The 7th Annual Junior Service League of Concord Festivus: Backwoods Black Tie Edition takes place on Thursday, Nov. 14, at 6 p.m. at the Barn at Bull Meadow in Concord.
Ashley Miller is the President of the Junior Service League of Concord.
“We are a group of all-volunteer women. Most of us work full-time. Most of us are moms with careers. So we are a group of all-volunteer women who do this in our free time. We operate out of our homes, and we support women and children in crisis throughout the greater Concord area, and we do that via volunteer projects and fundraising,” Miller said.
One of those fundraising events is their Festivus event. “That’s one of our biggest fundraisers of the year. It’s held at the Barn at Bull Meadow…. It’s a huge silent auction. We’re sitting at, right now, over 80 silent auction items,“ she said.
Attendees will have a chance to win some enchanting items. “We’ve got a pair of Celtics tickets. We have plumbing services. We have tree removal services. We have a weekend away at an Airbnb up in Lincoln. We have our famous Junior Service League bucket of booze, which is exactly what it sounds like. We’ve got gift cards to local businesses. We’ve got gym memberships. Anything you can think of, we’ve got it,” Miller said.
Each Festivus is unique. “And this one is Backwoods Black Tie Edition. We always have a theme. So it’s denim on denim theme,” Miller said. Any type of denim combo or ensemble is welcomed. “We do have a prize for the most creative denim on denim outfit, so I don’t want to limit anyone.”
“I’ll give a speech about what we’re about, some of the things we fundraise for. You’ll hear from some of our grantees that we’ve granted to in the past about the work we’ve done with them. So it’s a really good time. But yes, there’s music, there’s dancing, there’s food, there’s drinks. We sell rum cakes,” she said.
These are no ordinary rum cakes. “We do make them. … They’re our famous JSL rum cake recipe, which has been around for a while,” Miller said. Those interested in the rum cakes must attend to receive them. “They’re great, and they’re great for the holidays. You can freeze them. Or if you’re like me, you can eat them over the weekend, because they’re that good.”
The music is a draw as well.
“We have live music. We have two performers. One is Ryan Williamson music and the other is the Eric Reingold Has Friends band and they both performed last year and were phenomenal.”
Even if all the rum cakes are gone, other options to eat exist.
“We have all of our food donated by local businesses and then there are beer, wine, and alcohol pours, again, all donated by our community partners.”
If you can make it, bring a buddy. “$30 for one ticket or two for $55. So grab a friend and save five bucks,” she said.
Those who can’t attend can still support the JSL and what they do.
“If you can’t make it to the event but you’re interested in supporting us, you can donate. We are on Venmo. We can take a card via our website. We have a donate button. If you’d like to join us out in the community, we do regular service projects, so feel free to reach out. We are happy to be involved and to get to know people and serve our community,” Miller said.
7th Annual Junior Service League of Concord Festivus: Backwoods Black Tie Edition When: Thursday, Nov. 14, at 6 to 9 p.m. Where: Barn at Bull Meadow, 63 Bog Road, Concord Tickets: $30 or two for $55 jslconcord.org
The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities
• Twiggs closing: Twiggs Gallery will celebrate its art instructors with its final exhibition. The exhibition, “GLOW,” marks the gallery’s “farewell after an inspiring 10-year run,” with their doors closing on Dec. 14, according to a press release. The show “spotlights the diverse, heartfelt work of its dedicated art instructors,” the release said. The artists’ reception is on Saturday, Nov. 16, from 1 to 3 p.m. at Twiggs Gallery (254 King St., Boscawen; TwiggsGallery.org). In a statement, gallery owner Laura Morrison said, “This last exhibition is truly bittersweet. Our teachers have offered so many wonderful classes over the years, and we wanted to celebrate them by giving them an opportunity to show their favorite pieces of art. … It’s a beautiful and heartfelt exhibit.” Twiggs is open Thursday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 4 p.m.
• Ghosts before Christmas: On Friday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. the Derry Opera House presents “The Fright Before Christmas,” a program exploring the many Yuletide monsters and legends that have almost been lost to the ages. The program is based on years of research by storyteller Jeff Belanger, looking at the history of the holiday and ghostly traditions such as the stories of Krampus, the Belsnickel, Tomtens, and Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, according to the website. Belanger is the Emmy-nominated host, writer and producer of the PBS and Amazon Prime series New England Legends and the weekly New England Legends podcast. Belanger does not recommend this program for a young audience. Participants will need to register via the Derry Public Library atderrypl.org. Visit derryoperahouse.org.
