Lost and Found

The collection of found items are now displayed in Fort River lobby.  Come on in and go through the clothing rack and the tables. Items remaining after Thursday February 5th will be donated to the Amherst Survival Center.

Amherst College Women’s Basketball Fundraiser for Amherst A Better Chance

Amherst College Women’s Basketball Team Hosts Fundraiser for Amherst A Better Chance (ABC)

The Amherst College Women’s Basketball Team invites the ARPS community to attend their game against Wesleyan University, Saturday, February 7, at 3 PM, at LaFrak Gym on the Amherst College campus. 

The team has dedicated this game as a fund-raiser for Amherst A Better Chance (ABC). The money raised during halftime will be used for improvements to the ABC House Study Center. Fans can meet the ABC Scholars and participate in a raffle to win prizes. Admission to the game is FREE and the ARPS community is encouraged to attend.

Each year, members of the Women’s Basketball Team provide tutoring support to the ABC Scholars.  Please plan to attend the game and support  Amherst A Better Chance (ABC) in its core mission: to provide academically talented and highly motivated young men of color with the tools and support systems needed to maximize their opportunities for success.

For more information, please contact ABC House Co-President Wendy Kohler wendykohler@comcast.net

Amherst Farmers' Market- Multi-Arts' workshop

Join Multi-Arts in a wonderful workshop creating 3D structures: dog, cows, mask, airplane etc

Saturday January 31, 10-12 at Amherst Winter Farmers' Market
Children must be accompanied by an adult.

Free of charge. Space is limited sign up at www.multi-arts.org

Jones Library - Documentary Screening & Discussion

Documentary Screening & Discussion

“Vincent Who?”

 

Join us on Thursday, February 5, 2015 at 7 pm in the Woodbury Room for a screening of Vincent Who?, the fifth in a film & discussion series being held over several months which look at issues of race.  A facilitated discussion will be held after the screening.

Vincent Who? is a powerful film about the 1982 murder in Detroit of Vincent Chin by two white autoworkers. The film explores this event through interviews with the key players at the time, as well as a whole new generation of activists whose lives were impacted by Vincent Chin. It also looks at the case in relation to the larger narrative of Asian American history, in such events as Chinese Exclusion, Japanese American Internment in WWII, the 1992 L.A. Riots, anti-Asian hate crimes, and post-9/11 racial profiling.

Free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Janet Ryan at 413/259-3223. 

This film series is co-sponsored by the Jones Library and The Coming Together Project.  More information about The Coming Together Project can be found at http://www.coming-together.org/.

Jones Library Focus Groups - Participants Needed!

Please join us at an upcoming Jones Library Focus Group to talk about the Library’s FY17-FY21 Long Range Plan.

This is your opportunity to make a difference in the future of The Jones Library’s services, programs, materials, buildings, finances, technology, etc. Our Group facilitators will be from The Birch Group, out of Farmington, Connecticut. Your comments/concerns/ideas/criticisms/compliments matter!

The Focus Group schedule is as follows:

·     Friday, February 13, 2015  9am-12pm; Woodbury Room (Jones Library).

·        Monday, February 9, 2015  6pm-9pm; Woodbury Room (Jones Library).

More info can be obtained at www.JonesLibrary.org or 413.259.3106

Fort River PGO Chili Cook-Off & Family Game Night!

Click Here to Sign Up to Enter a Chili or 

to bring cornbread or drinks!



Fundraiser - Thank You!

 

A SWEET Thank you to all who supported the Glazed Doughnut Coffee Cake Fundraiser!
Thanks to the support of our community, the PGO raised over $700 to use towards programs for our kids such as curriculum mini-grants, Field Day, a free yearbook for every student and much more.  Thank you so much to FR parents Dawn Lepere and Keren Rhodes for their hard work and organization in making this fundraiser a success.

Youth Conditioning Clinic

For more info email: 1to1wellness@comcast.net

SEPAC

Special Education Parent Advisory Council Meeting (SEPAC)Representing: Pelham Elementary, Amherst Elementary, and Amherst Regional Schools (PAARS) as well as students out of district.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Amherst Regional High School Library
7:10pm (approximate time of presentation based upon agenda)

Just want to inform community that SEPAC is making a brief presentation to the school committee. Meeting is open to all in the community!

Jones Library - On the Same Page community reading program

Amherst, MA – The Jones Library is holding its third On the Same Page community reading program, this year featuring the novel The Girl Who Fell from the Sky by award-winning author Heidi W. Durrow.  The entire Amherst community is invited to read the book and participate in the related programs which will be held in February and March 2015. On the Same Page – Amherst will culminate in an author appearance to be held on Wednesday, March 11, 2015 at the Munson Memorial Library Hall in South Amherst. 

