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Winterfest: Feb 5-7, 2010

Come out and celebrate Wintefest with the rest of the Chelmsford this weekend!

Events are scheduled all over town, starting Friday night with snowshoeing at Russell Mill Forest and ending with a winter nature walk at the Archer Meadowbrook Reservation, with all sorts of fun indoor and outdoor activities for the entire family in between.

Check out the Wintefest Schedule of Events for complete details, and a map to each event location.

And if you go snowshoeing Friday night, be sure to stop by the library afterward to warm up with our "Sweet Suspense and Lethal Libations" event - lots of desserts, books and conversation.

New Library Events Calendar

The Library has a new events calendar: http://calendar.chelmsfordlibrary.org

This is where all Library programs and events will be listed, including non-profit community groups using the Library's meeting rooms.

The new calendar includes a search menu on the left, which lets you limit to events based on location, type and age group. To see a summary of any event, hover your mouse over the event on the calendar, or click on an event to see the complete details.

To keep up with what's going on at the library, be sure to bookmark http://calendar.chelmsfordlibrary.org and subscribe to our RSS feed. You can also build different RSS feeds based on your search criteria - just search for your location/type/age combination, then click the RSS Feed link near the top of the calendar. That way, you'll always be notified of the events you're interested in.

Soon we’ll also have an automatic way for groups to reserve rooms at the library. In the meantime, please refer to our website for meeting room reservations. If you have questions about the new calendar or booking a meeting room, please contact the Library’s Administrative Office at 978-256-5521 x100 or nrager@mvlc.org.

And don't forget the most important event this week: Trick-or-Treat in Chelmsford is 5-8pm on Saturday, Oct. 31st!

Fourth of July Chelmsford

In honor of this year's Independence Day, Chelmsford Town Offices - including the Library - will be closed on Friday, July 3rd. The Library will also be closed on Saturday, July 4th.

A complete list of Fourth of July events are listed on the Town's website [pdf] and below.

There will be no fireworks display in Chelmsford.

Friday, July 3
5-11 PM - Country Fair (Center Common)
5:30 PM - Dance Unlimited (Center Common)
6 PM - Air Balloons (rear of Center Fire Station)
6-8 PM - Kiddies Train Rides (rear of Center Fire Station)
6-10 PM - Art Festival (Old Town Hall Community Center)
6:30 PM - Suburbanette Twirlers (Center Common)
7-9 PM - Chelmsford Community Band (Center Common)
9-11 PM - "The Meanies" (Center Common)

Saturday, July 4
7-10 AM Coffee Shop (Universalist Church)
8 AM - 3 PM - Country Fair (Center Common)
8:30 AM - Flag Raising (Center Common Flag Pole)
9:30 AM - 1:00 PM - Art Festival (Old Town Hall Community Center)
9:30 AM - Annual John Carson 2 Mile Road Race
10 AM - 42nd Annual Fourth of July Parade

Be sure to look for the Library float - our theme this year is based on the 2009 One Book Chelmsford, Three Cups of Tea.

One Book Chelmsford Events

One Book Chelmsford Three Cups of Tea co-author Greg Mortenson visited Chelmsford this past Sunday, and spoke to a large crowd about his book and work building schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

If you missed the amazing talk at Chelmsford’s Performing Arts Center, you still have a opportunities to catch it:

• DVD copies are available in the library's catalog
• The program will be re-broadcast on Chelmsford Cable TV Channel 8 at the following times:
  • Thursday, Feb 12, at 10:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, Feb 14, at 10:30 a.m.
  • Thursday, Feb 19, at 10:00 p.m.
  • Saturday, Feb 21, at 10:30 a.m.

(You should confirm by visiting the Chelmsford Telemedia website)

Have you read the book yet?

Additional copies of Three Cups of Tea are available at the Library. Also available are the young reader and picture book versions of the book, as well as the book on CD and playaway mp3 player.

Upcoming One Book Chelmsford Programs:

Book Discussions on Three Cups of Tea at the library

• Monday, March 2nd at 7 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 18th at 10 a.m.

Films and Discussions

• "Kite Runner” will be shown on Thursday, Feb 19, at 7 p.m. Discussion to follow
• "View from a Grain of Sand," will be shown on Thursday, March 19, at 7 p.m. Discussion to follow

Barakat Working in Central Asia
Thursday, March 12, 2009, at 7 p.m.
Damon Luloff, Executive Director of Barakat will talk about the work his organization is doing in Central Asia.

Chelmsford Volunteer Fair
Saturday, March 21, 2009; 10 a.m. - noon
Come to Chelmsford's Volunteer Fair learn about organizations that offer you a myriad of ways to give back to your community and make the world a better place. A rep from Barakat will be available to speak with you about their volunteer opportunities.

Climbing K2
Thursday, April 23, 2009 at 7 p.m.
Chuck Boyd, owner and operator of Vertical Realms, LLC, will talk about his adventures climbing K2.

The Many Facets of Islam
Thursday, April 30, 2009 at 7 p.m.
The Many Facets of Islam by Subheen Razzaqui, speaker for the Harvard Outreach Center for Middle Eastern Studies and history teacher at Newton North High School, discusses the history and basic tenets of Islam, and similarities and differences among Muslim groups in the U.S.

Exhibit of artwork inspired by Three Cups of Tea (A CALL TO ARTISTS)
May 4 - May 30, 2009
Artists are invited to submit samples of their work for a special “Three Cups of Tea” Juried Exhibition this May at the Chelmsford Library. All media: paintings, graphics, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, mixed media, photography, digital art, printmaking and three-dimensional art. Artwork may be submitted into one of two categories -Adult (over 18) and Youth (middle school age to 18).

Artwork must reflect the title or themes of the “One Book Chelmsford” 2009 book selection, “Three Cups of Tea” by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. Please visit the Chelmsford Library to get a copy of the book. You may want to review some of the book’s chapter quotes (such as the one listed below). They may offer inspiration for creating your individual work.

Here (in Pakistan and Afghanistan), we drink three cups of tea to do business; the first you are a stranger, the second you become a friend, and the third, you join our family, and for our family we are prepared to do anything–even die.
-Haji Ali, Korphe Village Chief, Karakoram Mountains, Pakistan

More details on this Call to Artists on the library website.

Three Cups of Tea Resources

One Book Chelmsford brochure [pdf]

New Library Calendar

With the start of the new year, the Chelmsford Library is also launching a new events calendar!

The new calendar is easier to read, will have more events and activities on it, and offers new features for patrons. These include:

• Year, month, and day views for events
• Sign up for RSS feeds of all events, or just certain kinds:
  • All Events
  • Childrens & Teen Events
  • Adult Programs & Events
  • Clubs & Organizations meeting at the library
• View just certain types of events (ie, Kids, Adults, MacKay events, etc.)
• Send yourself email reminders from the calendar

The new calendar also has a new web address: http://calendar.chelmsfordlibrary.org. Be sure to bookmark it, or subscribe to an RSS feed, to keep up to date with what is going on at the library.

Another feature of this calendar is that is allows library events to automatically show up on the Chelmsford Community Calendar, hosted by Chelmsford Telemedia. Bookmarking the Community Calendar lets you see what's going on around town.

Soon we'll also have an automatic way for groups to reserve rooms at the library. In the meantime, please refer to our website for meeting room reservations. If you have questions about the new calendar or booking a meeting room, please contact the Library's Administrative Office at 978-256-5521 x100 or nrager@mvlc.org.