New Winter Farmers' Market at ARMS

ARMS Farmers Market opening this Saturday 12/4

Who: 25 local farmers and producers.
Where: Amherst Middle School, 170 Chestnut St., Amherst MA
What: A Brand New Winter Farmers Market
When: Every Saturday from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM (Starts December 4th )*
Why: Because the market will be warm and cozy and have lots of great food!

I don’t know if you have heard, but there is an exciting new Winter
Farmers Market at the Amherst Middles School. The Grand Opening is this
Saturday, December 4th . There will be an unbelievable selection of
delicious local food. Over 25 farmers and food producers have joined
together to offer everything from beautiful baby salad greens and bok
choi to artisanal cheese, sweet and crunchy carrots, grass fed lamb,
pork and beef. The list is too big to fit on this page--Apex Orchard’s
famous apples (have you tried their Honey Crisp?!?), Sidehill Farm’s
luscious yogurt. El Jardin’s sour dough breads fresh out of the oven.
Atlas Farm, Stone Soup Farm, Red Fire Farm and Simple Gifts will have
their wonderful veggie selections. Winter Moon Roots with their carrots,
beets, and psychedelic watermelon radishes. Bug Hill Farm's Black
Currant Cordials.....And if it gets cold, Balky Farm has hats, gloves
and mittens knitted from their own sheep wool!

Because local food is always a cause for celebration, we are making it a
festive event with free music from Darlingside. There will be prepared
local delicacies served by The Turkish Kitchen, Tom Hidas' Curried
Veggies (formerly of Amber Waves Restaurant) and the Black Sheep Deli.
Live music too. Don’t miss it!!!

If you‘d like to sign up for the Winter Farmer’s Market newsletter
follow the link below. This will keep you up to date on special events
at the market, tasty new recipes, music and more. We will also let you
know about snow closings due through this list. We will never share your
name or this list with anybody else.

To find out about the Amherst Winter Market, just follow these 2 easy steps:

1) Go to: http://lists.amherstwintermarket.com/mailman/listinfo/patrons
and write your email address and name.

2) Once you have registered, you will get a confirmation email. Just hit
“Reply” and “Send” and you will receive market updates.

Thanks for joining us at the Amherst Winter Market…and for eating local
all year round!

Please note: This event is not sponsored by the Fort River PGO.

Boy Scouts ChristmasTree Sale

Please support the Boy Scouts' annual Christmas Tree sale at Kendrick Park in Amherst. The sale has started and will run through December 24th or until we run out of trees. Hours of operation are Monday-Friday 4-8 PM, Saturday-Sunday 9-5 PM. This is our major yearly fundraiser and goes a long way towards supporting programs for Amherst Boy Scout Troops 500 and 504 and Hadley Troop 550. As always, we have very high quality trees (Fraser & Balsam fir from tree farms in Amherst and Vermont) at reasonable prices (6-8 ft trees are $35 and 8 ft-plus trees are $40). Wreaths are available as well ($11 for single variety, $15 for tri weave styles).

Note: This event is not sponsored by the Fort River PGO. 

FORT RIVER READS!!!

FORT RIVER READS!!!

Book Event & Community Marketplace

Thursday, December 9

The Fort River Scholastic Book Fair will take place during the week of December 6, and this year it will END with a BANG!

On Thursday, December 9 you will be invited to join the community for an evening celebrating literacy, music, entrepreneurs, and families at the FORT RIVER READS!!!--Book Event & Community Marketplace. We will offer a chili dinner, dessert, and coffee for your enjoyment at a very reasonable cost. The annual Winter Sport Swap, where you can drop off/pick up terrific gear for your kids (for FREE!) will also take place on this evening. Please see below for more information on everything that will be happening during this fun event.

All proceeds from the Book Fair and this Event will go directly to the Fort River Library for books and educational materials.

FORT RIVER READS!!!

Fort River Reads!!!--Bakers Needed

We are gearing up for our exciting FORT RIVER READS!!! Book Event & Community Marketplace on the evening of December 9. We need volunteers to sign up to bring desserts for the bake sale. In addition, we also need donations of cornbread and/or cornbread muffins to go with the chili dinner.

Click here for the online sign-up sheet: http://frpc.pleasebringit.com/public/JuiBQZZOpto 

Items can be dropped off at any time during the day of Thursday, December 9 or at the beginning of the event. All proceeds support the Fort River Library. Contact the Bake Sale Coordinator for more details: Erin Cherewatti (echerewatti@yahoo.com or 253-2304)

Vendors Still Wanted!

We are still looking for vendors to take part in the FORT RIVER READS!!! Community Marketplace.

• Do you own a small business?
• Want to expand your market to the Fort River community?
• Are you an artist?
• Do you make/sell jewelry, pottery, photography or other crafts?

We want YOU to be a vendor at our Marketplace on December 9!

If you would like to have a table to sell your wares, please contact Shari Abbott at shariabbott@mac.com or 256-2353. This event is part of the FORT RIVER READS--Book Event and Community Marketplace on the evening of Thursday, December 9 celebrating the final days of the Scholastic Book Fair. See above for more information about this event.

Volunteers Still Needed to Work at the Book Fair

**SEE BELOW FOR LINK TO CLASSROOM VISIT SCHEDULE**

If you love to read and want to share your enthusiasm with kids, we need you at the book fair! Volunteers are needed for shifts during daytime classroom visits or during the evening Book Fair at our new FORT RIVER READS!!! Book Event & Community Marketplace.

Tasks are varied and include assisting shoppers, stocking and arranging merchandise, checking out customers, or maybe even dressing up as your favorite book character! During slow times you might have time to read to kids! Volunteers are also needed to set-up and breakdown the fair and for other promotional and decorating tasks.

The Scholastic Book Fair will take place during the week of December 6th. We need lots of volunteers! Classroom visits will occur on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, December 7th - 9th. The evening Book Fair will occur on Thursday, December 9th, and includes our exciting new Community Marketplace, chili supper, dessert, coffee, and delightful company!

Click here to see when your child's class will be visiting the book fair 

Click here to sign up to work on the Please Bring It sign-up sheet

Fair Coordinators:

Diane Caraker (dianec711@comcast.net) 413-687-8333

Carol Slaughter (cslaughter143@aol.com) 413-253-9920

All profits from our Scholastic Book Fair directly support the Fort River Library! Every child at Fort River will benefit from your participation in this great community event!

FORT RIVER READS!!!

Winter Sports Swap

The annual Fort River Winter Sports Swap will take place from 6-8pm on the evening of Thursday, December 9 at the Book Event and Community Marketplace. Please bring your used winter/sports gear and clothing--coats, hats, gloves, boots, skates, ski equipment, etc. to Fort River anytime between 3-6pm. Everyone in the community is invited to come by after 6pm and take anything they need. This is a FREE exchange--you do not need to bring anything to participate in the Winter Sports Swap. This is a great way to clean out your winter clothing/equipment or stock up on gear for growing kids! Questions? Contact Peter Wood at cpwolfwood@hotmail.com.