What’s Happening In Amherst?

by Art and Maura Keene

There are lots of interesting events happening in our town. You can help us make our events calendar more useful by sending us your listings and including contact information and/or a link for more information. Send events listings to amherstindy@gmail.com.

SINGLE DAY EVENTS

SATURDAY MARCH 25: TOWN COUNCIL RETREAT. This special retreat of the Amherst Town Council will be held in the Town Room of Town Hall from 8:30 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. and can also be accessed on Zoom. The event is open to the public but no public comment will be held. View the full agenda here. Access the meeting over Zoom
Online: https://amherstma.zoom.us/j/84689962588
Phone: (301) 715-8592; enter webinar ID 846 8996 2588

SATURDAY MARCH 25: TOWN OF AMHERST SOCIAL JUSTICE LISTENING SESSION. The Community Safety and Social Justice Committee (CCJC) and the Community Responders For Equity, Safety, and Service Department (CRESS) invite Amherst residents to a public listening session on Saturday, March 25 for 2:00-4:00 p.m. in the Town Room of Town Hall. Those attending will have the opportunity to hear what CSSJC and CRESS have been doing and to share their thoughts on community safety and social justice issues in town. The event will also be broadcast on Zoom and can be accessed via this link: https://amherstma.zoom.us/j/83394825481 , or by phone: 669-900-6833 or 689-278-1000 
Webinar ID: 833 9482 5481. For Childcare and Translation Services please call  413-259-0360

SATURDAY MARCH 25: READING BY Sadie Dupuis ’14, Shastri Akella ’14, Sueyeun Juliette Lee ’06, & Callum Angus ’17. 4 p.m. Integrative Learning Center ILCN151. 2023 Juniper Literary Festival: Alumni Reading & Conversation. Dupuis is the guitarist, songwriter & singer of rock band Speedy Ortiz, as well as the producer & multi-instrumentalist behind pop project Sad13.   Her most recently collection of poetry is Cry Perfume.   Akella was a 2022 fiction fellow at The Fine Arts Works Center & a 2023 writing fellow at the Oak Springs Garden Foundation.   His debut novel, The Sea Elephants will be available in July.   Lee is a poet, videographer, & performance artist.   She is author of, among other poetry collections, No Comet, That Serpent in the Sky Means Noise & Aerial Concave Without Cloud.   Angus is a writer & editor.   His short story collection, A Natural History of Transition was a 2022 finalist for a Lambda Literary Award in Transgender Fiction, the Edmund White Award for Debut Fiction, & an Oregon Book Award.   For more information & to register go to the Juniper Literary Festival web page. 

SATURDAY MARCH 25: READING Novuyo Rosa Tshuma &  Robert Lopez. 6:30 p.m.Integrative Learning Center ILCN151, UMass, Amherst.   Tshuma is the author of House of Stone: A Novel, which won the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award & the Bulawayo Arts Award for Outstanding Fiction; was listed for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, the Dylan Thomas Prize, the Balcones Fiction Prize & the Rathbones Folio Prize.   Her forthcoming novel, Digging Stars will be available in September.   Lopez is author of three novels, Part of the World, Kamby Bolongo Mean River—named one of 25 important books of the decade by HTMLGIANT, All Back Full, & two story collections, Asunder & Good People.   His most recent is Dispatches from Puerto Nowhere: An American Story of Assimilation & Erasure.   For more information & to register go to the Juniper Literary Festival web page. 

SUNDAY MARCH 26: COVID-19 INTERFAITH REMEMBRANCE GATHERING. Amherst Town Common across from Grace Episcopal Church. 2 p.m. Prayers, readings, and reflections will be offered by Pastor Mary Smith Gomes of Goodwin Memorial AME Zion Church, Ruth Love Barer of Jewish Community of Amherst, Omar Abdelaal of Hampshire Mosque, Rev. Meghan McDermott of Grace Church, Rev. Jeffrey Schultz of Immanuel Lutheran Church, and others. Those attending are encouraged to bring the name(s) of those they have lost. There will be an opportunity to place these names in a bowl during the gathering.
The gathering will also provide an opportunity to celebrate the community’s resilience as people begin to recover and move on from the pandemic. Amherst Area Gospel Choir, Journey Home hospice choir, Healing Circle singers, and the newly formed choir of Hopping Tree Sangha will offer songs.Rep. Mindy Domb will describe efforts of the state legislature to mark and honor this time of COVID. The Town Council’s recent resolution on COVID remembrance will be read. More information