• Exhibit in Concord: Outer Space Arts (35 Pleasant St., Concord; outerspacearts.xyz) is showing an exhibit of work by Emma cc Cook & Em Kettner titled “Caterpillar” until Saturday, Jan. 18. Emma cc Cook graduated with a BFA in painting from University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, and studied at the Angel Academy in Florence, Italy, according to the event page. Cook often combines dark paintings on canvas with abrupt insertions of walnut sticks, textural variations, and intriguing thematic ventures that are inspired by rural American West landscapes and the broad discourses surrounding identity, history, environment and erasure, according to the website. Outer Space will donate 5 percent of its profits from any sales of her work to a nonprofit of the artist’s choosing, according to the same website. The gallery is open Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., according to its Facebook page.
• Jazzing it up: Symphony New Hampshire and the Capitol Center for the Arts are teaming up for a three-part series of Illuminated Ensembles. American Standards is the first of the series; it will take place on Sunday, Nov. 17, at 4 p.m. at the Bank of New Hampshire Stage (16 S. Main St., Concord) and will feature Symphony New Hampshire’s Jazz Ensemble. This intimate and immersive experience will bring the Great American Songbook into a whole new light, according to the press release. Tickets are $37. Call the Capitol Center for the Arts box office at 225-1111 or visit ccanh.org.
• Wood and fiber: The Wood & Fiber Art exhibition featuring the works of Jim and Peg Doyle is open to the public during Gafney Library (14 High St., Sanbornville) hours: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from noon to 7 p.m., Friday 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Peg works with fabric and fiber art and Jim enjoys working with natural wood such as tree stumps, branches and burls, according to a press release. An artists’ reception woill be held on on Saturday, Nov. 16, from 10 a.m. to noon.
• Beethoven: Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra Family Matinees Chamber Series’ next installment is “Adventures with Beethoven” on Saturday, Nov. 16, at 3 p.m. with the Essex Piano Trio to perform ‘The Archduke’ and other masterful works for piano, violin and cello at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Portsmouth, according to a press release. Admission is a suggested $15 per family donation at the door. Visit portsmouthsymphony.org.
For anyone shopping for a special gift and looking to bypass Amazon and big box stores, the upcoming Form + Function Artisan Fair at 3S Artspace in Portsmouth is the perfect choice. The sixth annual event will include an evening market for the first time, on Friday, Nov. 15, as well as an all-day affair on Saturday, Nov. 16.
The event brings together more than 20 artisans offering everything from pottery to jewelry, textile products such as scarves and winter caps, even cosmetics, handmade in New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts. As the name implies, it’s usable art for sale, with care and craftsmanship that should impress most gift recipients.
Artisans include Donna Pioli, whose Claypio coffee cups, vases, colanders and bowls have unique glaze profiles and fanciful touches such as flowers that resemble melted ribbon candy. Amy Vander Els makes jewelry; her Lottie Necklace is a gold chain with a pale yellow serpentine turquoise stone dangling from it.
The clothing offered by Larkin & Larkin can be hippie-inspired — its proprietor began selling her art in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. For example, there’s a denim jacket with an embroidery of a melding sun and moon as the centerpiece, but another has a country vibe, with Dolly Parton’s photo sewn on it.
Items vary in cost, 3S Arts Marketing Manager Sara O’Neill said by phone recently.
“It’s curated specifically to have kind of breadth in both the type of craft that people work on and also in price points,” she said. “In the ceramics category, we’ll have something in the $40 range, and it could go all the way up to $300. That swath also applies through jewelry. We have some glass-blowing crafts happening, and there’s range between those.”
There’s something for everyone, even those not interested in another cup or necklace, like Holmes and Hudson’s skincare products. “We actually carry them in our shop year-round, but I’m assuming they’ll bring some special things that normally we don’t carry,” O’Neill said. “Natural body products like soap and toners and hand creams, all of that kind of stuff.”
