Community events

FAMILIES AND KIDS

HVM Enrollment: Hill View Montessori Charter Public School is holding Enrollment Information Sessions to inform prospective parents/caregivers about 2012 enrollment opportunities. HVM is a public, tuition-free school that offers a public Montessori educational option to the Haverhill community The school offers full-day kindergarten, an extended school day and childcare. To learn more, please attend an Enrollment Information Session. The session will be held at the school at 75 Foundation Avenue in the Ward Hill Business Park, Haverhill for March 2 at 9:00 a.m.

Circus coming to town: The Yankee Doodle Circus is coming to town as a fundraiser for Haverhill High School's Class of 2012. The event is for all ages and performances are March 3 at 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. in the high school's gymnasium, 137 Monument St. Free tickets for children are available in advance with the purchase of an adult ticket. Tickets are available online at GetCircusTickets.com. A limited number of $5 off advance sale adult tickets are available for $17. Tickets, at the door, are $22 for adults and $15 for children 14 and under.

Kindergarten Information Night: Haverhill's Public Schools will host free kindergarten information sessions for children in the Class of 2025. The session is open to parents and guardians of children at all schools and will be March 20 at Pentucket Lake Elementary School, 252 Concord St. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. Sessions are from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Your child must be 5 years old by Aug. 31 in order to be eligible for Kindergarten in September. Free baby-sitting will be available for children accompanying their parents to these sessions. Informational packets will be given to those in attendance. For more information call 978-420-1951 or 978-374-3484.

Sign language: Northern Essex Community College provides sign language instruction for families with a deaf or hard-of-hearing child. Information, contact Glenys Crane-Emerson, Family Sign Language Program coordinator, at fslp@necc.mass.edu, 978-556-3701 (voice/tty), 978-556-3703 (fax), and 978-241-7057 (VP/VRS).

Reading Buddy Program: The public library is offering a Reading Buddy Program in partnership with Zion Bible College Work Study program. Reading Buddies Nicole and John are available to help your child practice reading skills, provide encouragement and support when he or she is stuck on a word, and help show how much fun reading can be. Sessions, 30-minutes, are available after school on Mondays and Tuesdays from 3:30-4:30 p.m., and from 5 to 6 p.m., and Wednesdays from 4 to 5 p.m. To make an appointment, call 978-373-1586, ext. 626.

LOCAL ACTIVITIES

Disabled American Veterans seek new members: Disabled American Veterans Hannah Duston Chapter 20 is looking for new members. Benefits of joining the chapter include free assistance with opening and/or reopening claims, free legal advice regarding service-connected disabilities, referrals to agencies that provide assitance to those with physical and/or emotional issues and more. Starting in March, the chapter will meet the second Tuesday of every month at 6 p.m. in the veterans room in the basement of City Hall, 4 Summer St. Meeting agendas typically include planning visits to patients in VA hospitals and veterans in retirement homes as well as planning social events. For more information contact Gerard Boucher at 978-521-3982.

"Green" Business Course: A new, eight-week, noncredit course titled "Starting and Operating the Successful Weatherization or Energy Efficient Business" is being offered through Northern Essex Community College's Division of Workforce Development and Community Education. The class meets at NECC's Riverwalk campus, 360 Merrimack St., Lawrence, on Wednesdays from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. beginning Feb. 29. The cost is $229 per person. To register call 978-556-3700. For the most current information and complete course descriptions visit www.necc.mass.edu/noncredit.

Indoor flea market: The Ladies Philoptochos Society Elpis will hold an indoor flea market March 3 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Holy Apostles Greek Orthodox Church, 154 Winter St., Haverhill. The event features furniture, clothing, glassware, books, jewelry, knick-knacks and more. Greek pastries and refreshments will be available for purchase. Tables are available for rent and can reserved by calling 978-374-8887 or 978-373-3311.