TUESDAY MARCH 28: AMHERST KINDERGARTEN ENROLLMENT INFORMATION SESSION. Due to the recent snowstorm, the information session scheduled for March 14 has been postponed until Tuesday, March 28 at 6:30 p.m. at the Crocker Farm School cafeteria, 280 West Street. Parents of incoming kindergartners will be able to meet Superintendent Mike Morris and the elementary school principles. Spanish interpretation will be provided. Those needing interpretation in other languages should notify the school office at 413-362-1825. Children are welcome to attend as well. Information on the Dual Enrollment (Spanish/English) program at Fort River will also be provided. Applications for that program are due by April 24. Participants for the program will be chosen by lottery on April 28. Children are eligible for kindergarten in the fall if they will turn 5 years old on or before September 1, 2023. Registration can be completed on-line at https://arps.org/registration/

TUESDAY MARCH 28: PUBLIC CONVERSATION: CLIMATE JUSTICE AND TRANSPORTATION IN MASSACHUSETTS. VISIONS FOR LIVABLE CITES AND CONNECTED RURAL COMMUNITIES. 4-5 p.m.. Center For Humanistic Inquiry, Frost Library, Amherst College. Transportation accounts for more carbon emissions than any other sector of the US economy. How can we rapidly build more walkable cities and expand public transit options in urban and rural places? Join us for a conversation between advocates, policy-makers, and transit administrators about climate justice and our transit future.

Natalie Blais, Representative for the 1st Franklin District
Makayla Comas and Catherine Gleason, LivableStreets
Sandra Sheehan, Pioneer Valley Transit Authority

TUESDAY MARCH 28: “READING THE FORESTED LANDSCAPE” WITH TOM WESSELS. Webinar 6-7 p.m. This interactive program may cover such topics as forest dynamics and history, tree growth forms, intriguing co-evolved interactions between forest species, and unique tree adaptations. Participants are asked to submit photos of things they have encountered on forest the program. During the event, we will view a slide show of those submitted photos, which Tom will interpret in real-time to guide his discussion. He may ask the individuals who took the photos about things that may not be apparent from the image. Participants will also be able to ask Tom questions about any of the photos while they are presented. Tom has conducted workshops on ecology and sustainability throughout the country for over three decades. In addition to Reading the Forested Landscape, he is the author of The Granite Landscape, The Myth of Progress, Forest Forensics, and his latest publication, New England’s Roadside Ecology: Explore 30 of the Region’s Unique Natural Areas. Sponsored by the Kestrel Trust. Register here. Cost $20.

TUESDAY MARCH 28: 42ND ANNUAL UMASS JAZZ SHOWCASE FEATURING THE MUSIC OF LENNON AND MCCARTNEY. 7:30 P.M. Bowker Auditorium, UMass. Featuring Jazz Ensemble I, Chapel Jazz, Vocal Jazz, Jazz Lab & Chamber Jazz Ensembles Including arrangements of Beatles tunes Norwegian Wood, Can’t Buy Me Love, Michelle, Blackbird, Got To Get You Into My Life and many more! Tix: $10 Adults, $5 Seniors/Students, UMass Amherst Students Free
Call the Box Office at 413-545-2511 or Buy Tickets online.

THURSDAY MARCH 30: LECTURE – JASON STANLEY. KEYNOTE FOR THE UMASS SYMPOSIUM AMERICA’S FASCIST THREAT AND HOW TO FIGHT IT. The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) at UMass will hold a Symposium on March 31 entitled America’s Fascist Threat and How To Fight it.  The keynote lecture will be presented by Jason Stanley.  Stanley is the Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University and the author of How Fascism Works (Random House, 2020). The lecture is free and open to the public and will presented on Thursday, March 30 at 4:30 p.m. in the Bernie Dallas Room of Goodell Hall at UMass Amherst.  No registration is required.

THURSDAY MARCH 30: “THE IDEA OF PRISON ABOLITION: SLAVERY AND ITS LEGACY” TOMMIE SHELBY. Fayerweather Hall, Amherst College 5 p.m. Tommie Shelby is the Caldwell Titcomb Professor of African and African American Studies and of Philosophy, Harvard University. Angela Davis and other leading abolitionist thinkers in the black radical tradition object to prisons on numerous grounds. One objection questions the legitimacy of the practice of imprisonment because of its similarity to, and historical connection with, practices of enslavement. In this lecture, Shelby critically engages with this influential objection. He highlights its power but also explores its limits, and he draws lessons from this engagement for criminal justice reform in the United States and elsewhere.

