Carlisle Council On Aging doings    

Ask a nurse: On Monday, December 17, from 11 a.m. to noon, meet one-on-one with our new Community Health Nurse from Emerson Hospital Home Care, sponsored by CHNA 15 DoN funds from Lahey and Winchester Hospitals. This is a great opportunity to receive advice on medication management, nutrition, fitness goals, current health trends, chronic disease and/or mental health management. No appointment necessary. Light refreshments will be available.

Hair Cuts on the Go: On Monday, December 17, licensed hairdressers Suzanne Hickey and Georgia Triantafilles will provide haircuts to our seniors for $10. 50 at Town Hall from 9–11:30 a.m. Each appointment is 15 minutes. Call the COA at 1-978-371-2895 to make your appointment.

Nashoba Tech lunch: On Wednesday, January 9, come to Nashoba Tech for lunch prepared by the culinary arts students. Select chicken Marsala with potatoes and vegetable, broiled scallops with starch and vegetable or a vegetarian meal, chef’s choice. RSVP by January 2. The meal is $5 plus tip, payable at the school.

Community Conversation, Brain-healthy cooking: On Tuesday, January 15, at 1:30 p.m. in the library, Senior Living Residences’ chefs will demonstrate how to prepare multiple tasty dishes using a short list of healthful staples, helping to cut out waste and stretch your shopping budget when cooking for one. Call the COA at 1-978-371-2895 to register by Tuesday, January 8.

Prize bingo: Volunteer Elizabeth Acquaviva has again offered to make prize gift baskets for our Annual Bingo at the COA Lunch on Thursday, January 17. Consider donating one or more gifts. Items that make good prizes are books, frames, gift cards, dried fruit, coffee/teas, canned ham/pineapple, wine, nuts, candles, jams, etc. Wrap all breakable/fragile items. Donations will be accepted until Thursday, January 10. Drop off your donations at the COA during office hours.

Be a Mosquito friend 

Like what you’ve seen in The Mosquito? We could use your help. We are a non-profit paper and every contribution, no matter the size, helps. So please consider a donation to The Carlisle Mosquito Fund, 662A Bedford Road, Carlisle or online at www.carlislemosquito. org.

Looking for a good book?

Check out the Friends cart in the Gleason Library foyer for great reads—cheap. Your purchase helps the Friends fund library programs.

Genealogy gathering at the Gleason

Join the genealogy class for a holiday gathering. Instead of their usual class, they will celebrate the holidays by sharing stories and showing their finds, family artifacts, photos and heirlooms.  Bring something you want to show or just come and listen. With genealogist Claire Smith. This free class will be held at the Gleason Public Library on Monday, December 17, at 6:30 p.m. 

Story times at the Gleason Library

Gleason Library is taking a holiday break from baby and preschool story times starting Friday, December 7. Stay tuned for our schedule starting up once again in January.

Book clubs at the Gleason Library

The Community Book Club will meet to discuss The Gambler, by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, on Monday, January 7, at 10:30 a.m. at the Gleason Public Library. Books are available at the library circulation desk; advance registration is not required. The next meeting will be Monday, February 4, and the title will be Mozart’s Starling, by Lyanda Lynn Haupt. 

Infant/toddler sign language

On Thursday, January 10, 10:30-11:30 a.m., join Sheryl White of Baby Kneads with your infant and/or toddler, designed exclusively for ages two months to 20 months. Review research benefits, master and practice several signs, and learn how to teach American Sign Language to your baby. You will learn everything you need to get started with signing right away. Up to 12 families may attend this program; registration is strongly encouraged. To register for this program, sign up on the events calendar on the library’s website or call the library  at 1-978-369-4898. To learn more about Sheryl, visit www.babykneads.com. 

Winter story time registration week

Winter story time sessions are coming. Sign-ups for the winter preschool story time sessions at the Gleason Public Library start on Monday, December 31, and run through Friday, January 11. The winter session dates are January 17 through March 7, all on Thursdays at 1:15 p.m. Picture books are read followed by a thematic craft or activity. 