On The Same Page - Amherst is designed to bring the local community together by encouraging residents to read the same book and by offering programming and opportunities for discussion about the book and the themes it contains.   Now a featured annual event, On the Same Page – Amherst explores a different book each year, to include a variety of themes, topics, genres, and writing styles.

The Girl Who Fell from the Sky was winner of the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction in 2008.  The PEN/Bellwether Prize is awarded biennially to the author of a previously unpublished novel of high literary caliber that promotes fiction that addresses issues of social justice and the impact of culture and politics on human relationships.  Set in the 1980s, this novel tells the story of Rachel, the daughter of a Danish mother and a black G.I. who becomes the sole survivor of a family tragedy.

Heidi W. Durrow is the New York Times best-selling author of The Girl Who Fell from the Sky (Algonquin Books), which received writer Barbara Kingsolver’s PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, and is a book club favorite. The Girl Who Fell from the Sky has been hailed as one of the Best Novels of 2010 by the Washington Post, a Top 10 Book of 2010 by The Oregonian, and named a Top 10 Debut of 2010 by Booklist.

For further information about the On the Same Page - Amherst, please contact Janet Ryan at 413/259-3223.

The Amherst League of Women Voters Event

The Amherst League of Women Voters welcomes Superintendent Maria Geryk and ARPS administrators to participate in the popular series "How a Small Town Makes Big Things Happen".  Topics to be discussed are curriculum, equity and support programs for families.  The community is encouraged to attend this free event on Thursday, January 15 at 7-8:30pm in the Woodbury Room at the Jones Library.

Author Night with Don Ogden at the Jones Library

Amherst, MA – Local writer/poet Don Ogden reads from his new book Bad Atmosphere – A Collection of Poetry & Prose on the Climate Crisis on Tuesday, January 20 at 7 pm in the Woodbury Room at the Jones Library.  (The snow date for this program will be Thursday, March 19, 2015 at 7 pm.)

Published by Amherst-based Levellers Press, Bad Atmosphere - A Collection of Poetry & Prose on the Climate Crisis was published in November 2014.  The author, local writer/poet Don Ogden, is producer and co-host of The Enviro Show on WXOJ-LP/Valley Free Radio.  The book is the culmination of decades’ worth of writing by Ogden focusing on various aspects of climate change that moved him to put into words feelings and thoughts evoked by "the greatest crisis of our time".  Ogden, known by many as d.o., has been active in environmental issues for most of his life. His poetry and commentaries have appeared in a wide variety of publications and on national and local radio.

Joining the celebration are local singer/songwriters Tom Neilson and Lynn Waldron, as well as Susan Theberge of Climate Action Now! MA, who will speak about that local group's efforts in addressing the climate crisis.

Free and open to the public.  For more information, please contact Janet Ryan at 413/259-3223.

Enriching the Developing Brain

Food for Fines at the Jones Library and Branches

Amherst, MA – The Jones Library and branches will be offering a “food for fines” amnesty period from January 2 – 31, 2015.    Library patrons who bring a non-perishable, non-expired food donation or make a monetary contribution to the Amherst Survival Center when they return overdue library materials during this time will have the fines on those overdue materials forgiven.  

“This is a great opportunity for patrons with long-overdue library materials to get those items back to the library without having to pay the fines that are accumulating,” says Amy Anaya, Head of Borrower Services at the Jones Library.  It’s important to note that the amnesty applies only to items that are being returned during this time, and not to existing overdue fines on items that have already been returned or for billed or lost items.

Holding a Food for Fines drive is a long-standing annual tradition at the Jones Library.  The food and funds collected will support the work of the Amherst Survival Center, the local service agency that assists many in our community in meeting their basic needs.

For further information about Food for Fines, please contact Amy Anaya at 413/259-3132.

Springfield Falcons - Amherst Public Schools Night

Amherst Lions Club Ski & Skate Sale

Message from Whitsons Culinary Group

This December, Whitsons produce pick for “Harvest of the Month” is carrots. Students and staff enjoyed this healthy vegetable which is served nearly every day during the school year. In January, the featured selection will be the apple. Apples are on the lunch line nearly every day and diners will have the opportunity to sample different varieties and apple-filled dishes. 

USDA regulations require that all students have at least one half a cup of fruit or vegetable on their tray. Students are developing a love of vegetables and creating life-long healthy habits. 

Thank you to the classes which decorated the kitchen for the season. The Whitsons staff enjoyed the wonderful snowflakes which serve as a reminder that winter is here for a while!

Whitsons provides a variety of gluten free meals available to any student that requires one. Parents/guardians may inform the kitchen manager in advance if a student requires a gluten free meal. 

The entire community is invited to attend the Martin Luther King Breakfast on January 17th at Amherst Regional Middle School (170 Chestnut Street).  Whitsons supports the Martin Luther King Committee and participates by preparing the breakfast for all attendees. This is always a meaningful and fun time for all.