Women's City Club Meeting: The Women's City Club of Haverhill will meet March 6 at the Brookridge Community Church, 232 Main St., in Fellowship Hall. Coffee hour begins at 1:30 p.m. followed by the business meeting at 2 p.m. The program of entertainment begins at 2:15 p.m. and features Brian Corcoran. Attendees are invited to join him for a sing-a-along as he performs old and new songs on his guitar.

Free Movie Viewing: In honor of Women's History Month (March), the Greater Haverhill League of Women Voters invites the public to a free viewing of the movie, "Iron Jawed Angels," March 15 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the public library's Johnson Auditorium. The movie tells the story of Alice Paul and other suffragists who risked their lives to win for women the right to vote. In August, 1920, the 19th Amendment finally passed. The movie stars Hilary Swank as Alice Paul. For more information call 978-374-6253.

Winning Opportunities for Women: Save the date for the Annual WOW Conference with keynote speaker Mary Richardson for Friday, March 16. This event will be held at the Atkinson Resort and Country Club from 8:00 a.m. to3:00 p.m. Registration is open. Cost is $59 for early birds with a deadline of Feb. 16. Afterwards, standard registration rates of $79 for Chamber members or $89 for non-members applies. Program includes breakfast, lunch, speakers, interactive sessions, giftsand more. To register, visit www.haverhillchamber.com or contact Jen Cantwell at 978-373-5663 or jen@haverhillchamber.com. Sponsorship packages are available, and vendor inquiries are welcome.

Comedy Night: The Haverhill High School Athletics invites the public to join them for their Comedy Night. The event will take place on March 9, 7 p.m., at DiBurro's Fuction Facility, 887 Boston Rd. Tickets are $40 and can be purchased at Haverhill High School, 137 Monument St., or by calling 978-374-5732.

Amvets Ladies Auxiliary Meeting: Amvets Ladies Auxiliary #147 will hold their next meeting on March 13 at 7:30 PM at Post Quarters on 576 Primrose St. President Betty Burnell will preside and conduct nominations of officers for the 2012-2013 season. For more information call Betty at 978-373-3216 or Helen at 978-374-7074

Senior Breakfast with "The Singing Trooper": Wingate at Haverhill invites seniors in the community to attend a complimentary Healthy Senior Breakfast featuring entertainment by Daniel Clark, March 6 at 9 a.m. The program will be held at 190 North Ave. Clark, who retired from the Massachusetts State Police, is widely known as "The Singing Trooper." He will take participants on a musical journey that includes Broadway, opera, Elvis, patriotic numbers and more. The breakfast features healthy choices such as homemade yogurt parfaits, seasonal fruits, and freshly squeezed juices. Every senior who attends will also be entered into a raffle for a door prize. Admission is free to seniors, however, seating is limited. To reserve a seat contact Wingate at Haverhill at 978-372-7700.

Roller Skating Night: The Scholarship Committee at Calvary Baptist Church will present its annual Martin Luther King Jr. roller skating family night March 17 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Skateland, 19 Railroad Ave. in Bradford. Admission is $10, and includes skate rental.

Fundraiser to feature popular comedians

A benefit for the Haverhill Clubhouse will be held March 22 at Maria's Restaurant and will feature comedian/impressionist Bob Gautreau, comic Amy Tee, along with host Steve Gamlin, a motivational speaker and humorist. Tickets are $20.

Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show begins at 8 p.m. Maria's is at 83-85 Essex St. A private nonprofit group, the Haverhill Clubhouse provides support to adults with mental illness and is funded by the state Department of Mental Health., under the auspice of Mental Health Resources Plus in Lawrence. At 100 Locust St., the Haverhill Clubhouse operates under guidelines set forth by the International Center for Clubhouse Development. For more information call 978-521-6957.

