The return of the Village Coffeehouse entertainment series features the Lunch Pail Band, an improvisational blues band, on Saturday, March 11. Patti Mikkelsen / For Lakes Region Weekly

Village Coffeehouse back in business

After a hiatus of three years, the Village Coffeehouse of the First Congregational Church of New Gloucester is re-opening, kicking off with a concert from the Lunch Pail Band. This improvisational blues band features mouth harpist Jere DeWaters, who carries his harmonicas in his lunch pail, as well as his fellow performers Chris Hartogh on drums, Jerry Adams on bass and Steve Bailey on guitar.

The concert takes place from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 11, at the First Congregational Church Vestry, 19 Gloucester Hill Road. Tickets are available at the door for $10. For more information, contact Julie Fralich at 653-4823 or j.fralich@gmail.com.

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

Acclaimed storyteller spins tales

Antonio Rocha, a native of Brazil, began his career in the performing arts in 1985. His unique fusion of mime and spoken word has been performed from Singapore to South Africa and many places in between, including 16 countries on six continents. This internationally acclaimed storyteller can appeal to a vast age group entertaining both children and adults.

Rocha will perform at the First Congregational Church Vestry, 19 Gloucester Hill Road, from 10 to 11 a.m. on Saturday, March 11. Donations are welcome. Contact Julie Fralich at 653-4823 or j.fralich@gmail.com for more details.

Happy birthday to our library

The New Gloucester Public Library’s 135th birthday party starts at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 12. Attendees will also be celebrating the silver anniversary of the library moving into the present building.

The keynote speaker will be Thomas E. Johnson Jr., whose latest book, “Common Place: The Public Library, Civil Society and Early American Values,” has just been published. The book relates stories behind early libraries in America and includes vignettes of 16 public libraries based in New England.

Assistant Librarian Emily Martin will read a children’s picture book to kids in attendance. Light refreshments will be served. Bring a memory to share of the old library building or of the move into the current building.

The Friends of the Public Library will be raising funds for a birthday present for the library. More information is available on their Facebook page.

On Thursday, March 16, the New Gloucester Historical Society will celebrate the library’s anniversary with a special talk by library Director Jay Campbell. The presentation will take place at the historical society’s meeting at 7 p.m. at the library.

Meet Town Manager Bill Kerbin

Two time slots to meet Town Manager Bill Kerbin are scheduled for 10 a.m. to noon on Tuesday, March 14, and 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 15. Both sessions take place at the New Gloucester Public Library, 379 Intervale Road. Light refreshments are available. These gatherings were rescheduled from January due to inclement weather.

Apparel Impact great success

Since the Environmental Resources Committee launched its initiative of bringing an Apparel Impact bin to the town’s transfer station in January 2022, the bin has collected a whopping 8,880 pounds of textiles.

Apparel Impact provides towns the opportunity to reduce their household waste of textiles and recover them, creating more local jobs, reducing waste and saving taxpayer dollars.