Be on the lookout for special guest readers over the course of the year. This program is for ages 3-6. To register, call 1-978-369-4898 or sign up on their website. If you are interested in a story time, don’t wait to sign up, as a story time with very few participants may be cancelled.

Polar Express pajama story time tonight

Get in your PJs and climb aboard the Polar Express for a special after-hours story time at the Gleason Public Library on Friday, December 14, at 7 p.m. Miss Nicole will read the holiday favorite, and there will also be activities and crafts, including a visit from a very special conductor. Snacks and hot chocolate will be provided to cap off the evening. Space is limited and registration is required; include yourself in your count so we are best able to prepare. Register by clicking the “Sign Up” button on their website (www.gleasonlibrary.org) or calling the library at 1-978-369-4898. Believers of all ages are welcome.

Heald House open this Sunday afternoon

The Historical Society’s Heald House will be open this Sunday, December16, from 2–5 p.m. for its regularly scheduled monthly Open House. The museum has a number of new exhibits, among them a newly acquired Henry Hooper lamp, quite possibly made from copper mined in Carlisle (where visitors can see the mine site), and a collection of memorabilia of the First World War, whose hundredth anniversary of the Armistice was celebrated on November 12. Also available are gifts with a Carlisle flavor, including tree ornaments and prints. The Society will be offering complimentary copies of Ruth Wilkins’ book, Carlisle: Its History and Heritage. Holiday refreshments available. All are welcome. 

Square and contra dance at FRS

A contra and square dance with live music by Roaring Jelly and caller Jeannine Ameduri will be held at the First Religious Society, 27 School Street, on Friday, December 21, from 8 to 11 p.m. All dances are taught; beginners, singles, and families are welcome. Bring clean shoes. Doors open 7:30 p.m., instruction for newcomers is given at 7:45 p.m. Adults $8, teens $5, children 12 and under are free with a parent, family max $20. For information, call 1-781-259-0753 or visit roaringjelly.org.

Carlisle dance and potluck tonight 

Enjoy a welcoming potluck supper, followed by contra and square dancing, in Union Hall, First Religious Society, 27 School Street, tonight, December 14. 

Supper begins at 6:30 p.m.; bring a dish to share. Dancing runs from 8 to 10 p.m. The dances are mostly traditional contra dances, along with a few singing squares. Lively music is provided by the Carlisle Band, with David Titus, Debby Knight, Beth Murray, and many talented sit-ins. Dances are taught, and all are welcome. A $2 contribution is requested for the potluck, and the charge for the dance is $6. 

 LexArt’s Annual Holiday Marketplace

Come to LexArts Annual Holiday Marketplace, 130 Waltham Street, Lexington, through December 23. Items for sale include beautiful handcrafted creations in wood, fine jewelry, painting, decorative arts, photography, needle arts, weaving, basketry, ceramics, polymer clay and beading, made by local fine artists and craftspeople. Find your perfect original, one-of-a-kind gift.

Support your local artists. Hours are Tuesdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. Open to the public, there is free admission and parking.

CCHS bands and orchestra presents “Prism”

On Saturday, December 15, at 7 p.m., “Prism” is showcasing the talented student musicians of the Concord-Carlisle High School (CCHS) Band and Orchestra in a non-stop musical kaleidoscope. A variety of musical styles and ensembles will be presented throughout the performing space, creating an interactive experience for the audience. You have never seen a concert like this.

This benefit concert will help fund the Alfred W. Dentino Excellence in Music Fund. Proceeds will help fund: All-District and All-State events,  private lesson scholarships, clinicians and guest conductors and the Japan 2019 Scholarship Fund.

Tickets are $12 for adults and $8 for students/seniors. “Prism” is held at the CCHS auditorium, 500 Walden Street in Concord. Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketstage.com.

Gingerbread house workshop

On Thursday, December 20, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., come make your own gingerbread house with graham crackers, frosting, and candy. The library will provide the materials; you provide the creativity. Registration is required—do so either by clicking the “Sign Up” button on their website or by calling the library at 1-978-369-4898. Note that only one house per family will be allowed, due to limited supplies; if registering online, include every member of your party who is attending in the “name” section instead of registering children individually.