Genealogy class: This spring, Northern Essex Community College's Life Long Learning Program will offer a Genealogy 101 course with Marcelle Greenbaum of Haverhill. Class meets Mondays from 10 a.m. to noon, from March 26 through May 7 in the Hartleb Technology Center, Room 205 on the college's Haverhill campus, 100 Elliott St. Cost of the class is $25. Participants will be shown how to construct a family tree, keep important information organized, find ancestors in other countries, and preserve family history and heritage. Life Long Learning is a program of lectures, study groups and trips for adults. All programs are open to the public. For more information or to receive a free calendar of upcoming events contact Charlene Boucher at 978-556-3825 or cboucher@necc.mass.edu.

Palliative care presentation: A free presentation on palliative care and how it differs from hospice will be held March 29 in Merrimack Valley Hospital's first floor auditorium at 140 Lincoln Ave. The presentation will be lead by JoAnne Nowak, MD, medical director of Merrimack Valley Hospice. Registration is at 7:30 a.m. The program is from 8 to 9 a.m. One contact hour is awarded for nursing and social work and one CME for physicians. A continental breakfast will be served. Registration is required. For more information or to register contact Jean at 978-420-1168 or jean.macdougall-tattan@steward.org.

New Moon Coffeehouse concert series: The New Moon Coffeehouse will host monthly concerts through May 21. The coffeehouse is located in the Unitarian Universalist Church, 16 Ashland St, Haverhill MA. Admission to the show is $20; $10 for those ages 18 and under. For more information check out newmooncoffeehouse.org.

LACE: The Learn About Computers Everyday (LACE) program of Elder Services of the Merrimack Valley Inc. is offering a variety of classes over the next three months. Classes are at 360 Merrimack St., Lawrence, and are based on the Windows Vista operating system. Classes are: Intro to Computers, Feb. 27 to April 2 from 9 to 11:30 a.m.; Internet and email, Feb. 28 to April 3 from 9 to 11:30 a.m.; Computer Graphics, Feb. 28 to April 3 from 12:30 to 3 p.m.; Digital Camera/Pictures, Feb. 29 to April 4 from 9 to 11:30 a.m., and Intermediate Computer, March 1 to April 5 from 12:30 to 3 p.m. Advanced registration is required by Feb. 17. For more information call 1-800-892-0890, ext. 1516 and leave a message or email lace1050@yahoo.com. Visit http://elderservices.tripod.com.

Free Preschool Screenings:The city's public schools will hold free screenings for an integrated preschool program at the Moody School from March 2 and March 30. The program is open to all Haverhill preschool children ages 3 to 4 and is for the 2012-2013 school year. Children will be randomly chosen for the program based on a lottery system. If you are interested in your child becoming an applicant for an integrated classroom, contact the Moody School at 978-374-3459 to schedule an appointment. Speech only screenings are offered throughout the school year. Preschool screenings will be held at the Moody School, 59 Margin St.

GIVE, GET HELP

Seeking donations: The Buttonwoods Museum is seeking Civil War artifacts and stories pertaining to Haverhill's women both from local families and famous icons. The museum wants to hear your stories and possisbly borrow your artifacts for an exhibit planned for this summer focusing on the role of Haverhill's women during the Civil War. More information is available by sending email to info@haverhillhistory.org or by mail to: The Buttonwoods Museum, 240 Water St., Haverhill, MA 01830. Visit online at haverhillhistory.org or call 978-374-4626.

Donations sought: Ruth's House, a non-profit thrift store located at 111 Lafayette Square is in need of all sizes of warm winter clothing, all sizes. All donations are tax deductible and donors will be issued receipts for their gifts. We are also looking for volunteers - donate as little or as much time as you are able. For more information call 978-521-5575 or visit online at www.ruthshouse.org. Donations may be dropped off during store hours on Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon.

Tax prep volunteers: Community Action Inc., which serves the Haverhill, Amesbury and Newburyport areas is seeking volunteers to provide low-income taxpayers with free tax return preparation services. Initial training can be done online at home this month and next, followed by additional in-house training in January at Community Action, 145 Essex St. in Haverhill. This is an IRS sponsored program and volunteers will need to be certified. Tax preparation begins at the end of January and extends through mid-April. Interested parties should contact Marilyn Luther at 978-373-1971, ext. 340 or Marge Hooper at 978-373-1971, ext. 227 or mluther@communityactioninc.org.