THURSDAY MARCH 30: FILM -“THE BIG PAYBACK” FEAR AND REPARATIONS IN THE AMERICAN SUBURB. The Powerhouse, East Drive, Amherst College 6 p.m. A documentary film directed by Erika Alexander and Whitney Dow. The passage for the first-ever tax-funded reparations bill for Black Americans stirs up a debate. Sponsored by the African Heritage Reparations Assembly and the Amherst College Student Senate.

FRIDAY MARCH 31: UMASS SYMPOSIUM – AMERICA’S FASCIST THREAT AND HOW TO FIGHT IT. The symposium will feature all-day panels and discussions on Friday, March 31, at Gordon Hall, 418 N. Pleasant Street, Amherst. To attend the Friday symposium, registration will be required ( https://peri.umass.edu/ as of 2/20).  This PERI symposium is organized by Betsy Hartmann (Hampshire College) and Jerry Epstein (UMass Amherst).

FRIDAY MARCH 31: AMHERST INTERNATIONAL FOLK DANCE BENEFIT FOREARTHQUAKE VICTIMS IN TURKEY AND SYRIA. Unitarian Society, 121 North Pleasant Street, 7:30-10 p.m. (rescheduled from March 3 due to inclement weather). Live music with Panharmonium. Folk dancing is for all. Enjoy harmonies and rhythms from Turkey, the Balkans, eastern Europe and Middle East. Beginners welcome. No partner required. Bring a mask, proof of vax/boosters, and indoor shoes. Donations will support Direct Relief.

SATURDAY April 1: BOOK LAUNCH—COMMON PLACE (a book about libraries) BY LOCAL AUTHOR THOMAS JOHNSON. Munson Memorial Library in South Amherst, 11-12:30 p.m. Co-sponsored by the Jones Library and branches and Levellers Press. Common PLACE: The Public Library, Civil Society and Early American Values tells the stories behind early libraries in America — where they are lo¬cated, who created them and why. Vignettes of sixteen public libraries located in New England include those both historic and typical, albeit with a focus on smaller localities where their presence can be more significant. 

SATURDAY APRIL 1: 15th ANNUAL EMPTY BOWLS FUNDRAISER. The 15th Annual Empty Bowls Fundraiser is scheduled for Saturday April 1 from Noon – 4 p.m. at the Amherst Survival Center, 138 Sunderland Road in North Amherst. The public is invited to join the center’s celebrity waitstaff for soup made by local restaurants, served in gorgeous handmade bowls made by local potters. Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free soup options are available. Meals will be served with warm bread, salad, and a light dessert. Fundraiser proceeds support our food and nutrition programs which serve almost 7,500 food-insecure residents of Hampshire and Franklin Counties. Buy tickets here.
More information.

rescheduled for SUNDAY APRIL 2, VOTE YES COMMUNITY PLAY DATE AT KENDRICK PARK. 10 a.m. to noon. Spring is in the air and we’re ready to celebrate with you! Bring the kiddos – or just yourselves! – to our Vote Yes Community Play Date at Kendrick Park. We have fun games planned for those who want to play, a social media selfie station, and our volunteers will be on hand to answer questions about the upcoming elementary school building project. No registration is necessary but please help spread the word by sharing our Facebook event with local friends and families! 

MONDAY APRIL 3: SECOND ANNUAL SENIOR CENTER OPEN HOUSE. Bangs Community Center, 3-5 p.m. Showcasing the programs, services, and partner agencies. Special guests will include Highland Valley Elder Services, Amherst Chamber of Commerce, Applewood, Christopher Heights, Jones Library, CRESS, Amherst Fire Department, Amherst Police Department, Amherst Council on Aging, and more. Light refreshments will be served.

TUESDAY APRIL 4: FELIPE SALLES’ THE NEW IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE. 7:30 p.m. Bowker Auditorium, UMass. Felipe Salles, director & composer (Professor of Jazz & African American Music at UMass) with his Interconnections Ensemble. Salles’ multi-media work for his Interconnections Ensemble features music overlaid with video interviews with “Dreamers” – young adults who were brought to the U.S. as children and have been part of the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Presented as part of “Immigration, Citizenship and Belonging: Two Days of Discussion, Debate and Celebration,”  https://sites.google.com/umass.edu/belonging/home?authuser=0 hosted by UMass Amherst and the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. The concert is sponsored in part by the College of Humanities and Fine Arts. The concert is free.

