Category: Q&A

Morphs and Milestones reaches kids with animals

Morphs and Milestones is a nonprofit that utilizes “rescued and rehabilitated reptiles in education and therapies for persons with special needs,” such as DiGeorge Syndrome, autism, and all kinds of delayed development. It also works with standard education as well as individuals with emotional PTSD. Nate Monty runs the organization with his wife, Brenda Casillas. Nate has more than a decade of veterinary technician and zoo experience. They will present an educational program at Manchester City Library on Wednesday, Oct. 23, from 4 to 6 p.m. and expect to be opening a facility in Francestown in a matter of weeks, although no date has been made official yet. Visit morphsandmilestones.com.

What is Morphs and Milestones?

Morphs and Milestones is a nonprofit that me and Brenda started. We started it because of the work we did with our daughter, Autumn Rose. My daughter, Autumn, has DiGeorge Syndrome, and she is nonverbal, and they were having an exceptionally hard time teaching her how to communicate effectively so that they could go ahead and figure out exactly what she was learning and what she wasn’t learning. We found that through the exposure to reptiles, which were her favorite animals, that she would get in a mode of almost being very investigative. And we utilized that to help teach her ASL … we were urged by her special education team to make it available for others. So at the core, Morphs and Milestones is a nonprofit organization that uses rescued and rehabbed animals and we use them as therapy and educational aids.

What made you think to try using reptiles to help with your daughter, Autumn?

[W]e were building with some sticks, some just fun stuff to build and knock down. And on one of the displays I had mounted on the wall, I had turned on YouTube … and a YouTuber came up that was handling snakes and she got really excited. And then immediately after being excited, she sat down and just watched the screen. And I said, ‘Hey, wait a second, there’s something here.’ And that’s how we got into reptiles.

What will the educational program be like at Manchester City Library?

At Manchester it’s going to be an auditorium-style program. That’s what we did last time. And it’s not like a standard auditorium program. There will be a time where I am up front and I am speaking and showing the animals, but I also utilize our volunteer team. And while I’m talking about the animals, the individuals watching the program and attending the program actually get to physically touch and see the animals up close so that they can see and almost feel the experience in real time. So we’ll do that over several ambassadors that we bring. And at the end we invite everybody to come up to the front or on the stage. And they can interact with the animals at a higher level and really have one-on-one conversations with things that interest them about the animals.

Can you expand on the Autumn’s Adoption Corner portion of Morphs and Milestones?

Morphs and Milestones started off just doing the therapy work and then as it grew we did therapy and education. As that grew, people started finding out that we’re here, and sometimes it was people who needed to find a place to actually put an animal … they started reaching out to us and said, ‘Hey, can you help us?’ … So we built Autumn’s Adoption Corner. When the animals come in to see us, they’re all evaluated and taken care of and then the adoption process is very similar to what you see with other companion animals like dogs and cats and horses. We modeled a lot of it off like what we saw with the SPCAs and the rescue leagues so that the next home could be a forever home.

What does the future look like for you all?

[W]e’re actually opening a facility in Francestown, New Hampshire. It’s at 74B Main St. And the facility is .. an old firehouse. And on the bottom floor is going to be an adaptive classroom … The second floor of it …is going to be the area where we have a teacher resource center.

Morphs and Milestones
Educational Program
When: Wednesday, Oct. 23, 4 to 6 p.m.
Where: Manchester City Library, 405 Pine St., Manchester
Free, open to the public
morphsandmilestones.com

Featured image: Courtesy photo.

It’s Milford Pumpkin Festival weekend

The Milford Pumpkin Festival has been going strong for 35 years thanks to the region’s hearty pumpkins and even heartier volunteers. The Granite Town Festivities Committee in partnership with the Milford Lions Club and Milford Rotary put on the event, which includes a giant pumpkin contest, a mural to be created by local artist Eric Escobar, face painting, tons of food, beer, music and much more. Wendy Mace, who is in charge of marketing for the Granite Town Festivities Committee after being a longtime volunteer, spoke to the Hippo about the upcoming festival, which runs from Friday, Oct. 11, through Sunday, Oct. 13.

How did the festival get started?

