Community News – Library to host Arctic climate specialist

The Camden Conference and Kennebunk Free Library present Dr. Susana Hancock at the Kennebunk Free Library on Wednesday, Dec. 15 at 6 p.m. Hancock’s discussion is titled Climate Politics in Contemporary Europe.

Susana Hancock

Hancock is a specialist in Arctic climate geopolitics. With a background ranging from astrophysics to linguistics, she is a recent three-degree graduate of the University of Oxford. Originally from Maine, she has worked and lived in the polar regions for much of her life. Currently, Hancock is an expert reviewer for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is on the Executive Committee of the Association for Polar Early Career Scientists where she works on climate and science diplomacy, and has been an Arctic consultant for the UN’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission.

She has just returned from COP26 in Glasgow and the UN in Geneva, where she was an invited speaker on Arctic environmental geopolitics and on cognitive linguistics in climate communication. In her other life, she is an elite rower who has competed around the world and qualified for the 2016 Olympic trials and currently coaches at Waynflete School.

The program is free and wheelchair accessible. Kennebunk Free Library is located at 112 Main St. in Kennebunk. For more information, call 207-985-2173 or email kfl@kennebunklibrary.org.

Astronomy club schedules meeting

The Astronomical Society of Northern New England will hold its monthly meeting on Friday, Dec. 3 at The New School in Kennebunk. The meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. A business meeting, also open to the public, commences at 6:45 p.m.

The New School is located at 38 York St. The December meeting agenda includes Bernie Reim’s, What’s Up for the Month, and the popular Astro Shorts, where attendees and members share questions, activities, news and observations.

The Astro Shorts meetings provide and opportunity for discussion. At this meeting, the society’s board of directors for 2022 will be elected.

If skies are clear, members may visit the Talmage Observatory at Starfield for an observing session.

The Astronomical Society of Northern New England is a local association of amateur astronomers that meets monthly at The New School. Meetings are on the first Friday of each month. All those interested in astronomy are welcome, from stargazers and hobbyists, to serious observers, astrophotographers and those interested in astronomical theory. The general public is also invited and welcome.

Astronomical Society of Northern New England also hosts Star Parties at its Talmage Observatory at Starfield on Route 35 in West Kennebunk. For more information about the society, including directions and events, or to contact the club, visit www.ASNNE.org.

Churches to host Prelude events

Church on the Cape United Methodist Church will host its Prelude Christmas Fair on Saturday, Dec. 4 from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The fair features handmade craft items, holiday decorations, cookie and bake sale, jewelry, artwork and warm cider will be served.
New this year is a Christmas tree and wreath sale featuring a variety of sizes, fully decorated.

Also scheduled is a book signing with the Rev. Nonie Freeman, author of “Do You Know How Wonderful You Are?”

Church on the Cape is located at 3 Langsford Road, Cape Porpoise.

Village Baptist Church in Kennebunkport will host the Sounds of Christmas concert at 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 10. Church on the Cape will host the concert at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 11.

The concert features Wendy Hagarty, trumpet, Ted Hagarty, clarinet, Nancy Chamberlin, piano, and Janice Stover, director Song Sisters and Choir.

National stewardship award goes to Feurt

Dr. Christine Baumann Feurt, of Kennebunk, Coastal Training Program director at the Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve, has received the Margaret A. Davidson Award for Stewardship from the Coastal & Estuarine Research Federation.

According to a Wells Reserve news release, the award recognizes Feurt’s achievements as “a visionary social scientist who has helped to integrate the human dimensions into coastal management.”

She accepted the award at the federation’s national meeting this month.

Christine Baumann Feurt Emily Greene photo

According to the news releasue, “Feurt developed the Coastal Training Program at the Wells Reserve in 2002 and consistently demonstrates a commitment to bringing scientists, practitioners, and community members together to protect the coasts and estuaries they value. She has expertise in stakeholder engagement, training design, collaborative learning, and environmental communication, and is a national leader in the research reserve network.”

Feurt developed both the Resilience Dialogues curriculum for stakeholder engagement in collaborative science and the Collaborative Learning Guide for Ecosystem Management, which focuses on engaging diverse audiences to address stewardship concerns. She facilitated formation of the Salmon Falls Watershed Collaborative, which received the US Water Prize in 2012, and has been a leader in the Saco Watershed Collaborative. Feurt has taught at the University of New England for more than 20 years.