THURSDAY APRIL 6: THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT. UNICEF’S CHARITY BAND NIGHT FOR YEMEN. The Drake. 44 North Pleasant Street. Doors open at 7 p.m. The Umass branch of Unicef has put together an evening of local bands, raffle prizes, and concessions to raise money for the ongoing Yemen crisis.We are calling this event “The Butterfly Effect” to illustrate how one small event in Western Mass can raise the money to help hundreds of kids who are suffering across the world. Yemen remains one of the largest humanitarian crises in the world, with around 23.4 million people in need of assistance, including almost 13 million children. After eight years of conflict, the national socioeconomic systems of Yemen remain on the edge of total collapse, while conflict, large-scale displacement and recurring climate shocks have left families vulnerable to communicable diseases outbreaks. By late 2022, more than 17.8 million people, including 9.2 million children, lacked access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene services. The country continues to experience regular outbreaks of cholera, measles, diphtheria and other vaccine-preventable diseases. We are hosting this event to raise much needed funds to send over to our most vulnerable populations of the world: children. Please join us to show your support! Tix: $7 advance / $10 day of. Full calendar of events.

SATURDAY APRIL 8: SECOND ANNUAL GREAT MILL DISTRICT EGG HUNT. Three Sessions at 10 a.m., noon, and 2 p.m. in front of the Mill District General Store at 91 Cowls Road. To complement the egg hunt, organizers have arranged photo-ops with Lavender, The Funny Bunny, and an opportunity to meet live rabbits. Youngsters will also have the chance to find one special Golden Eggs each round, with a $25 General Store gift card inside.   Participation is limited to the first 40 kids registered in each of the three sessions. Register at the Mill District General Store Facebook event page with a link to Eventbrite: https://www.generalstorelocalgallery.com/events.

MONDAY APRIL 10: ACCIDENTAL WEDDING COMEDY SHOW. Bangs Community Center, 70 Boltwood Walk 2-3 p.m. A hilarious encounter with a wouldn’t-be groom, an irate match maker and a tall tale like they write tall tales about. A highly interactive, roll-in-the-aisle comedy you won’t want to miss. This original comedy will be performed by Steve Henderson. Program is supported by the Amherst Cultural Council, a local agency, which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

TUESDAY APRIL 11: GOSPEL CHOIR CONCERT. Grace Episcopal Church, 7:30 p.m. To benefit Amherst A Better Chance (ABC). Featuring Amherst Area Gospel Choir, Amherst Regional High School Chorale, Hampshire Young People’s Chorus, UMass Gospel Choir. Please join us for light refreshments prior to the concert in the room adjacent to the Grace Church sanctuary. Greet and congratulate our 2023 Local Hero Award recipient Talib Sadiq, and visit with the ABC scholars and resident directors Nancita Alejandro and Tom Blessed. Requested donation $20.

WEDNESDAY APRIL 12: UMASS DISTINGUISHED FACULTY LECTURE -YOUNG MIN MOON – THE AFTEREFFECTS OF WAR IN CONTEMPORARY KOREAN ART. 4-6 P.M. Old Chapel, UMass. Reception to follow. Over the past century, the Korean Peninsula has seen a succession of violent ruptures, and it remains a flashpoint for the world’s superpowers. The peninsula is still gripped by Cold War geopolitics, long after the fall of the Communist bloc. In the aftermath of the Korean War, South Korea was built on androcentric nation building, anti-communism, and a relentless drive for industrialization. In the period of compressed development from the poverty-stricken 1950s to the global success of today, countless lives have been lost to the state apparatus—lives whose memories must be contextualized in the history and politics of the Cold War. More information

WEDNESDAY APRIL 12: UMASS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA IN CONCERT. 7:30 p.m. Tillis Performance Hall, UMass. Morihiko Nakahara, conductor. Featuring our Concerto Competition winners: Brian Carr, saxophone; Luca Kevorkian, violin & Zhen Tu, piano. Repertoire to include – Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Major, Mvt. I (Zhen Tu, piano), Creston: Saxophone Concerto, Mvt. I (Brian Carr, saxophone) and Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D Major, Mvt. I (Luca Kevorkian), plus Brahms: Academic Festival Overture, Mussorgsky/Ravel: Pictures at an Exhibition. Tickets: $10 Adults, $5 Seniors/Students, UMass Amherst Students Free Call the Box Office at 413-545-2511 or Buy Tickets online