I think it started with Marilyn Kenison back 35 years ago. I think this woman just had an idea and that was the one that got it started. Her husband was a dentist in town. I know way back then the Milford Cooperative Bank was involved with volunteers, because my mom was working there at the time and she was in the very first group for a few years when it got started. It’s changed over the years until this last group of volunteers in 2018 decided to form the Granite Town Festivities Committee, which is a nonprofit. They’re the ones that are keeping it going now. Some of the players have changed over the years … but it’s all volunteers and sponsorships that keep it going. The festival is a huge undertaking. It’s a bazillion volunteers that make this happen. Organizing it, setting it up, working at it, breaking it down.

What is the opening ceremony like and what is the Citizen of the Year?

Well, they do that on Friday night. The Rotary has spearheaded having townspeople vote on Citizen of the Year and they make the announcement Friday night at the ceremony. There’s also a pumpkin runner who comes in and there’s a ceremonial lighting of the pumpkin, which is a huge jack-o’-lantern up in the town hall window, and the pumpkin runner brings it to the fireman, and the fireman goes up the ladder. Basically, they’re turning on a giant jack-o’-lantern. People get a big kick out of that. That’s part of the opening ceremonies…. And I think the president of the Granite Town Festivities Committee will be speaking this year.

What is the pumpkin catapult?

That’s put on by the Dollars for Scholars. They have actually built this catapult they put down at Railroad Pond behind TD Bank. People purchase a pumpkin and they catapult it into the pond. It’s pretty fun to watch. And they have like, I think they had, when I went down there to look at it, scarecrows as markers out in the pond that they shoot for, but it’s just kind of a fun thing to watch.

What is the Haunted Trail?

The big draw is the Haunted Trail at Emerson Park that’s open Friday and Saturday night.

It’s been built by Witches Spring. … and people buy a little ticket and they get to walk through the trail that runs at the back of Emerson Park along the river in the area between the park and the Boys & Girls Club. So they’ve made this cool little haunted trail back there that’s changed over the years too. The first haunted trail we did was in plastic, a plastic maze on the tennis courts at Keyes Field … and it was basically a maze of fog, but then it’s changed over the years. We actually had a haunted house in a creepy old apartment that somebody let us use, which was really creepy. We put it on at different places. And then they started doing the trail behind Emerson Park a while back. And now we have this great company, he’s a local guy that comes in and he builds all that stuff and builds the trail. We get a lot of volunteers from the Masons, they get to be some of the haunts. They’re involved, Oddfellows are involved, because the Masonic Temple is also back there. They’re also the ones that keep an eye on everything overnight, our gourd guards. They keep an eye on everything to make sure nothing gets vandalized overnight on Friday and Saturday nights.

What are some of your favorite kids’ activities that are at the event?

We have carving pumpkins on the Oval. You can paint a pumpkin…. You can make scarecrows. And that always cracks me up because then you see little families walking down the street with a scarecrow over their shoulder. It’s really fun. … And the town hall, there’s a whole craft show going on, artisan and craft fair going on inside the town hall. So there’s stuff there for all ages. The kids love the Haunted Trail as well. And there’s all kinds of vendors and food trucks and there’s always vendors that have special things that kids enjoy but it’s nice to have the town hall where we have more grown-up crafts and things. If you’re going to make a scarecrow or paint a pumpkin or carve a pumpkin or go to the haunted trail, there are fees for that, but they’re very nominal. And then people who are selling things. The Milford Ambulance has a little ducky race where you purchase those little rubber ducks.

How many people do you think will show up this year and where will they put their cars?

I think in the years past that they have guessed that there’s been like 70,000 people over the course of the three days. The Milford Union Square is completely shut down for this festival this year so people can park at the middle school and the high school, and we have shuttle buses that keep going back and forth. They go from the schools, they drop them off downtown, they go back and forth … so people don’t have to worry about parking because there’s plenty of parking at the schools and we’ll shuttle them right down to the festival. It goes right till the end of each night except Sunday where the festival ends, it’ll go for like a half an hour or so after. All that information is on our website; what roads are closed, where the parking is, and everything. —Zachary Lewis

35th Milford Pumpkin Festival

When: Friday, Oct. 11, from 5 to 9 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 12, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday, Oct. 13, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Rain or shine.
Info: milfordpumpkinfestival.org

Schedule of events

Opening Ceremony & Citizen of The Year Presentation
Friday, Oct. 11, 6:30 to 7 p.m. on the Oval Stage
Includes Pumpkin Runner & lighting of the Town Hall Pumpkin

The Great Pumpkin Weigh Off/Giant Pumpkins On Display: All entries for the Weigh Off must be delivered to the Milford Oval by 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 12. Winners are announced at noon on Saturday. Pumpkins must stay for the duration of the Festival.

