PTA Award for Muddy Brook
Muddy Brook Elementary School had a lot to celebrate at their back-to-school Ice Cream Social September 10. Muddy Brook’s PTA was one of 170 schools across the country given a School of Excellence award for work and leadership with “Family Engagement.” The National Parent Teacher Association recognized the school for their “commitment to partnering with families to support student success and continuous school improvement,” said PTA President Susan Higa. “Research shows that when families and schools work together, student achievement increases, schools improve, and communities grow stronger,” she wrote.
The PTA is the largest volunteer advocacy group in the nation with more than 4 million members. Muddy Brook’s PTA has 150 members.
Vote for No. Six Depot
“No. Six Depot Roastery, Cafe & Gallery is a finalist in the Martha Stewart American Made award where she celebrates small makers from around the country,” writes Lisa Landry, who with her husband Flavio Lichtenthal, owns the popular coffee house, restaurant, gallery
and performance space in West Stockbridge. “There are only nine winners nationwide, so it’s a long shot, but we\’re giving it our all.”
They’ve already given it their all by creating a hugely popular spot in the resurgent West Stockbridge village but they also need help from their Berkshire fans. In short, they need votes.
Click here, for a link to support their quest to earn the Martha Stewart American Made award.
In just one year, Landry points out, “we’ve expanded to Tanglewood, ship wholesale across the country, and just won the Trendsetter Award for ‘Newcomer of the Year’ from the Berkshire Visitors Bureau, Berkshire Chamber, and Berkshire Creative.”
Yoga (and peace) on the beach
The Lake Mansfield Alliance, in concert with yoga teacher Senta Reis, will host a free “yoga meditation in motion” practice at Lake Mansfield in Great Barrington on Sunday, September 21. The practice will serve as preparation for the International Day of Peace’s “global minute” at noon. Meditating and practicing yoga with the intention of spreading peace, says Reis, “magnifies its potency profoundly. It’s a chance to unify our body, mind and spirit, sending out heart centered intention for peace rippling out into the world.”
Yoga/meditation practice: 10 to 11:30 a.m. Bring a mat or blanket. Beginners are welcome. No experience necessary. Rain location: auditorium of the Great Barrington Rudolf Steiner School on West Plain Road.
“World Peace Day,” as it is also known, has been celebrated since1982 by “many nations, political groups, military groups, and peoples,” according to the Secretary General of The United Nations, who in 2013 dedicated the day to “peace education” as a proactive approach to war prevention.
The Peace Bell at United Nation’s headquarters will ring on Sunday. The bell was a gift from the U.N. Association of Japan in 1954, and was cast from coins donated by children from every continent except Africa. It is inscribed with the words: “Long live absolute world peace.”
The Lake Mansfield Alliance is a grassroots stewardship organization formed in 2004, for the protection, preservation and enhancement of the lake as a vital habitat and community resource. Click here for more information about Yoga by the Lake.
Feasting on music
Gina Hyams’ The Tanglewood Picnic: Music and Outdoor Feasts in the Berkshires is coming to a bookstore near you next summer — and you just might find yourself in it. The Housatonic author is collecting personal photos of Tanglewood picnics for inclusion in the book. “Picnics can be modest or lavish,” says Hyams. “From any era of the festival’s eight-decade history.”
Hyams is also looking for food traditions, and/or picnic strategy tips. She asks that those submitting photos include any information about the photo, your name, address and phone. Photos must be high resolution (300 dpi+), and if you have prints and run into trouble scanning them, Hyams will help. Just email her at tanglewoodpicnic@gmail.com.
The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2014, but, says Hyams, there is wiggle room with the date. Great photos are already up on her website. Have a look at: tanglewoodpicnic.com.