THURSDAY APRIL 13: DISCUSSION ABOUT THE NEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN AMHERST. 4-5:30 p.m. Amherst Neighbors and the League of Women Voters Amherst is pleased to host Adrienne Terrizzi and Cathy Schoen for a special discussion of the issues surrounding the new elementary school project in Amherst and its impact on our community. Adrienne led the Amherst League of Women Voters working group in comparing our local policy positions on Education and Schools and Energy, comparing those with the new school building project and the ways it will impact our residents. Cathy, as a Town Council member, has led the Elementary School Committee on behalf of the Council. 

LWVA recently voted to support both a yes vote and attempts on the part of the Town Council to mitigate the effect on taxpayers by utilizing funds from the Town’s Cash Reserves.  Adrienne and the working group ensured that the Elementary School proposal is in accord with our League policies and positions. Free and open to all. Register here.

FRIDAY APRIL 14: CONCERT- UMASS SYMPHONY BAND AND WIND ENSEMBLE. 7:30 p.m. Tillis Performance Hall, UMass. Matthew Westgate & Lindsay Bronnenkant, conductors. Madeline Wight, & Richard Sargent, graduate conductors. The Wind Ensemble performs Ingolf Dahl’s Sinfonietta, Ryan George’s Firefly, and Omar Thomas’ Come Sunday featuring saxophone soloist, UMass jazz professor Felipe Salles. The Symphony Band performs the Leonard Bernstein Suite from Mass and works by Shapiro, Vaughan Williams, and more. Tix: $10 Adults, $5 Seniors/Students, UMass Amherst Students Free. Call Box Office at 413-545-2511 or Buy Tickets Online

SATURDAY APRIL 15: 40th ANNUAL NEW ENGLAND SAXOPHONE SYMPOSIUM AND COMPETITION. Saxophone Symposium and Competition, which will take place throughout the day on Saturday, April 15 in the Music Wing of the Randolph W. Bromery Center for the Arts. All symposium events are free – For registration and other general information, visit the department’s events calendar. Organized by UMass Saxophone Studio professors Jonathan Hulting-Cohen and Felipe Salles, the Symposium features concerts and interactive clinics by faculty and guests, including former UMass faculty member Lynn Klock, who founded the event in the mid-1980s. The day-long symposium will commence on Saturday, April 15 at 8:30 a.m. with a free breakfast sponsored by D’Addario Woodwinds. The day’s events will also include the finals of the annual Gerry’s Music High School Competition, where winners will receive $300 in Gerry’s gift cards plus a special performance opportunity during the afternoon.  The symposium also features the popular Symposium Saxophone Ensemble, which gives sax players of all skill levels the chance to rehearse and perform with participants from all over New England, plus a 2 p.m. classical sax concert featuring Lynn Klock and the Zach Robarge Quartet, and a 7:30 p.m. jazz concert by Braxton Cook and members of the UMass Jazz Faculty Combo. 

SUNDAY APRIL 16: A CELEBRATION OF THE LIFE OF JOHN OLVER. 1 p.m. John W. Olver Design Center at UMass, 551 North Pleasant Street. There will be a memorial service on April 16 for former U.S. Representative John Olver who died on February 23 at age 86. Parking for the service is available in lot 62 or nearby lots. Carpooling is encouraged. Olver had a long career in state and national politics. He served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from the 2nd Hampshire District from January 1969-January 1973, the Massachusetts Senate from the Franklin and Hampshire District from January 1973- June 1991, and U.S. House of Representatives for the Massachusetts 1st District from June 1991- January 2013. He chose not to run again in 2012 when most of his district had been eliminated after the 2010 census. Prior to serving in Congress, Olver was a chemistry professor at UMass.