Help homeless children: Horizons for Homeless Children seeks energetic and enthusiastic volunteers to play with children living in family homeless shelters in Northeastern Massachusetts, including Haverhill. Those with two hours a week to spare and a desire to make a difference in the lives children are encouraged to fill out an application. Attendance at a training session and six-month commitment are required. Contact Brittany Pyle at 978-557-2182 or northeast@horizonsforhomelesschildren.org.

Collections: Several local agencies and organizations are collecting new and used videos, books, CDs, DVDs and audio books using "Got Books?" containers, including: The First Church of Christ Bradford, 10 Church St., Bradford; Haverhill High School, 137 Monument St., Haverhill; Hill View Montessori School, 75 Foundation Ave. (in the Ward Hill Industrial Park); Haverhill YMCA, 81 Winter St.

Salvation Army offers youth programs: The Salvation Army in Haverhill is accepting applications for youth programs that are open to children ages 4 to 18. A Monday music program, for ages 7 to 18, includes free lessons in music theory, brass music instruction, drums, guitar, piano, sacred dance, puppetry, drama, children's choir and timbrels. Tuesday is youth programs night and this fall the focus will be on character building skills, sketching, bicycle safety and going green. Dinner will be served to each participant of this free program. Friday night youth basketball is recruiting players for a travel team. The cost is $15. The Salvation Army is looking for eight sponsors at $200 each to help pay for team shirts and travel expenses. Limited transportation is available for those in need. Parents and interested sponsors are asked to stop by the Salvation Army at 395 Main St., or call 978-374-7571.

Haverhill Salvation Army seeks volunteers: The Salvation Army in Haverhill is looking for few volunteers in the following areas: Writer/Correspondent: in writing and covering stories of happenings at The Haverhill Salvation Army in Haverhill; Piano: player for Monday and Tuesday and Sunday one hour each day. Chef: to cook and serve meals on Tuesday night for children; Driver: to transport youth to and from activities on Monday, Tuesday and Friday must know how to drive a 12-passenger van; Grant writer/ Fund raiser: for Youth programs to raise money for the purpose to keep programs free to the community. We are looking for people who have a passion to serve others and use their talent to teach others! Will you help put a smile on a child's face? Will you help build, teach our future children of Haverhill? For more information contact The Salvation Army at 978-374-7571 or stop by 395 Main St., Haverhill, MA 01830.

Volunteer tutors needed: The Salvation Army in Haverhill is looking for volunteers to help children develop their talents in various areas, including sacred dance, piano, drums, guitar, brass instruments, drawing, acting and puppetry. Volunteers are also needed for an after school program. Last year, As man as 200 children are expected to sign up for programs offered this fall. If you can spare one hour of you time a week to help a child learn please contact the Salvation Army at 978-374-7571.

Library seeks museum pass sponsors: The public library is seeking sponsors for passes to the Children's Museum-Boston ($700), the Museum of Science ($600), and Imajine That! ($275). All gifts marked "museums" — no matter how small — will go toward these memberships, which are renewed annually. Museum passes may be checked out on your library card. Current memberships include: the Museum of Fine Arts, Franklin Park Zoo and the Stone Zoo, John F. Kennedy Library and Museum, Peabody Essex Museum, Currier Museum of Art (NH), the Children's Museum, the Discovery Museums, Children's Museum of N.H., the Institute of Contemporary Art, Massachusetts Parks, USS Constitution Museum, and the New England Aquarium (September to June). Your support of this program is very important to your community, providing a low-cost entertaining and educational outing. Checks may be made payable to the Haverhill Public Library, a nonprofit organization. For more information contact Jennifer Lyons at 978-373-1586, ext. 617.

