Daily Hampshire Gazette – Area briefs: League of Women Voters book sale; Grow Food’s climate gardening workshops
Mario Bautista
The League of Women Voters of the Northampton Area will hold its 74th annual book sale this Saturday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at Smith Vocational Agricultural and Agricultural High School, High School 80 Locust St.
GAZETTE FILE PHOTO
NORTHAMPTON — The League of Women Voters of the Northampton Area will hold its 74th annual book sale this Saturday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at Smith Vocational Agricultural and Agricultural High School, High School 80 Locust St.
The sale is an excellent source of inexpensive good quality books on a variety of topics including hobbies, art, sports, classics, science/nature, biography and history, as well as a large number of children’s books and fiction including mystery, science fiction and graphic novels. A special section with information about banned books will be featured.
Over 15,000 books will be available for bargain prices most for $1-$2.
Entrance is free to the public starting at 9 a.m., with an early bird special at 8 a.m. for early access in exchange for a $10 donation to the League of Women Voters.
The League of Women Voters is active in area communities supporting voter access and education on numerous issues involving health care, public education, human services and the environment. The League of Women Voters of the Northampton Area recently celebrated its 100th anniversary. The Northampton chapter was founded in 1922, two years after American women won the right to vote through passage of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution. This local LWV includes 130 members in communities from Springfield through Williamsburg.
NORTHAMPTON — Grow Food Northampton will hold the final two workshops in its Climate Adaptive Gardening Series. These hands-on workshops, held at the Community Farm at 140 Meadow St. in Florence, will empower community members with practical skills and knowledge in topics ranging from understanding invasive species to soil health and flood management.
On Saturday, Sept. 28, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., Jo Rosen of Meadowhawk Farm will lead an introductory workshop that focuses on the methods of seed saving, an essential skill for climate-adaptive gardening. Participants will learn practical seed-keeping techniques for different crops and explore the importance of seed sovereignty in building resilient food systems. The discussion is free and open to the public.
Then on Oct. 19, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., climate scientist Connor Stedman and Grow Food’s land stewardship manager, Piyush Labhsetwar, will lead a fall workshop and community project, “Climate and Flood-Focused Hedgerow Planting.”
This two-part free event includes a discussion on climate strategies for flood management and a hands-on community hedgerow planting project. The workshop will focus on using hedgerows to mitigate floodwaters and promote climate resilience at the Community Farm, which is located in a floodplain.
For more information or to register for these workshops, visit: growfoodnorthampton.org/events.
Physicians from the Massachusetts Medical Society advise patients in the commonwealth to schedule time with their health care provider to learn more about receiving vaccines against three major respiratory viruses — influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and COVID-19. Patients should receive these vaccines before the end of October for the best protection ahead of the peak virus season.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that individuals over six months receive an annual flu vaccine. The flu can cause serious illness and death. Preliminary CDC data indicates that up to 830,000 hospitalizations and approximately 25,000-72,000 deaths were caused by the flu during the 2023-2024 season.
There is potential for RSV to be extremely dangerous to those over 75, those 60 and over with underlying chronic health conditions, infants, and young children. The CDC recommends that these populations receive an RSV vaccine.
There are multiple options for COVID-19 vaccines, which are recommended for all individuals over 6 months. A discussion with your health care provider can help determine the best vaccine for each individual.