ONGOING AND MULTI-DAY EVENTS
FRIDAY, MARCH 24 – SUNDAY MARCH 26: CONFERENCE. BUILDING WORKER POWER. SOLIDARITY, COOPERATION AND CARE. UMass. In this time of economic crisis and ecological collapse, workers of all kinds are organizing to reject the alienation of racial capitalism. This conference explores the deep histories, current happenings, and future possibilities of collaborations between union organizing and worker-owned cooperatives. Keynote Speakers: Kali Akuno (Cooperation Jackson) and Chris Smalls (President, Amazon Labor Union). Over 30 workshops, exciting plenaries, networking and community building. More information

SUNDAY MARCH 26 -SUNDAY APRIL 23. FIFTH BIENNIAL BACH FESTIVAL AND SYMPOSIUM. Festival runs April 21-23 with prelude events beginning March 26. Concerts, workshops, master classes. Look here for full description and listing of events.

SECOND TUESDAY OF EVERY MONTH: OPEN MIC NIGHT AT THE DRAKE. 44 North Pleasant Street. Free event. Performers arrive by 5:30 p.m. Stage time: 6 p.m – 10 p.m. All ages. Younger performers will be slotted earler. All performers and styles of performances welcome, including but not limited to: music (of all kinds) – acoustic, folk, rock, hip hop, jazz, classical, etc…comedy, spoken word / readings, poetry, dance, performance art. House rules and more information.

FIRST AND THIRD TUESDAY OF EVERY MONTH: NORTHAMPTON JAZZ WORKSHOP. The Drake. 44 North Pleasant Street. 7:30 p.m. Free (donations accepted). Featuring the Green Street trio with a special guest. Featured set at 7:30 followed by an open jam session. Bring your axe. Full calendar of events here.

FIRST WEDNESDAY OF EVERY MONTH: COVID 19 VACCINE CLINIC. Bangs Center, 70 Boltwood Walk. 3:00-5:00 p.m. Free. The clinics offer Pfizer and Moderna Bivalent Boosters for ages 12 and up and Pfizer Bivalent Booster for ages 5 and up.  Registration is preferred, but walk-ins are accepted. To schedule an appointment, click here. More information

LAST WEDNESDAY OF EVERY MONTH: CRAFT AND CONVERSE. Mill District General Store and Local Art Gallery, 91 Cowls Road. 6:30 p.m.-8 p.m. Are you tired of creating in solitude? Looking to connect with other artistic individuals? Grab your sketchbook, knitting bag, or water color gear and join our monthly coworking group! Craft and converse, hosted by Easthampton artist Kaia Zimmerman, is held the last Wednesday of every month from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. This welcoming, intentional space is designed for community members to come together for a casual, social evening while pursuing their own creative projects. Drop-ins welcome, but registration encouraged for any weather-related changes in schedule. Bring your own arts or crafts project (BYOA) to work on. Ages 16+.

EVERY WEDNESDAY : CAN’T REMEMBER CAFE. Bangs Community Center, 70 Boltwood Walk. 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. Are you or a loved one experiencing memory loss? At the Amherst Senior Center, we understand memory changes and have developed a new program based on the popular Memory Café format. The Can’t Remember (CR) Café offers fun, relaxation, and of course, snacks. This program is perfect for caregivers, people with mild memory loss, or anyone in the community who enjoys good conversation and strong coffee. Each Can’t Remember Café opens with a coffee and conversation hour, followed by a group activity. Join us on Wednesday, November 30th for a performance by our special musical guests, “Healing Hearts with Harmony” at 11:00am. Come for the coffee, stay for the connections! Email seniorcenter@amherstma.gov or call 413-259-3060 with questions. 

LAST FRIDAY OF EVERY MONTH : LAST FRIDAYS AT THE DRAKE POETRY SERIES HOSTED BY LYRICAL FAITH. 44 North Pleasant Street. Join us every last Friday of the month* for Last Fridays at The Drake hosted by Lyrical Faith for an unforgettable open mic and poetry night experience featuring award-winning spoken word artists from across the country. Come through for music, drinks, and artistic expression where poets take center stage to share new work, old work, or any work that helps them get free. Doors and bar open at 5PM. Early arrival is encouraged to get a slot on the sign-up sheet. The cover charge is $5 with a college ID or $10 general admission. More Information. Full Events Calendar at the Drake.

THIRD SUNDAY OF EVERY MONTH APRIL THROUGH OCTOBER: CARS AND COFFEE AT THE MILL DISTRICT. Hosted by the Mill District General Store, 91 Cowls Road, 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. It is free for collectors to display their cars and compete for trophies in four categories: best domestic, best foreign, best exotic, and best overall, based on votes of the public. Plus, there will be coffee from Futura Coffee Roasters which will soon be joining the Mill District. Cars and Coffee will be held rain or shine.