Tag days: The officers and members of the Amvets Ladies Auxiliary say the generosity of people in Haverhill helped make their recent Tag Days fundraiser a success. Proceeds will help support a variety of projects, including the Auxiliary's "Adopt a Platoon" program, which provides active members of the military with personal items, the Auxiliary's Bingo and refreshment parties at local nursing homes, veterans hospitals and coffee hours at the Bedford VA and donations to two annual scholarships at Haverhill High School. The Auxiliary meets the second Tuesday of the month at 7:30 p.m. at Post Quarters, 576 Primrose St.

Art Fundraiser: The Haverhill Cultural Council and Haverhill Art Association will hold their second annual ART-rageous Art Exhibition and Silent Auction fundraiser April 14 from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Hamel Mills Lofts Community Room, 40 Locke St. Tickets are $10 and are available at the door or online at http://artrageous.eventbrite.com. Area artists and galleries are invited to participate. All submissions are due by April 2. Works of emerging artists, mid-career, market works and established artists are encouraged. Proceeds benefit the Haverhill Cultural Council's summer performing arts series, "Make Some Noise!" and the Haverhill Art Association's Thursday evening artist demonstrations. For more info visit HaverhillCulturalCouncil.com or contact Don Herook at don5753@aol.com or Leota Sarrette at lsarrette@aol.com.

Baseball League seeks nominations: The Riverside-Bradford Baseball League is accepting nominations for membership to its Board of Directors for the 2012 season. Members are expected to perform their duties and functions so as to continually improve the league and uphold its objectives at all times. All directors, officers and members shall bear in mind that the attainment of athletic skill or the winning of games is secondary, and that the molding of future citizens is of prime importance. The league teaches good sportsmanship and the fundamentals of hitting and fielding while building a positive self-image in a healthy competitive environment. For more information contact Craig Nealon at cnealon@rbbaseball.org or 978-373-4323.

Free Tax Preparation: Community Action Inc. at 145 Essex St. is offering free tax preparation services through IRS certified Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) volunteers now through April 14. Community Action services Haverhill and other towns in the Merrimack Valley in providing low- to moderate-income taxpayers with free tax return preparation. Federal and Massachusetts state returns will be E-filed. Appointments are being scheduled for Monday and Saturday mornings and Wednesday and Thursday evenings. For more information, to learn if you qualify for free help, or to schedule an appointment call Marilyn Luther at 978-373-1971, ext. 340 during business hours.

PLACES TO VISIT

Haverhill Public Library, 99 Main St.: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Sundays. For more information, call 978-373-1586 or visit haverhillpl.org.

Haverhill Firefighting Museum, 75 Kenoza Ave.: Open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon. Weekday and group visits are available by appointment. For more information, call 978-372-4061.

John Greenleaf Whittier Birthplace, 305 Whittier Road: Open Wednesdays from 1 to 4 p.m.; Thursdays from 2 to 4 p.m.; Fridays from 1 to 4 p.m.; Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; and Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m. Closed major holidays. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors, $2 for students under 18 and a $10 maximum for a family. For more information, call 978-373-3979.

Buttonwoods Museum/Haverhill Historical Society, John Ward Avenue: Open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. unless otherwise noted. Tours by appointment only. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for ages 7 to 17 and free for children 7 and under. For details, call 978-374-4626.

COUNCIL OF AGING

The Council on Aging is offering the following upcoming trips:

For more information contact Kathy Bresnahan or Rita LaBella at 978-374-2390.

May 2: Vicki Lawrence at Foxwoods.

May 6: Loretta LaRoche at the North Shore Music Theatre.

June 7-13: San Francisco and Lake Tahoe.

June 12: The Hit Men at Mohegan Sun.

June 18-19: Indian Head Resort.

June 27: Tribute to Dean Martin.

July 2: Tall Ships.

July 8: Tanglewood and The Pops.

Aug. 5-6: Tanglewood.