Milford Historical Walking Tour: Saturday and Sunday, one-hour guided tour begins at the Carey House, 6 Union St.

Pumpkin Painting, Scarecrow Making, Face Painting: Saturday 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Community House lawn. Pumpkin painting $5 per pumpkin. Scarecrow making $15 per scarecrow. Face painting $5 full face, $1 one cheek

Beer, Wine & Spirits Tasting: Friday and Saturday 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Community House Lawn, tickets required

Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley Pumpkinfest 5K & Kids Fun Run: Saturday 7:30 to 11:30 a.m., 56 Mont Vernon St. Registration opens 7 a.m. Kids Fun Run 8 a.m., $10. 5K Run/Walk 9 a.m., $35 ($40 day of)

Pumpkin Carving & Lighting Display On The Oval: Saturday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., $12 per pumpkin

Rubber Duck Race: Sunday at 1 p.m., Stone Bridge; purchase rubber ducks at the Milford Ambulance booth on Middle Street

Pumpkin Catapult: Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at Railroad Pond, TD Bank Lower Lot. Purchase pumpkins and catapult them toward fun targets in Railroad Pond. One pumpkin $3, two pumpkins $5. Proceeds benefit Dollars For Scholars.

Star Gazing/Solar Observing: Saturday evening, weather permitting, in Keyes Memorial Park, join Rich DeMidio and other amateur astronomers for stargazing and solar observing. Several telescopes available for astronomical viewing including some planet and deep sky objects.

Pumpkin Festival Mural: Watch Eric Escobar’s creation unfold over the 3 days of the festival

Featured image: Stuffing a scarecrow. Courtesy photo.

Volunteer Coordinator

Patti Sexton is the Volunteer Coordinator for UpReach Therapeutic Equestrian Center (153 Paige Hill Road, Goffstown, 497-2343), a nonprofit that works to improve the well-being of individuals with and without disabilities by partnering them with horses. Visit upreachtec.org or reach out to Patti for volunteer opportunities at [email protected].

Explain your job and what it entails.

What I’m responsible for is making sure that we have appropriate volunteers in every lesson so that the therapeutic riding or therapeutic carriage driving lessons run safely and effectively. … We also support volunteers that come in from several area agencies and they may come in and help us muck stalls or clean tack or vacuum or do laundry. It’s a very lengthy list of what we engage volunteers at the barn to do.

How long have you had this job?

I’ve been attached to UpReach since 2012 as a volunteer, and then I became staff in the winter of 2023.

What led you to this career field and your current job?

So it was kind of an interesting path. My background is in education and psychology and I taught for a few years and then bounced around in different jobs, always knowing that my passion is actually people and horses. So it was an easy partnership when I found this as a volunteer site for myself. I basically fell in love with it and couldn’t wait to spend more time here.

What kind of education or training did you need?

For this job it’s been a lot of on-the-job training. You need to learn how to interact with lots of people, how to navigate large groups of people, how to have oversight of groups that might come in and do work on the property; different organizations often will schedule workdays with us. …. A lot of the training has really just been on the job, learning what works well, learning what maybe didn’t work well and what I could do differently the next time.

What is your typical at-work uniform or attire?

It usually involves jeans and a sweatshirt in the winter and shorts and a T-shirt in the summer. Often, you know, there’s a lot of mud and muck stuck to your shoes. There may be hay in your hair.

What do you wish you had known at the beginning of your career?

I wish I had known when I was a psychology major that there was such a thing as equine-facilitated mental health. It is a field that I find fascinating …

What was your first job?

My very, very first job was as a bank teller when I was in high school.

What is the best piece of work-related advice you’ve ever received?

… [R]emember you’re part of a community, wherever you’re working, and to understand it, and to see how it moves…

—Zachary Lewis

Five favorites
Favorite book: Gosh golly, there’s a bunch. There is a book called This is How it Always is. I just thought it was very well-written and it captured life and all of its challenges very beautifully.
Favorite movie: I would say one of my favorites is The Shining.
Favorite music: I really like country. Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, that kind of strain.
Favorite food: Chocolate
Favorite thing about NH: I love the fact that we have four seasons…. I just think it’s a beautiful spot.

Featured photo: Patti Sexton. Courtesy photo.