O’Neill is a fan of Off Menu Pots, a company that’s based in Portsmouth’s Button Factory. “I spend all of my money there every year at their booth,” she said. “I really love their large platters, and they do some small cups…. They have really great colorways, like a very terracotta kind of a blushy blue, and they draw florals and skulls, so it’s a little bit sweet and salty.”
The event provides an easy path to supporting the arts, O’Neill said.
“It focuses on the maker space versus what you might traditionally think of as visual arts, which we reserve for our exhibits in the gallery and the yard sale where artists submit 2D works,” she said. “This is more handmade categories versus painting, charcoal, that type of thing.”
It’s underwritten by 3S Arts’ five lead sponsors — AC Hotel, Katzman Contemporary Projects, MacEdge and Raka, all in Portsmouth, and The Brook Casino in Seabrook. “This is the third year in a row where they’ve chosen 3S as a beneficiary of their charitable gaming,” O’Neill said of The Brook, “and Katzman is a wonderful supporter of the arts, they have their own gallery… AC, MacEdge, Raka — it’s a wonderful group.”
Their support is vital, particularly at this moment.
“In this past year, hearing all of these stories of the art museum at UNH and the Mona Gallery, which has transitioned into another art gallery, but as a nonprofit going under. It’s a critical time if you don’t want to see these arts organizations go away,” she said. “It’s a critical time for us, for sure.”
Finally, the fair is a great way to keep giving local, and give back to the community. “Shopping for your loved ones this holiday season overrides that Black Friday feeling,” O’Neill said. “You’re getting something much more wonderful and original shopping at Form + Function. It’s Small Business Saturday — we kind of fall into that category.”
Form + Function Artisan Fair When: Friday, Nov. 15, 5 to 9 p.m., and Saturday, Nov. 16, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: 3S Artspace, 319 Vaughan St., Portsmouth, More: Free admission, details at 3sarts.org
Basketball fans don’t have to drive far to find games nearly every weekend through the end of February. Local colleges offer women’s and men’s games to cheer at — often with admission that is either free or in line with movie ticket prices.
Photo by SNHU Athletic Communications/Josh Gibney of Penmen player Royce Williams. Courtesy of Southern New Hampshire University.
Southern New Hampshire University
Eric Coplin, the Director of Athletic Communication at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester, spoke to the Hippo about Penmen Basketball at the school.
“So both teams play in the Northeast 10, which is part of NCAA Division II. The A-10 is usually kind of looked at as one of the stronger conferences in Division II. So we play in a really strong league. And I think anyone coming to watch is going to see a really strong brand of basketball,” Coplin said.
“I love this level. … I think it’s a legitimate student-athlete experience. They’re here to be students, but they’re also here to be high-level athletes,” he said.
There is a good possibility of reaching the playoffs. “If we have an NCAA tournament, it’s obviously not as highly publicized as the Division I NCAA tournament, but it’s the same thing. It’s a bunch of teams fighting for a national championship,” Coplin said.
One of the biggest games is against nearby Saint Anselm College.
“We play them twice a year. We play them at home and then play them at their place. That’s definitely our biggest rival in basketball for sure. So [we] definitely draw the biggest crowd, best atmosphere for that game, for sure,” he said.
In the age of Caitlin Clark, both men’s and women’s teams draw a crowd.
“I think our women’s basketball crowds have really improved over the last few years to kind of match the men. In some games I think they even outdraw our men. But I think that has a lot to do with how we’ve been super successful the last three years. The team hadn’t been to the NCAA tournament since 1990 and now they’ve made it three straight seasons. They were in the conference championship game two years ago, so I think a lot of that is just in the increased talent level. I think winning helps that,” Coplin said.
Kids’ teams can get involved too. “We have a lot of cool youth involvement, like Hooksett Youth Basketball League, always happy to work with the youth programs in the greater Manchester area for sure,” he said The Hooksett Youth Basketball League is part of the Hooksett Youth Athletic Association (HYAA).
“Admission is free for all of our regular season games,” he said. Championship rounds are a slightly different story. “Once we get into playoffs, the NEC 10 as a conference charges. And then if we were to host regionals, the NCAA charges.”
All of the home games are at the Stan Spirou Field House on campus. Many of the games are double-headers, with a women’s game followed by the men’s. “We have a concession stand that’s usually open … [with] hot dog, pretzel, drinks, candy, stuff like that,” he said.
