Community & Arts events: Aug. 17 – Aug. 21

For a full listing of upcoming events, click here for The Chester Telegraph Calendar.

To find out how to become a Calendar Partner, email or call Cynthia Prairie at cprairie@chestertelegraph.org or 802-875-2703.

To be included in events briefs, email Susan Lampe-Wilson at calendar@chestertelegraph.org. Photos welcome. No PDFs, please. Notices must be received by noon on Fridays to be eligible for publication the following week.

Aug. 17: Reptile rendezvous at Bromley Mountain

The Vermont Institute of Natural Science is back at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17 at Bromley Mountain Resort at 3984 Vermont Route 11 in Peru with an all-new presentation and more live animals.

Attendees will learn the characteristics of reptiles. Meet reptiles up close and learn about the adaptations of these beautiful creatures to their habitats here in New England.

There will be touchable artifacts and hands-on materials to complete the experience as the group uncovers the ecological roles and tremendous importance of these organisms.

For more information, visit here.

Aug. 17: Speckers perform at Andover Town Hall

Bring friends and neighbors for a full afternoon of music by the Specker family at the Andover Town Hall from 3 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17 at 953 Andover Road in Chester.

The afternoon will feature old-time instrumentals on triple fiddles, John Specker’s claw hammer banjo and a lot of singing. Independently, his daughters Lila and Ida Mae Specker carry on the family tradition, “old-time music for modern times,” with their own independent offshoot, The Terrible Mountain String Band.

Bring chairs or blankets to sit on, a snack to share and your own non-alcoholic beverage to this Andover get-together. In good weather, this event will be outdoors, but it will take place rain or shine. There will be Andover T-shirts for sale. Admission is free.

For more information, visit here.

Aug. 17: Northeast Men’s Summer Chorus
sings at Chester Baptist

Enjoy an evening of eclectic music from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 17 at the Chester Baptist Church, 162 Main St. in Chester.

The Northeast Men’s Summer Chorus, made up of residents of Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, will be singing accompanied and a capella songs from classical to doo-wop, from spirituals to folk, rock and pop and musical theater. The program is free.

Click here for more information.

Aug. 17: ‘The Last Command’ FOLA’s Silent Movie Festival

The Friends of the Ludlow Auditorium continues its summer tradition of featuring a classic silent movie enhanced by the music of Jeff Rapsis at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17 in the Heald Auditorium of the Ludlow Town Hall, 37 Depot St. in Ludlow.

The feature movie is The Last Command, a 1928 silent film directed by Josef von Sternberg, and written by John F. Goodrich and Herman J. Mankiewicz from a story by Lajos Bíró. Star Emil Jannings won the first Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role.

In 1928 Hollywood, director Leo Andreyev (William Powell) looks through photographs for actors for his next movie. When he casts an aged Sergius Alexander (Emil Jannings), Sergius shows up at the Eureka Studio with a horde of other extras and is issued a general’s uniform. The film then flashes back 10 years to Czarist Russia, which is in the midst of the Revolution.

The movie is free and donations are welcome. For more information, visit here.

Aug. 18: MacLaury cancer fund-raiser in honor of grandson

Community members are invited to an Open Garden Fundraiser to help fight cancer from 3 to 7 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 18 at the MacLaury residence, 21 Turner Road in Weston.

Carol and Steve MacLaury of Peabody Mountain Apiaries are devoting much of its emotional energy on Team #grahamstrong and it and Carol’s participation in the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk on Sept. 22. Team #grahamstrong is in honor of the MacLaurys’ 12-year-old grandson, Graham, a brain cancer survivor. This year’s team goal is $10,000 and the entire walking group of 9,000 hopes to raise $9 million, topping last year’s record of $8.6 million.

Attendees to the Aug. 18 event are invited to wander the MacLaurys’ berry patches and perennial  and vegetable gardens in support of their efforts. Sip wines from Spain and Vermont, craft Vermont beers and enjoy other non-alcoholic beverages and tasty hors d’oeuvres from many of our awesome local restaurants and farms. Bid on silent auction items from the West River Farmer’s Market vendors and other local businesses.

There is a $25 minimum donation at the door and all funds raised will go to support the Jimmy Fund and Dana Farber Cancer Institute via Carol MacLaury’s Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk Team #grahamstrong.

If you cannot attend the fundraiser, you can learn more about Team #grahamstrong or donate online by clicking here.

For more information, click here.

Aug. 21: Chester Seniors Citizens Club picnic

The Chester Senior Citizens Club holds its annual picnic at 11:30 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 19 at the Adams Farm, 462 Adams Road in Chester. Bring a chair and a dish to share. For directions or additional information, call 802-875-6242.

For more information, visit here.

Aug. 21: John Sullivan and friends
perform at Proctorsville Green

The Cavendish Community and Conservation Association and the Town of Cavendish host an evening of music on the Svec Memorial Green in Proctorsville at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 21 featuring the music of John Sullivan and Friends. This concert was originally scheduled for a date in July, but was postponed because of rain.

John Sullivan (of the John Sullivan Band) has been a regular part of the Vermont music scene, and one of the hottest bands in New England. The latest addition to the band is no stranger to Proctorsville — Mark Huntley will be on drums.

Bring friends and neighbors and enjoy music at the gazebo on the green. Bring a blanket or a comfortable chair, a picnic, or just lie back and relax on the grass.

The concerts are free and open to the public. In case of inclement weather, check the Cavendish Facebook page.

For more information, call Robin at 802-226-7736. For more information, visit here.

For a complete listing of events, please see The Chester Telegraph Calendar.