Author: The Hippo Press

Meatball recall

Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce produced by FreshRealm and sold at Walmart stores is recalled “because it may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes bacteria” according to a Sept. 30 press release from the NH Department of Health and Human Services. “The recall includes 12-ounce Marketside Linguine with Beef Meatballs & Marinara Sauce products with “best if used by” dates of September 22, 24, 25, 29 and 30 and October 1, 2025, which were distributed to New Hampshire Walmart stores,” the release said. “There is a multistate outbreak of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to prepared meal products manufactured by FreshRealm. While there have been no illnesses in New Hampshire to date, 20 people in other states have gotten sick with listeriosis after eating these products. Four have passed away.” See cdc.gov/listeria for more information on listeria and see fsis.usda.gov/recalls-alerts for updates about additional products.

Coat drive

Granite United Way, United Way of Greater Nashua and Monadnock United Way are collecting new and like new coats as part of a coat drive through Friday, Oct. 31, according to a press release. Find drop-off locations at graniteuw.org/nhcoatdrive including Cleary Cleaner locations, NHTI in Concord, Manchester Community College, Nashua Community College and more. You can also purchase new coats for the program via a link on the coat drive site, the release said.

Shirts for a cause

The Manchester Fire Department and Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 856 will wear pink shirts to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month, according to a press release. The Department will also sell shirts with proceeds to benefit the American Cancer Society, the release said. Long sleeve and short sleeve shirts and hoodies are for sale at manchesterpffl856.itemorder.com.

TB update

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services has identified two people with active tuberculosis who were in the Manchester and Nashua area while infectious, according to an Oct. 1 press release. “These individuals are the second and third people diagnosed with active TB in greater Manchester and Nashua areas since” a first person in Manchester was identified in March, the release said. The Department is encouraging people to get tested for TB if they were at 1269 Cafe in Manchester from Jan. 1 through March 1; Loads of Love event at Wash Street Laundromat at 1231 Elm St. in Manchester Jan. 1 through July 17 (Mondays and Thursday nights 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.), and Hillsborough County Department of Corrections, 445 Willow St. in Manchester, April 16-25 and May 9-Aug. 15, the press release said. Call 211 for care or see dhhs.nh.gov for links to free TB testing.

Wonderland Books and Toys, 245 Maple St. in Manchester, will hold a family game night on Saturday, Oct. 11, from 5 to 8 p.m. Families can bring their own games or try one of the games from the store, according to a press release. Wonderland is also offering a Stuffy Sleepover Storytime on Friday, Oct. 10, at 6:30 p.m. when kids can bring in a stuffy, hear a story and then leave their stuffy for an overnight sleepover at the store, the release said. See wonderlandbooksandtoys.com.

Registration is open until Oct. 26 for the 3rd Annual New England Woodworking Competition, according to a press release. Interested woodworkers can submit up to two pieces for judging (more for the exhibition) for an entrance fee of $25 in categories including Master/Expert Craftsperson, Emerging Makers and Student (with sections elementary age through college and technical school), the release said. Prizes will be awarded at the New England Woodworking Competition event on Sunday, Nov. 9, at the University of New Hampshire in Durham; tickets cost $25 in advance or $30 at the door. See gnhw.org/woodworking-competition/.

Tickets are on sale now for the Friends of the Bedford Library Books & Baskets Fundraiser. For $10 you get 10 tickets (or 25 tickets for $20), to put in drawings for baskets such as a “Kids and Crafts Basket,” a “Romance Basket” for 21+ fans, a “Hockey Basket” (featuring UNH Wildcat and NH Mountain Kings merch) and more, according to friendsofthebedfordlibrary.com. Tickets are for sale online through Friday, Oct. 10, at 5 p.m. with drawings to be held Saturday, Oct. 11, at noon.

PFAS funds

NH Attorney General John M. Formella announced that the state has received an initial payment of nearly $8 million from the 3M Company’s nationwide PFAS settlement of public drinking water systems claims, according to a Sept. 24 press release. “The funds will be deposited in the N.H. Drinking Water and Groundwater Trust Fund … for distribution to eligible public drinking water systems across the state,” the release said. “I am proud to announce this initial influx of substantial settlement funds to support the Granite State’s public water systems as they work with our Department of Environmental Services to address PFAS contamination and continue to provide safe, clean drinking water to Granite Staters,” said Attorney General Formella in a statement in the release. “This payment is the first installment of New Hampshire’s approximately $56 million allocation (before payment of attorneys’ fees and litigation costs) of settlement funds from Phase One of the 3M settlement, with an additional allocation of funds scheduled in Phase Two sometime after 2026. A second, larger, Phase One payment is expected near year-end with subsequent smaller annual payments continuing through 2033,” the release said.

CMC ER in Nashua

Catholic Medical Center, which is part of HCA Healthcare, is planning a nearly 10,000-square-foot freestanding emergency facility at 338 Amherst St. in Nashua, according to a Sept. 22 press release. A ground-breaking on the site, the former Leda Lanes location, is slated for Oct. 28 with the facility project to open in mid-2026, the release said. “The Nashua Emergency Room will provide patients with convenient, 24/7 access to high-quality emergency care … Equipped with advanced diagnostic technologies, including computerized tomography (CT), ultrasound and radiology, the facility will also feature an on-site laboratory, covered ambulance entrance, and a dedicated pediatric waiting and treatment area,” the release said. See catholicmc.com.

Fire prevention

Fire Prevention Week in New Hampshire and nationwide runs Sunday, Oct. 5, through Saturday, Oct. 11, according to a post at the NH State Fire Marshal’s Office Facebook page. This year’s theme is “Charge Into Fire Safety” with the mission to teach people “how to safely buy, charge, and recycle lithium-ion batteries” according to the National Fire Prevention Association. Lithium-ion batteries cannot be thrown away in the regular garbage, according to nfpa.org. As of July 1, it’s been illegal to “throw lithium-ion batteries into the waste stream to end up in a landfill or waste-to-energy incinerator” in New Hampshire because “these batteries can explode, give off caustic gasses, and catch fire spontaneously” according to a newsletter from NH Recycles in July. See call2recycle.org for a local lithium-ion battery dropoff spot.

See “Passion for Progress: Serigraph Prints by Corita Kent,” selections from the permanent collection at Alva de Mars Megan Chapel Art Center at Saint Anselm College in Manchester. The works will be on display through Dec. 5. “Kent’s contemporary ‘Pop’ style and motivation emerged from within her very own life as a sister of the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in California, and folded into the revolutionary period of the 1960s, the peace movement, alongside tremendous social change and contradiction in both the secular world and her religious life in the Catholic Church,” according to the show description at anselm.edu. The gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Thursdays from 4 to 7 p.m., the website said.

Dartmouth CARES (Community Awareness Research and Education) will hold a heart health screening on Thursday, Oct. 2, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Derry Public Library, 64 E. Broadway in Derry. The event offers free community screenings for cardiac health, including blood pressure, cholesterol and blood glucose screening, according to a library release. No registration required.

The United Way of Greater Nashua seeks volunteers to support the city of Nashua’s Winter Warming Station at the former Elm Street Middle School, according to a press release. The warming station will be open nightly, 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., Dec. 1 through April 15, and volunteers help with tasks such as facilitating activities for guests, overseeing supplies and monitoring guest belongings, in two-hour shifts, the release said. See tinyurl.com/StayWarmNashua2025.