“We’re hoping for a good year, another fun time, fun atmosphere with the crowd, getting into it. Like I said, the women have been to three straight NCAA tournaments. The men last year won the conference championship and the NCAA regional tournament. The men went to the Elite Eight last year for the first time since 2015,” Coplin said.
Saint Anselm College
Zach Elliot, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications for the Hawks at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, is looking forward to the school’s upcoming basketball season.
The Saint Anselm Hawks are in what he called “the highly competitive Northeast-10 Conference” within NCAA Division II.
“The men’s side is a historic program coming off a trip to the Conference Semifinals last year,” Elliot said. “They also won the Conference title two years ago and have won 10 NE10 Championships. They are returning an All-Conference Third Team selection from last year in Josh Morissette, an Exeter native who finished in the top 10 in the league in scoring with 17.9 points per game. He also made the 16th most three-pointers last year as just a sophomore.”
The team has a new head coach this year in Chris Santo, replacing Keith Dickson, who retired during the offseason after 39 years in charge, Elliot said. Santo is a former NE10 Player of the Year and served as an Assistant Coach for both Saint Anselm and the University of Vermont (NCAA Division I).
“The women’s side looks to improve this year after two straight first-round playoff exits,” Elliot said. “They return their top scorer from a season ago in Tatum Forbes, who put up 14.7 points per game as a sophomore. She finished in the top 20 in the NE10 in scoring, assists, rebounding and steals.”
Games to especially look forward to, Elliot said, will be the game on Wednesday, Nov. 20, against Saint Michael’s College from Colchester, Vermont, the defending champions for men’s, and the Wednesday, Feb. 19, game against in-city rival Southern New Hampshire University.
“Our basketball teams are always hosting youth programs to come and spend time at our games. The teams get a chance to play on the court at halftime or during an intermission. Our teams stay after the game to sign autographs and take photos as well,” Elliot said. “Our women’s team also volunteers at a local middle school and takes part in numerous activities with local youth.
And at the game, there are snacks. Elliot said the concession stand, located outside the gymnasium, offered items such as popcorn, candy, hot dogs and bottled beverages.
NHTI
Annie Mattarazzo, the new athletic director at NHTI in Concord, cannot wait for the upcoming season of Lynx basketball.
“Our conference is really competitive and our men’s program and women’s program have a history of great success. So I think every game is kind of fun. We play in the YSCC conference, which is within the USCAA,” she said.
The Yankee Small College Conference is within the United States Collegiate Athletic Association, which is composed of junior, community and small colleges, totalling 72 schools. Mattarazzo cited Great Bay Community College as a big match for the school “because we’re both in the state of New Hampshire.”
NHTI teams play inside the Dr. Goldie Crocker Wellness Center on a court named for a former coach, the Paul Hogan Basketball Court.
“It’s really energetic. It’s college basketball here, so it’s up-tempo, it’s fast,” she said. “We play teams from New York to Maine and kind of in the middle, Massachusetts, Connecticut. It’s just really a great atmosphere of up-tempo play locally in central New Hampshire.”
Mattarazzo hopes to preserve the old while ushering in the new. “I’m trying to maintain the traditions that are here and bring some new ideas to the table as well. So yeah, we’re definitely going to work to really continue those game initiatives. Some of my vision is to work with the parks and rec in town in Concord and have, you know, first responders nights with the local fire and EMT and have youth nights and invite teams to play or meet our team. Be able to provide that atmosphere for the Concord area. We do define ourselves as the Concord Community School. In such a prime location, there’s a lot of great connections here to build.”
“Our events are all free unless it gets to the tournament for our conference,” she said. The games be watched online too. “We do stream games, yep. And that would be found on our website under the specific team’s game schedule.”
Mattarazzo is no stranger to the Granite State or basketball. “I’ve been around New Hampshire my entire life. I grew up here. I was a college basketball coach pre my high school administration days on the women’s basketball side, so I’m a big fan of women’s games.”
She’s aware of Caitlin Clark’s impact on the sport. “Clark has been such an instrumental contributor to the growth of college basketball. She plays such a unique style of play and has such a unique mental toughness that it is a beautiful thing to watch. And I think it attracts so many different levels of players in the game of basketball. Her contributions of being a head-down, hard-nosed, competitive athlete really does continue to advance the game of basketball on both sides, men’s and women’s, as she really just plays. She’s not afraid, and I think that’s a great role model for youth in the game of basketball as well.”