The stewardship award was established to honor Margaret A. Davidson’s career in coastal resource management and her support of the application of science to the wise stewardship of estuaries and coasts.

According to the news release, “The Davidson Award recognizes an individual that demonstrates extraordinary leadership, service, innovation, and commitment to the management of estuarine and coastal systems.”

Museum Store Sunday is Nov. 28

For the fifth consecutive year, more than 1,400 museum stores representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, 22 countries, and five continents will offer shopping at museums and cultural institutions during Museum Store Sunday on Nov. 28.

“The Museum Mercantile at the Brick Store Museum will participate in the signature annual initiative and join museum stores worldwide by offering quality gifts filled with inspiration and educational value to consumers, with all purchases supporting its parent institution and the artisans and craftspeople who create many of the gifts found in museum stores,” wrote Cynthia Walker, Brick Store Museum executive director, in a Nov. 4 email.

The Brick Store Museum announced its participation in Museum Store Sunday on Nov. 28. The museum will also host its annual Holiday Showcase sales event Nov. 27 through Dec. 21. Dan King photo

This year, the museum’s annual Holiday Showcase is an expanded shop within the museum’s historic buildings offering fine art and craft from Maine artists. Support of the Holiday Showcase means shoppers will help both independent artists and the museum flourish this year. The Holiday Showcase runs from Nov. 27 through Dec. 21, with free admission to the museum sponsored by H.M. Payson.

“This year it’s more important than ever to support local cultural institutions—many of which have been closed for months due to COVID-19 restrictions,” said Blue Anderson, president of the Museum Store Association Board of Directors and director of Visitor Services for the Columbia River Maritime Museum. “On Museum Store Sunday, we encourage shoppers to ‘Be a Patron’ at their favorite museum stores to not only find inspiring, creative, and educational gifts for friends and family, but to also lend much needed support to these important venues. Whether online or in person, Museum Store Sunday is a wonderful opportunity for consumers around the world to shop local, support artisans and small suppliers, give back to the community, and find unique gifts for loved ones.

“During these uncertain times, shoppers can look forward to Museum Store Sunday as the global annual day to Be a Patron – and shop conscientiously and support museum stores and their missions worldwide. While there is only one Museum Store Sunday each year, everyone is encouraged to Be a Patron of museums and museum stores all year round.”

For more information on events and promotions during Museum Store Sunday at the Brick Store Museum, visit www.brickstoremuseum.org and follow on social media @BrickStoreMuseum.

Thanksgiving Dinner offered in West Kennebunk

The West Kennebunk Village Committee will host its Thanksgiving Dinner on Thanksgiving Day. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the meal is a drive-through event from noon to 2 p.m. at the Dorothy Stevens Center in West Kennebunk. The dinner is free and open to all.

The center is located at 80 Thompson Road. Delivery is also offered. For more information, call 207-420-4756.

AFIO schedules Nov. 20 session

The next meeting of the Association of Former Intelligence Officers will be on Saturday, Nov. 20 and features Col. (RET) William Hall, who is the president of the World Affairs Council of Maine. He will address the topic of Eastern Europe Thirty Years After the Fall of the Soviet Union.

Hall was a U.S. Intelligence Officer in Asia and Europe for 18 years. He will discuss the Berlin Wall and its aftereffects including democratic capitalism under our leadership, Germany’s movement toward
reunification, and changes in the Soviet Republics and satellite areas. He will include what was expected, what actually happened, and where we are now.

The session is the latest in a series of discussions relating to the importance of intelligence in current public affairs. The AFIO meeting is open to the public and begins at 2 p.m. at the Brick Store Museum’s Program Center at 4 Dane St., Kennebunk. A question and answer period will follow the presentation.

Atlantic Hall plans annual Prelude Fair

The Atlantic Hall in Cape Porpoise will hold its annual Prelude Fair on Saturday, Dec. 4 from 7:45 a.m. until 2:30 p.m.

There will be a wide variety of items sold at the fair, including antiques, jewelry, paintings, holiday gifts and decorations, photographs, oriental rugs, rope craft, handmade paper, sculptures, cheeses, jams/jellies and a special Old- Time Raffle. During the fair, Ed Wright, an acoustic guitarist and Cape Porpoise resident, will perform a mix of holiday music

For more information, call Ed Briggs at 207-967-3357.