KIDS INVITED TO GET A "GREEN THUMB" IN MAY

Local Farms Local Food and the Patten Free Library offer children's afterschool programs celebrating springtime

BATH, Maine - Local Farms Local Food is offering a free children's activity series "Young Green Thumbs: Spring Fling" at the Patten Free Library in Bath each Wednesday afternoon in May. Local Farms - Local Food is a collaboration between the Kennebec Estuary Land Trust and the Brunswick Topsham Land Trust to promote local food and conserve farmland in the Bath-Brunswick region.

Children ages 4 and up are invited to explore the joys of springtime and investigate what makes spring an important time for plants, wildlife, and us. Kids will make fresh, healthy spring-themed smoothies; discover the inner workings of flowers; explore the life stories of amphibians; and try their hand at writing poetry about pollinators!

The four part series will be held in the children's room at the library from 4:00 to 5:00 pm. No pre-registration is necessary to develop a 'green thumb'!

May 7                    Flower Power!

May 14                 Passionate about Pollinators

May 21                 Let's make a smoothie connection.

May 28                 It's not easy being green.

Parents are welcomed and encouraged to take part in the activities. These programs are generously supported by the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation and the Davenport Trust Fund. The Patten Free Library is located at 33 Summer St. in Bath. For more information, please visit www.kennebecestuary.org or call 207-442-8400.

READ A STORY AND EXPLORE NATURE

Bath, Maine - The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust (KELT) is offering free children's programs, with the Patten Free Library in May. The two programs will offer spring themed stories and activities for children 6 years old and younger.

It is a splendid opportunity for young children and parents to explore the wonders of nature two Tuesdays from 10:00am to 11:00am. Participants will investigate spring events- wild flowers and tadpoles- through stories, crafts, and outdoor, hands-on exploration. KELT's Education Coordinator, Becky Kolak, will lead the way!

May 6                    Flower Power at Sewall Woods Preserve

May 20                 Funny Frogs & Tiny Tadpoles at Thorne Head Preserve

Parents are welcomed and encouraged to take part in the activities. To sign-up, contact the Patten Free Library’s Children’s Room at 443-5141 or childrens@patten.lib.me.us. These programs are generously sponsored by the Davenport Trust Fund. To get to Sewall Woods Preserve, take High Street north out of Bath and turn left onto Whiskeag Road. Enter through stone gateposts on the right for parking. To get to Thorne Head Preserve, go north on High Street which dead ends into the parking lot of the preserve.

The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust is a membership supported organization dedicated to protecting the land, water and wildlife of the Kennebec Estuary.  It maintains nine preserves for public enjoyment and has protected over 2,500 acres of land since founding in 1989. FMI visit www.kennebecestuary.org or call (207) 442-8400.

Patten Free Library to Host Talk by Bath Native, Stewart Day, World War II Veteran

Bath, Maine - On Saturday, November 16, Patten Free Library (PFL) will host a presentation by Stewart Day, a ninety-year-old decorated World War II veteran. Day will recount stories of his service as a tail gunner on a B-17s, flying bombing missions over Germany and shooting down three German fighters. His own plane was shot down and ditched in the ocean where Stewart assisted fellow crew members before being captured and imprisoned in P.O.W. camp Stalag 17B. His unofficial job there was to make escape maps of the camp. When Allied victory became apparent, he was forced to make a 281-mile march before being freed by the advancing American Army. Stewart was awarded many medals, including the Purple Heart, for his wartime service.

The presentation is free, open to the public, and will begin at 10:30 a.m. in the Library’s second floor Community Room. Some of Mr. Day’s personal artifacts and photographs will be on display, and there will be opportunities for questions during his talk.

Mr. Day’s presentation will be moderated by Brunswick native Chris Gutscher. Last year, Gutscher worked with Mr. Day to record an oral history of his war memories; he submitted it to the Library of Congress’ Veteran’s History Project, where he hopes it will be permanently archived.

For additional information, contact Roberta Jordan, the Outreach and Instruction Librarian at Patten Free Library, at 443-5141, extension 25.

KELT AND PFL OFFER WINTER READ PUBLIC DISCUSSIONS

Meet Maine Author Dean B. Bennett and Engage in Thought Provoking Dialogue
Bath, Maine - The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust (KELT) hosts its 3rd annual Winter Read, a community book group offered in conjunction with the Patten Free Library, at two discussions on March 14 and March 21 in Bath. Author, Dean B. Bennett is attending the first discussion, and the events are free and open to the public.

The Winter Read selection, Nature and Renewal: Wild River Valley and Beyond by Dean B. Bennett, touches on the vulnerability and resiliency of the Wild River Valley. The valley, crossing from northeast New Hampshire into Maine, has experienced a similar history to the Kennebec River region. The book perfectly narrates the story of a magnificent landscape- centered on an old hemlock tree- as it is affected by ecological disaster and rebirth as well as by human impact, stewardship, and interdependence with the land.

"In a deeper sense, the old hemlock and other old trees promote a feeling of human dependence on nature. We identify with their ability to 'hang in there' despite the odds, and we realize that we, too, are dependent on the natural world around us because we are vulnerable and must somehow adapt to changes beyond our control..."-Nature and Renewal: Wild River Valley and Beyond.

Dean B. Bennett will join the first discussion at the Hyde School Mansion in Bath on March 14th starting at 6:00pm. With the themes of nature's power of renewal and our human relationship to the land, KELT volunteer Jenifer Van Deusen will facilitate a discussion between Dr. Bennett and participants. Light refreshments will be served courtesy of Mae's Cafe in Bath.

On March 21 at 2:00pm, KELT's Education Coordinator Becky Kolak will facilitate an afternoon discussion hosted by the Patten Free Library in the Community Room. To register for either of the discussion events, please contact KELT at 442-8400 or email Becky Kolak at bkolak@kennebecestuary.org.

These events are free and open to the public thanks to generous sponsorship from First Federal Savings Bank and The Merrymeeting Bay Trust.

Please contact the Patten Free Library, Bath Books, or Gulf of Maine Books in Brunswick for a copy of Nature and Renewal, to read the book before the discussion events.  Books will also be for sale at the Hyde School event, where Dr. Bennett will be available to sign books for participants. For more information about Dr. Bennett, visit www.tilburyhouse.com/maine-and-new-england/nature-and-renewal.htm.