Berakah, 96 Fairview Rd in Pittsfield . Winter Solstice
Celebration, Sunday, December 21, 5 – 6 p.m.
You are invited to celebrate the Winter Solstice, and
reflect on the meaning of transition from darkness to LIGHT. We will
welcome the solstice with music, reflection in the warmth of the
house, and weather permitting, kindle a fire outdoors. The evening
will culminate with a bowl of hot soup. Free will offering. Call
435-7271 or email [email protected] for more information or to register.
Christmas Program Planned At New Beginnings Church Of The Nazarene
Working of their skills for Journey to Bethlehem,
brothers
Alex and Chase Johansen of Loudon.
Journey to Bethlehem Director, Mike Beevers, announced “Preparations
are full steam ahead for this free event, with presentations on
December 12, Friday, and December 13, Saturday, from 6 to 8 pm.”
The church will be transformed into the streets of Bethlehem as they
were over 2000 years ago. The congregation will be dressed in
period attire as the innkeeper, Mary, Joseph, and their new baby,
along with Roman soldiers, census takers, shopkeepers, and the
general citizens of Bethlehem. This is a wonderful no cost Christmas
experience for the whole family.
New Beginnings is handicapped accessible and is located at 33
Staniels Road just off Route 106 near the Loudon-Concord line and
the Red Roof Inn. Donations of personal care items such as toilet
paper, shampoo, diapers, etc. are welcome. All donations go to Rise
Again Outreach helping families in the greater Concord area. For
more information, call 224-1311.
VA Expands Eligibility For VA Health Care Related To
Military Sexual Trauma
Expansion closes a gap in health care eligibility
Washington, DC – The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), under
authority from the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act
of 2014 (“VACAA”), today announced expanded eligibility for
Veterans in need of mental health care due to sexual assault or
sexual harassment that occurred during their military service. This
trauma is commonly known as military sexual trauma (MST).
This expansion, which primarily pertains to Reservists and National
Guard members participating in weekend drill, gives the authority to
offer Veterans the appropriate care and services needed to treat
conditions resulting from MST that occurred during a period of
inactive duty training.
“VA simply must be an organization that provides comprehensive care
for all Veterans dealing with the effects of military sexual
trauma,” said VA Secretary Robert A. McDonald. “Our range of
services for MST-related experiences are constantly being reexamined
to best meet the needs of our Veterans.”
Secretary McDonald met last week with Ruth Moore, a Navy Veteran and
MST survivor for whom the Ruth Moore Act of 2013 is named. Ms. Moore
will be working with VA to ensure that survivors are treated fairly
and compassionately, and that Veterans with MST can access fair
compensation exams and access health care practitioners who are
trained in understanding and working with MST issues.
VA works closely with trauma survivors to ensure a full continuum of
health care services are provided to assist Veterans recovering from
experiences of MST. Recognizing that MST survivors may have special
needs and concerns, every VA health care facility has an MST
Coordinator who serves as a contact person for MST-related issues.
Every VA medical center and Community-based Vet Center offers
MST-related outpatient counseling.
Currently, all VA health care for mental and physical health
conditions related to MST is provided free of charge. Veterans do
not need to have a service-connected disability or seeking
disability compensation to be eligible for MST-related counseling
and care. Veterans also do not need to have reported such incidents
to the Department of Defense or possess documentation or records to
support their assertion of having experienced such trauma. The
determination of whether a Veteran’s condition is MST-related is
strictly a clinical determination made by the responsible VA mental
health provider. Finally, Veterans need not be enrolled in VA’s
health care system to qualify for MST-related treatment, as it is
independent of VA’s general treatment authority.
In addition to treatment programs, VA also provides training to
staff on issues related to MST, including a mandatory training on
MST for all mental health and primary care providers. VA also
engages in a range of outreach activities to Veterans and conducts
monitoring of MST-related screening and treatment, in order to
ensure that adequate services are available.
Veterans can learn more about VA’s MST-related
services online at
www.mentalhealth.va.gov/msthome.asp and
see video clips with the recovery stories of Veterans who have
experienced MST at
http://maketheconnection.net/conditions/military-sexual-trauma.
Festive Christmas Concert
Plan to attend the annual Christmas concert coming this Friday,
December 12, 7 p.m. at the First Congregational Church, 24 Main St.,
Pittsfield. This special concert entitled, “The Light Shines On,”
will feature the church’s Chancel Choir, the JuBellation Handbell
Choir as well as the Inextinguishable Brass Quintet from UNH. Add
this festive event to your holiday celebrations! Parking and
wheelchair accessible entry located at rear of church. For more
information, call the church office at 435-7471.