The school is a good place to watch the game and to play it too, Mattarazzo said. “Here at NHTI I think we understand, we support the values of being a student-athlete and I think with that and the support in the community, our programs are really going to continue to be competitive and develop.”
Rivier University
Nick Perenick, Director of Athletic Communications, spoke about the upcoming Raiders basketball season at Rivier University in Nashua.
“We’re Division 3 and we’re in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference,” Perenick said. “So we have a couple of other New Hampshire teams in our conference as well as Massachusetts and all over New England really.”
The women’s team is in a good spot this year, he said. “We made it to the playoffs for, I believe, the third straight year last year. And our coach is actually an alum, Deanna Purcell from the class of 2015. She is the leading scorer in program history as well.”
“We currently have a fifth-year senior going after her record,” Perenick said. “She’s sitting just behind her record for all-time scoring. Her name’s Lyric Grumblatt. She was recently named by the New England Basketball Journal to the top 10 watch list for Division III basketball athletes for New England for this upcoming season. Between the coach and our player going after the record, it’s pretty cool.”
The men’s team has bright prospects.
“Two seasons ago we were really down. We finished with two wins and 23 losses. Then last year we had the biggest win turnaround from season to season. Last season we went 15 and 12 overall. We went from two wins to 15 wins. So plus 13 was, I believe, the largest in the country in terms of win differential from year to year,” he said. The Raiders finished seventh last year.
A couple games to especially look out for are on the horizon.
“I think for the men’s side it’s playing a conference opponent named Albertus Magnus College. They’re from Connecticut. They’ve won the conference the last few years or are fed right up at the top — if they’re not winning they’re in second, coming in second place losing the championship. They play at our place on Jan. 25 this year for the men’s side. So Albertus is one of the teams we kind of circle on the calendar as a team to get ready for as the season goes on,” Perenick said.
The women’s team has the same rival along with other teams. “I would say our biggest game in conference this year is actually an away game. I would also say Alberta is one of the top teams that we play at home this year. Most of our bigger games with real rivals are on the road. Those are Emmanuel and St. Joseph’s College of Maine, but I would say that Albertus is probably the toughest team we’ll play at home in conference this year.”
Certain game days have themes. “For the women, on Feb. 8 they’re going to host a game in dedication of National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Last year we invited a bunch of youth basketball teams and a bunch of youth girl athletes to campus for a game to celebrate that. It’s a day, the National Girls and Women in Sports Day, but we can’t celebrate it if we don’t have a game on that day so we honor that day on the weekend and we have a nice event with a bunch of youths from the area.” The men’s team will have a Youth Sports Day on Saturday, Jan. 11, against New England College.
Asked about the Caitlin Clark effect, he agrees she has had an undeniable impact in basketball. “Any time there’s a generational talent in any sport, there’s going to be more eyes on that sport. I think that Caitlin Clark has helped at a lot of different levels. I would say that for our women’s team and for the youth in the area, I think it’s a lot easier for us to have that National Girls and Women in Sports Day event with the headway that she’s made in the realm of women’s sports. But I would say that most of our fans and supporters are students or parents,” he said.
Concessions are available at some games, and a good number of the matches have teams play back to back. “We do a lot of double-headers with the men’s and women’s. In conference, almost every game is a double-header for men’s and women’s basketball.”
A multi-camera setup is used to capture all of the shots. “You can view our website and then under there you can scroll to the schedule pages and then find the video link,” he said. “You can watch all of our archived games for all sports that are broadcast. We have four cameras for the stream along with live commentary for all home games in the gym.”
New England College
Erica Ledy, the Head Women’s Basketball Coach at New England College in Henniker, is excited about the upcoming season for the Division III Pilgrims.
“I think we might be pretty good this year. We have, it looks like, a completely new team, so if you’re a spectator that came last year and is coming this year, you’re probably going to see a lot of new faces,” Ledy said.
“We’re going to play an up-tempo style of game so it’s like a fast-paced game, a lot of shots, pressing, like, pressuring the ball all the way up. So it should be more fun than a slower-paced game,” she said.
The team is in a whole new conference this year, the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC).
