank Gallery in Bennington, the Arts and Crafts Guild in Dalton, the Flatiron Gallery in North Adams, the Amsterdam Whitney Gallery in New York City, the Deborah Davis Fine Art Gallery in Hudson, and the Firehouse Cafe in Adams. He is the author of M.Mongue: Acrylic Paintings from a Berkshire Artist, as well as the Awesome Robot series which he writes with his son. Diego, aged  12, is in the  seventh  grade.

All are welcome at this free event, which is most appropriate for school aged children although interested patrons of all ages are welcome.

New Lebanon Library To Host Tom Abdow Concert

New England folk-rock singer and songwriter Tom Abdow will perform an acoustic concert of folk, country and rock music at 6:30 pm on Friday, February 20, at the New Lebanon Library. All are welcome and the event is free, although donations for the performer are appreciated.

Abdow has performed at various venues throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic areas. He has opened shows for Jonathan Edwards, Steve Forbert, Aztec Two-Step, and the Vassar Clements Band.

The New Lebanon Library is located at 550 State Route 20, New Lebanon, NY, just north of the yellow blinking light. For further information on any of these programs, contact the Library at (518) 794-8844.

The Lebanon Valley Heritage Center announces a new exhibition, of Shaker and other antique tools, to  run from January 30 through March 31, 2015. The many tools displayed, from private collections, include rare items such as two types of corner drills, an assemblage of jeweler’s tools and a “traveler.” The exhibition will be of interest not only to collectors and aficionados of old tools but also to followers of local history and the general public.

The Heritage Center is a collaboration of the New Lebanon Economic Development Committee, the Lebanon Valley Historical Society and scores of dedicated volunteers. The Center welcomes individual visitors and groups Fridays 2 to 4 pm, Saturdays 10 am to 12 pm, Sundays 11 am to 1 pm and by appointment. It is centrally located in the Valley Plaza Mall on Rts. 20/22. Through evolving displays, maps, books, old magazines and newspapers, photos, furniture and other objects, and multimedia, the Center showcases New Lebanon’s fascinating history of over 250 years; it also serves as a tourist bureau offering current maps (road and trail), guides, listings of events and  lodging and eating places, and other information of interest to visitors.