Candlelight Christmas Eve
Make your plans for a wonderful candlelight service Wednesday,
Christmas Eve, 7 p.m., at the First Congregational Church, 24 Main
St., Pittsfield. The program includes beautiful music by the Chancel
Choir and the JuBellation Handbell Choir, scripture lessons, the
story of the first Christmas, the sanctuary bathed in candlelight
and the singing of “Silent Night.” Bring the whole family for a
lovely evening service. Parking and wheelchair accessible entry are
available at rear of church. For more information, call the church
office at 435-7471.
What’s Up at PYW?
Submitted By: Paula Martel, PYW Program Director
A BIG THANK YOU
The Pittsfield Youth Workshop (PYW) is so grateful to have such
great support from the community, schools, families, volunteers and
staff!
As many of you already know, The Pittsfield Youth Workshop has been
working diligently to improve the lives of youth in Pittsfield for
twenty eight years! We have had another very exciting year and look
forward to many more years supporting the youth and families in our
town. The generosity and support from community members like you has
allowed us to increase programs that empower youth, build their
self-esteem, and help them build stronger relationships and
leadership within the community. Over the past year, we have seen a
steady increase in youth membership - a total of 232 individual
youth participated in our programs and activities during the last
fiscal year (about 75% of the 6-12th grade youth population in
Pittsfield). We have continued to see an increase in the number of
youth attending our Drop-In programs each day. On several occasions
well over 50 youth visited us on a single afternoon! Just imagine
how many snacks we go through each day!
Most of us are grateful to have family, good health, a roof over our
head, and food on the table. Not everyone is so lucky. If you feel
you want to help but can’t give tangible items, volunteering time is
a way to pay-it-forward, and is a great way to give back to your
community and to help others.
Sometimes we can get wrapped up in our day-to-day lives and we can
forget to say thanks for the simple gestures or the continued
support we receive. I hope that each and everyone of you that has
helped support PYW in anyway knows that it does not go unnoticed!
Thank You for all your support in 2014!
We hope you have a very happy and save Holiday Season!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Letter To The Editor
Funny Letter?
When a Marxist belittles you, you know you’re doing something right.
Keep it up Mr.Kelleher.
Did you ever think the day would come when Americans would welcome
Socialism? Many people think, well, it won’t happen like it did in
China, Russia or Germany here in the U.S. They think we will just
get the “good” parts of Socialism/Marxism and have a nice little
utopia. That’s what they all thought. It’s a failed experiment, it’s
been tried. Not only that but Socialism/Marxism is a convenient
power grab. Proponents think that as long as they give us a bunch of
free stuff we’ll be happy. But that free stuff comes with a big
price- control. That’s why the way this country was set up was so
unique, it wasn’t designed by and for power hungry dictators. Beware
of being the frog in the pot of slowly heating water. Our country is
constantly under attack for it’s remaining Christian values,
constitution and system of government and much of this is coming
quietly from the inside. Lies are being sold as truth and truth as
lies. Good is being called evil and evil as good. Do not let those
who came before us down, who died to make and defend the greatest
and freest constitutional republic the world has ever known.
Respectfully,
Willie Matras
Pittsfield
Obituaries
Norma Lois (Frenette) Towle
ALTON - Norma Lois (Frenette) Towle, 85 passed away November 25th at
the home of her daughter and son-in-law, Susan T. & Harold (Tim)
Conrad of Barnstead, NH, after a short illness.
Born in Pittsfield, NH on October 5, 1929, she was the daughter of
the late Arthur & Katherine Frenette (Carr). Norma lived her whole
life in Pittsfield until 1975 when she and her husband Herman were
able to fulfill a life-long dream and move to lakefront property on
Halfmoon Lake in Alton. Many years were spent enjoying all the
water activities with family and friends.
In her early years she worked for Adams Brothers in Pittsfield and
later on for the New Hampshire Association for the Blind and
Canterbury Shaker Village.
Norma’s hobbies included crocheting and she was an avid & talented
artist, painting with the forms of Stenciling, Country & Primitive
Painting, Reverse Glass and much more. One of her other earlier
passions was camping and traveling with her husband, with their mode
of transportation starting with a tent and ending in a 5th wheeler.
She was married to her husband, Herman Towle, Jr. of Loudon, for
over 61 years. Herman passed away in 2009.
She is survived by her son, Harry Asa Towle and wife Fatima of
Orlando, Florida and her daughter Susan Towle Conrad and husband
Harold (Tim) of Barnstead, New Hampshire. (We were always her
“favorite” son and daughter even though we were the “only” son and
daughter.)
She is also survived by 3 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.
Jennifer Conrad Brand and son-in-law Thomas of Windham, NH and
their 2 daughters, Amanda & Jessica. Gregory Conrad and wife Kelly
of Alton, NH and their 3 children, Aidan, Sienna & Jade. Jason
Conrad and wife Amy of Greenville, NC and their son Jackson. Norma
was the last of her 5 siblings.