One more week to donate to Toys for Tots

Every year, the US Marine Corps Reserve focuses its attention on children of all ages who are looking for little treasures to warm their hearts.

The Carlisle collection location is open and will continue until Friday, December 23, at Ferns Country Store. Please provide new unwrapped gifts appropriate for children ages 1-15 years.

Last chance to support Police Toy Drive

The Carlisle Police Department continues to accept new, unwrapped toys until the morning of Monday, December 17. Police Officers will deliver the toys to the Department of Children and Family (DCF) Lowell Regional Office where they will be handed out to families in the Lowell region. The Police Department says thank you in advance for helping to bring a smile to a face that might otherwise not receive a gift. 

Sign up for RUOK®

If you live alone, you may want to sign up for the free RUOK® Telephone Reassurance System. The system will call you at the predetermined time you request. When you answer, you’ll hear a short pre-recorded call message from the COA. If you don’t pick up after several tries, the police will personally try to reach you, and if there is still no reply they will stop by and check on you at home. This system has saved lives. Call the Council on Aging to sign up at 1-978-371-2895.

Discovery Museum has programs  for children with special needs

Discovery Museum announces the 2019 Especially for Me Series of free events for families of children with an autism spectrum disorder, who are deaf or hard of hearing, or are blind or visually impaired. Upcoming events will take place in the new and fully-accessible museum building. All Especially for Me events are free to attend, but preregistration is required. Dates and registration links can be found online at www.discoveryacton.org/efm.

The program offers families facing similar challenges an opportunity to play together while the museum is closed to the general public or at times when capacity is limited in order to improve access. Because admission is free, families may come and go based on their children’s needs without concern for cost. Parents also have the chance to meet other families in similar circumstances, thereby reducing feelings of isolation often described by families dealing with special needs.

Resources appropriate to each event are provided. These may include accessible programming or American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters. Additionally, food, including gluten-free options, is provided for all evening events. Noise reducing headphones, museum story guides and a sensory map are available to all visitors at all times.

This year, the museum has partnered with The Learning Center for the Deaf’s Center for Research and Training and Unstoppable Design Studio to provide staff trainings.

2019 schedule

• Free sensory-friendly afternoons (during public hours, but no school groups or birthday parties will be scheduled at this time) are on the following Tuesdays, 1:30–4:30 p.m.: January 8, February 5, March 5, April 2, May 7, June 4, October 1, November 12 and December 3. 

• Free autism-friendly evenings (closed to the public) are on the following Saturday evenings, 5–8 p.m.: January 5, February 9, March 9, April 27, June 1, July 13, September 28 and November 16.

• Free evenings for deaf, hard of hearing and KODA children (closed to the public) are on the following Saturday evenings, 5–8 p.m.: January 26, April 13, August 10 and November 2.

• Free mornings for deaf, hard of hearing, and KODA infants and toddlers (closed to the public) will take place 9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m. on Monday, March 25, and Monday, October 7. 

• Free visually impaired family evenings (closed to the public) will take place 5–8 p.m. on Saturday, May 11, and Saturday, October 19.

Trinity Episcopal in Concord holds vespers

Trinity Episcopal Church hosts a week of Advent Vespers for the community beginning Sunday, December 16 at 5 p.m. and continuing each night through December 23. They meet in Trinity’s intimate historic chapel at 81 Elm Street in Concord.

Advent preparation invites us to stillness, to quiet moments, to candle-lit darkness. This is a different kind of preparation for Christmas: the preparation of our hearts.

They will use the ancient “O Antiphons” (the text of the Advent hymn “O come, o come Emmanuel”) to center our focus. The refrain of each verse reflects our longing for the arrival of the Holy Child.

Trinity’s rector, the Rev. Nancy J. Hagner, invites all in the community to join in quiet reflection and to let go of worldly reason and cares; to make space in our hearts and minds, our souls and our bodies for this miraculous event – Emmanuel. God with us.

Trinity Episcopal Church in Concord is fully handicap-accessible. For further information on this and other events at Trinity, call the parish office, 1-978-369-3715 or visit http://trinityconcord.org/category/news-events/.