Engraved veterans’ names can be added to the New Gloucester Veterans Monument annually, and bricks honoring a veteran can be engraved with a brief message. The deadline each year is Feb. 28 and more information can be found at newgloucester.com under the New Gloucester Veterans Monument web page. Patti Mikkelsen / For Lakes Region Weekly

Veterans Monument update

To have a name engraved on the New Gloucester Veterans Monument or to purchase an engraved brick, a name application or order form for brick engraving must be received by Feb. 28. Forms can be accessed at newgloucester.com under the New Gloucester Veterans Monument web page, requested by emailing ngveteransmonument@gmail.com or picked up at Town Hall.

February vacation farm adventure

Pineland Farms is offering a new way to spend a couple of hours during February vacation: exploring their Valley Farm and Family Farmyard while participating in several hands-on activities.

Interactive pursuits are entitled “Collect eggs with the Cuckoos … and various other mixed breed hens”; “Education Barn hullabaloo,” during which attendees will meet farmyard personalities consisting of potbellied pigs, goats and sheep; and “Calf barn discovery,” which offers participants a scavenger hunt and a chance to get introduced to the diminutive bovines. If these activities don’t fill a two-hour time slot, participants can also visit the dairy or heifer barn and meet the remainder of Pineland Farms’ Holstein herd.

Three time slots are available on each of the weekdays during February vacation, Feb. 15-19. Tickets are limited and pre-registration is required. They can be purchased at shop.pinelandfarms.org/collections/all-classes-events. Prices are $5 per person, children 2 and under are free. Season pass holders are advised to use their discount code at checkout.

Attendees are to check in at the Smokehouse, Valley Farm Road. Parking is available next to the big white silo. When visiting the farm, keep CDC guidelines in mind. Contact the Education Department at 650-3031 or education@pinelandfarms.org with any questions.

Blood drive

The American Red Cross will host a blood drive at Pineland Farms in The Commons, 59 Pineland Drive, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Feb. 10. Whole blood and power red donations will be collected.

The most common type of donation is approximately a pint of whole blood. This type of blood donation usually takes about an hour. Donors must weigh at least 110 pounds and be in good health.

Power red is similar to a whole blood donation, except a special machine is used to allow donors to safely donate two units of red blood cells while returning their plasma and platelets to them. These donors must meet specific eligibility requirements for age, weight and height. The ideal blood types are O positive, O negative, A negative and B negative.

There are three ways to schedule an appointment: online at redcrossblood.org/give.html/find-drive, call 1-800-733-2767 or use the mobile app at redcrossblood.org/blood-donor-app.html.

Patti Mikkelsen can be contacted at mikks@maine.rr.com.