“So we don’t really have a lot of rivals yet, because it’s new. But Colby Sawyer is in our conference and we used to be in a conference with them before and they’re close to us, so I would probably say Colby Sawyer and maybe Plymouth and Keene would be our rivals, maybe Rivier, because they’re all New Hampshire schools,” Ledy said.
The team has worked with Henneker Elementary School over the last few years. “They will come and we’ll put on a mini clinic and the girls will stay and then we have a game where they’ll come when we [are] warming up, they’ll come out and talk to the girls. If other schools wanted to we’d be glad to do it. We like when teams want to be part of it.”
How about the Caitlin Clark effect? “I think a lot more people that didn’t really pay attention to basketball pay attention to it more now. She’s a great player. She is a really good offensive player. Defensively, she’s not the greatest. … but I think a lot more people are watching women’s basketball, girls basketball because of it. I think a lot of people can relate to somebody shooting a three-pointer and making it. It’s fun to watch.”
A smaller venue enhances the immediacy of the sport. “Our gym is very small, holds about 300 people, and usually it’s pretty full. It’s loud, it’s a great atmosphere, it’s really fun. We played a lot of schools where the gym is a lot bigger but it seems like nobody’s there because it’s so big, so it’s pretty neat,” Ledy said. She also noted concessions are a draw. “Our volleyball team runs concession stands usually when we have double-headers, so when we play and the men play after us or the men play first and we play second, there will be concession stands.”
The ability to watch the game from everywhere is definitely beneficial for those far away. “You can click Watch and you can watch it on your computer or livestream it up onto your TV.” Both men’s and women’s games offer the same feature for home games.
Ledy hopes to see you in the stands. “It will be exciting this year and they’re just a really nice group of girls that play hard, so it would be fun to watch. And we’d love for people to come out and watch us.”
Amya Moss of New England College. Photo by Meaghan Marcus.
What is a Division? A Conference?
The NCAA has Division I, Division II and Division III basketball for both men’s and women’s teams. Each Division consists of around 64 teams; Men’s Division I is an exception with 68 teams currently.
A Conference is a selection of schools in a given Division.
“So every game that we play this year will be against a Division III school, but only 13 of those teams are in our Conference,” said Erica Ledy, the Head Women’s Basketball Coach for New England College.
New England College is in Division III’s Great Northeast Athletic Conference.
“We play 25 games and we have 13 Conference games,” Ledy said.
“So 12 of the games, they count toward your record, and if you make the NCAA tournament they will help you if you win. But to make the NCAA tournament you have to win your Conference games.”
Conference games are the main deciding factor to make the tournament. “Our Conference games are more important than the out-of-conference games. We won’t be playing Conference games until January and February,” she said.
The same process occurs throughout the country.
“So what happens is the NCAA all across the nation is made up of different Conferences. Every Conference gets an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament. There are probably, I would say, somewhere close to 50 Conferences in Division III across the United States. So there’ll be 50 teams that automatically make the NCAA tournament. That’s the tournament at the end of the season,” she said. These 50 are the teams that win their Conference.
Every Division has its own tournament layout, but each one follows some sort of bracket structure.
There are other ways to make it into the tournament too.
”There will probably be like 14 at-large bids. The Conference games matter because it’s the NCAA tournament,” she said.
Winning the Conference is the more straightforward path to the glory of the NCAA tournament. —Zachary Lewis
Country Music Hall of Famer, five-time Grammy-winner and AMA Lifetime Achievement honoree Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives will perform at the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St., Nashua, 800-657-8774, nashuacenterforthearts.com) at 8 p.m. Tickets start at $50.
Friday, Nov. 15
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be at the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St., Manchester, 644-5000, snhuarena.com) tonight at 7 p.m.; tomorrow, Saturday, Nov. 16, at 11 a.m. and 3 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 17, at noon. This reimagined show is a fast-paced, action-packed production with modernized acts on a scale never seen before, creating real connections between audiences and performers. Tickets start at $19.
Friday, Nov. 15
United Way Care-E-Oke returns to the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St., Nashua, 800- 657-8774, nashuacenterforthearts.com) tonight at 7 p.m. Sing on stage, or donate to support a participant. All proceeds from the event help United Way make grants to local organizations. This is a general admission event. Adult tickets are $27, and youth tickets (14 and under) are $10.