NOW Through FRIDAY MARCH 31: “THE DISTANCE IS GETTING CLOSER,” FROM ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE SERENA HIMMELFARB. Hampshire College Art Gallery, 893 West Street. In The Distance is Getting Closer, artist-in residence Serena Himmelfarb challenges the aims of traditional landscape painting, which sought to capture and harness the divine light of the wilderness, and instead seeks engagement with its multiple histories, complex infrastructure and divergent ecologies. Closing reception Thursday, March 30, 5-8 p.m.

NOW Through WEDNESDAY APRIL 3: FEINBERG LECTURE SERIES ON US IMPERIALISM – CONFRONTING EMPIRE. Events are online or hybrid. This free public lecture series brings together scholars, journalists, educators, writers, community organizers, and survivors of state violence to examine global histories of U.S. imperialism and anti-imperialist resistance.The series traces the history of U.S. imperialism from the conquest of North America to the creation of an overseas empire in the late 19th century and to the present day. It also offers a critical historical analysis of the various traditions and movements that have opposed U.S. empire, including Black radicalism, Marxism, revolutionary feminism, armed struggle, international solidarity, pacifism, and liberal, electoral, and diplomatic activism. 
Register here.
Full listing of series events and more information

NOW Through FRIDAY MAY 12: PORTRAITS IN RED: MISSING & MURDERED INDIGENOUS WOMEN & GIRLS. Paintings by Nayana LaFond. Augusta Savage Gallery, New Africa House, UMass, 180 Infirmary Way. Portraits in Red: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls began on May 5, 2020 with one painting, “Lauraina in RED,” created for the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Native Women and Girls. Nayana LaFond put out an open call, saying she would paint a couple more portraits if people sent information on subjects. She received more than 25 the first day with stories and photos, and decided to dedicate herself to painting all she receives. Each portrait is of someone who is missing, was murdered, survived, their family member or friend, or an activist/hero fighting for the cause. Through her work LaFond hopes to make sure the missing and dead are never forgotten, to raise awareness about this serious issue, and to provide help with healing to the families she works with. LaFond continues to receive new images and stories and has an ongoing queue of 20-30. Opening Reception: Monday, January 30, 5-7 p.m. Artists talk: Tuesday, February 8, 6 p.m.

NOW Through SUNDAY MAY 14: 60 YEARS OF COLLECTING -AN ANNIVERSARY EXHIBITION CELEBRATING THE UNIVERSITY MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART PERMANENT COLLECTION. Bottom Floor of the UMass Fine Arts Center. Look here for gallery hours and additional information. Free. The exhibit can be viewed on line here.

NOW Through FRIDAY JUNE 2: A RECIPE FOR SAVING SEEDS. (Beginning TH MAR 12). 10 A.M. – 5:00 p.m. –
(MON-SUN). University of Massachusetts Amherst, Science and Engineering Library,740 N Pleasant St.
The exhibit consists of a series of ten seed-saving recipe cards. Each card provides easy, step-bystep instructions for saving seeds of specific flowers, herbs, and vegetables, with images and text. Reception: April 7, 1-3 p.m.

NOW Through SUNDAY JULY 2: GOD MADE MY FACE: A COLLECTIVE PORTRAIT OF JAMES BALDWIN. Meade Art Museum, 41 Quadrangle Street, Amherst College. Look here for days and hours. This exhibit presents works from iconic artists such as Richard Avedon, Marlene Dumas, and Kara Walker alongside archival materials in order to explore the life, work, and legacy of James Baldwin (1924–1987). More information

NOW Throughout -SUMMER 2023: ANCESTRAL BRIDGES EXHIBITION AT FROST LIBRARY TO CELEBRATE BLACK AND AFRO-INDIGENOUS FAMILIES WHO LIVED AND WORKED IN AMHERST Frost Library at Amherst College, 61 Quadrangle Drive, 4:30 p.m.-6 p.m. This exhibition, the first partnership between the Ancestral Bridges Foundation  and Amherst College, seeks to center this long-neglected aspect of town history and to reveal the rich and complex lives of the Black and Afro-Indigenous community of Amherst. Our families’ old black-and-white photographs complement oral histories–some yet to be recorded – and other artifacts available locally and at the college. I hope these images and stories raise questions, prompt further research, and challenge us all to meet our collective responsibility to build a more just and equitable future. All are welcome. On view through the summer of 2023. Free.