Perkins and Pollard is assisting with the arrangements. A
Celebration of Life will be held in the Spring of 2015 and a
graveside service will be at Mount Hope Cemetery in Loudon at that
time. There will be no calling hours.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the CRVNA
Hospice Program, 30 Pillsbury Street, Concord, NH 03301.
To sign an online guest book, log on to
www.perkinsandpollard.com.
Kathleen M. Minery
Kathleen M. Minery 6/5/49-11/23/14, 65 of Pittsfield, NH passed away
very peacefully at the C.R.V.N.A Hospice House in Concord, NH after
being diagnosed with Liver & Lung Cancer in August. During her youth
she worked at the old Shoe Factory in Pittsfield where she made many
friendships that she kept throughout her lifetime.
She enjoyed Gardening, Fishing and Crafts along with spending time
with the Grandchildren that she cherished. She was known for
speaking her mind and making Grapeleaves a family recipe from her
Lebanese Heritage. Patrick Sullivan was often by her side for the
past 20 years where they spent a lot of time at Sullivan’s Pond and
Cabin in Barnstead. She loved listening to music doing the
Jitterbug, absolutely loved growing her flower gardens, playing (&
winning) Scrabble, and spending time with Donna Locke, Dee-Dee Como,
Andrea Brock, Ruthie True, Jean Hanson, Diane Farmer, Tony Snedeker,
Deb Butterfield, Paula Cadorette, Wendy Cray & Granny just to name a
few. She resided in Pittsfield for many years but also spent a good
portion of her life living in Loudon, NH where she had a multitude
of Aunts, Uncles & cousins & she has mountains of memories from life
on Minery Road as a kid at Ma & Pa Minery’s farm.
She was Predeceased by her Father & Mother James & Mary Minery Sr.
of Loudon/Pittsfield NH and she was the 5th out of eight children as
listed in order or Birth: Margaret Chagnon, Concord NH-Frederick
Minery Sr, Deceased - James W. Minery Jr., Loudon/Florida-Richard R.
Minery, Deceased - (Kathy) - Gary C. Minery Sr., Loudon - Fay E.
Green, Gilmanton & Donna M. Waszkiewicz, Alton.
She was Married and Divorced to Keith M. Emerson Sr. & Robert L.
Corliss both of Barnstead, NH. She is survived by her Daughter and
Son-in-law Melissa Emerson Sheehy & John K. Sheehy Jr. of South
Street in Concord, NH and Her son Keith Emerson Jr. of Smith Street
in Pittsfield, NH as well as her 5 Grandchildren who she absolutely
adored: Tyler Keith Emerson, Brennan James Emerson & Zachary Aaron
Woodrow Emerson of Pace Florida and Makayla Mckenzie Bourbeau & Jake
Davenport Sheehy of Concord, NH as well as her beautiful 7 month old
Great Granddaughter Brooklynn Sarah-Jane of Pace Florida
We would love to take this opportunity to make a bigger difference
in the world especially since it is the Holiday season and we are
hoping you could help us to spread cheer to a Neighbor, Stranger or
Friend.
Our goal is that this mission (and our Pay it Forward Angel Tags)
will reach as many people as they can and as far away as possible.
Print, Copy, Create your tags with the saying posted below then Post
your Pay it Forward Angel Good Deed to the Kathy Minery Facebook
Page**. The person that performs the kindest good deed, The most
creative tag and the one who reaches out to the the person furthest
away from Pittsfield NH will all receive a special gift (to be
determined by family).
So it’s up to you...Make a donation, Cook for a friend, Donate to a
Charity (Don’t forget to send your tag) Pay for the Car behind you
at the Drive Thru, Donate a toy, Let someone go before you in a
line, Send a gift to a Facebook Friend BUT don’t forget to pass on
your Pay it forward Angel tag! Let’s see how many tags reach people
and how far away our “Pay it Forward Angel tags will reach!
Gift Recipients will be chosen on my Birthday which is January
8th... so you have adequate time to do your good deeds. Let’s try to
make a difference... Reach Out Today!!
Be a Pay it Forward Angel...
Kathy Minery’s friends & family have all shed some tears.
She’s wearing her angel wings now, so let’s try to spread some
cheer.
In lieu of flowers please try to honor and support her by passing on
this little tag when you Pay it Forward, then post it to her
Facebook page once you help a Friend or Stranger.
Let’s see how many people can be touched by a Pay it Forward Angel!
**If you have been tagged by a Pay it Forward Angel if possible
please snap a photo of your tag & share the good deed that was done
for you on the Kathy Minery Facebook Page**
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