Saturday, Nov. 16
There will be a free New England contra dance with David Millstone & Quindaro at the Citywide Community Center in Concord (14 Canterbury Road, 225-8690, concordnh.gov/1364/Community-Center) from 7 to 10 p.m. Beginners, singles and families are welcome. Visit concordnhcontra.wordpress.com.
Sunday, Nov. 17
The Aaron Tolson Institute of Dance presents Tapped In!at the Dana Center (Saint Anselm College, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester, anselm.edu) at 4 p.m. This show features the dancers from Speaking In Taps, a training ground for young dancers. It will be a performance of thrilling rhythm, precision and talent. Tickets are $25 each through the Dana Center’s website.
Sunday, Nov. 17
It is Legends Day at the New England Racing Museum (New Hampshire Motor Speedway, 922 Route 106, Loudon, 783-0183, nemsmuseum.com). Headlining will be seven road racers who had major success across the New England region. Sam Posey, Skip Barber, Janet Guthrie, Rob Dyson, Chris Dyson, Jocko Maggiacomo Sr. and Jocko Maggiacomo Jr. will be honored. The event will include an honoree panel discussion, permanent banner unveiling and a buffet lunch. Tickets are $80.
Sunday, Nov. 17
Symphony New Hampshire will present the first in a three-part series of “Illuminated Ensembles” today at 4 p.m. American Standards will be presented at the Bank of New Hampshire Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com) and feature Symphony New Hampshire’s Jazz Ensemble. Tickets are $37.
Save the Date! Friday, Nov. 22 – The Majestic Theatre (880 Page St., Manchester, 669-7469, majestictheatre.net) will open its 2024-2025 season with the comedy Murder’s in the Heiron Friday, Nov. 22 at 7 p.m., with additional showings Saturday, Nov. 23, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 24, at 2 p.m. The audience decides who did the crime; the play’s unique ending uses secret ballots gathered at intermission. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for 65+ and 17 and under.
The University of New Hampshire announced in a Nov. 6 press release that, despite human and predator pressures, coyote populations are thriving. “Surprisingly, the study’s findings suggest that human hunting practices may actually contribute to increasing the number of coyotes,” the press release read. It quoted Remington Moll, Assistant Professor of Natural Resources and the Environment and lead author of the study. “Intensive coyote removal can obviously reduce populations in the short term, but removal can also result in younger coyote populations with higher reproduction and immigration rates,” Moll said.
QOL score: +1 for the coyotes, -1 for your cat
Comment: At wildlife.nh.gov, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department warns, “In suburban areas, coyotes have been known to kill house cats. Keeping your pets and pet food inside at night helps reduce the likelihood that a family pet will become prey. Coyotes are often blamed for events for which domestic dogs, automobiles or other wildlife are responsible. As for your safety, coyotes pose little risk to people.”
Hard times for soft cheese
Savencia Cheese USA has announced a voluntary recall for some of its soft-ripened cheese because of potential contamination with Listeria monocytogenes, according to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration email and a notice at savenciacheeseusa.com. See pictures of the items, which include Aldi Emporium Selection Brie and Market Basket Brie, and a list of the UPC and best-by dates of the affected items on Savencia’s website.
QOL score: -1
Comment: “Through routine testing, it was identified that processing equipment at the site may have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. While finished product testing has not identified contaminated product, we have initiated a voluntary recall to retrieve the potentially affected product,” the website said.
NH is bicycle-friendly
New Hampshire is the ninth best state for cyclists. A Nov. 7 press release read, “The legal team at Philadelphia-based personal injury law firm KaplunMarx analyzed various metrics, including the air quality, cyclist deaths per capita, bike routes per square mile, local government actions supporting cycling, federal funding for cycling projects, and bicycle laws to determine the most cycling-friendly states in the U.S.” The study found that New Hampshire has a higher-than-average density of bike paths (62.8 miles per 1,000 square miles), good air quality, and a low cyclist fatality rate (3.3 per million residents).
QOL score: +1
Comment:The study rated New Hampshire’s overall score as 62.4 points out of 100. The top-rated state was Minnesota, with a score of 84. The lowest scoring state was Alabama, with 39.
Last week’s QOL score: 79
Net change: 0
QOL this week: 79
What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?
