Berkshire Botanical Garden Harvest Festival seeks volunteers
Stockbridge — From the pumpkin toss to the bakery booth, from the tag sale to the haunted house, the Berkshire Botanical Garden’s Harvest Festival has something for everyone and is seeking volunteers to help this year’s 81st annual Festival run smoothly. Volunteers can help out as Admissions welcomers, pumpkin carvers, ticket sellers, silent auction assistants, and in many other positions.
Volunteer shifts last four hours and are still available on both days of the festival: Saturday, October 10 and Sunday, October 11. For more information, see the online sign-up form or call the Garden at (413) 298-3926 x14.
–E.E.
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‘Centuries of Stone Walls’ walk at the Bidwell House
Monterey — On Saturday, October 3 at 2 p.m. the Bidwell House Museum will offer a guided walk to explore the four miles of stone walls built by settlers on museum lands. Bidwell House Museum president Rob Hoogs will lead the group on old roadways, visualizing the landscape that resulted from settlement and farming activities in the 18th and 19th centuries. The walk will pass the site of the first meeting house and cellar holes of long-ago homesteads.
Participants should meet at the Museum at 2 p.m., dress for the weather with hiking boots/sturdy footwear, and bring a drink/snack. The walk is about two miles in length and will last approximately two hours. The walk does not include a tour of the house interior.
The walk is free and is presented in cooperation with Housatonic Heritage. Call the museum for more information at (413) 528-6888.
–E.E.
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Ventfort Hall’s Medieval Faire
Lenox — The seventh-annual Medieval Faire at Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum will take place on Sunday, October 4 from 10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The historic Jacobean-Revival estate in Lenox will revert to days gone by when chivalry and armored tournaments were a way of life.
There is a full schedule of events throughout the day. The Barony of Bergental, a branch of the Society for Creative Anachronism, and Jeffrey Mann will present Crestfallen Tourney, a spirited knightly competition. Other events include a fashion show of Flemish Renaissance presented by designer Jared Aswegan, demonstrations of medieval lance and javelin by Horsewoman Kiki, medieval and Renaissance madrigal music by Myschyffe Managed, comedy group the Renaissance Buffoons, and a performance by Ed the Wizard.
The Barony of Bergental will demonstrate many aspects of medieval life including food and cooking, crafts, archery and more. Wandering minstrels will bring to life the music of a bygone era. Children can enjoy flower wreath making and a craft table. Grampy’s Hot Dog House will provide food and beverages. Ben and Jerry’s will provide ice cream.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $5 for children ages 4 to 17, and free for children 3 and younger. Admission to the Faire includes self-guided tours of the first floor of the mansion. For further information call (413) 637-3206 or email info@gildedage.org
–E.E.
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Above and Below: The Cemetery and the Gravediggers
Stockbridge — On Saturday, October 3 at 4 p.m., volunteers from the Stockbridge Library’s Museum & Archives will lead the final cemetery walk of the 2015 season, called “Above and Below: the Cemetery and the Gravediggers.”
The Stockbridge cemetery has been a necessary and important part of town life since the founding of the town. Participants will learn about the lives, work, and relationships of gravediggers, who did more than dig graves, in the 1800s and early 1900s. The tour will end with a surprise; something not usually available will be open for exploring.
The tour will gather at the cemetery gate on Main Street (Route 102) and will last one hour. Parking will be available at the old Town Hall across from the gate. A $5 donation is requested.
For more information, contact the Stockbridge Library at (413) 298-5501 or ksmarshall03@gmail.com
–E.E.
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Shred Day at Salisbury Bank
Dover Plains, N.Y. — Salisbury Bank & Trust Company will sponsor a free Community Shred Day on Saturday, October 3 from 9 a.m. until noon at its Dover Plains location. Each person may bring up to four boxes of paper (paper only; no binders) for shredding.
Salisbury Bank is proud to offer this service as a way of enriching the communities it serves. All shredded paper will be recycled.
–E.E.
