The ‘Hellmira’ POW camp

SHOHOLA, PA — Join the Shohola Railroad and Historical Society (SRHS) on Wednesday, October 5 at 7 p.m., for a lecture at the Shohola Township building by Air Force veteran and author Joe Squeo.
He will present the story of the Shohola train wreck, which took place during the Civil War.
His topic, titled “Hellmira,” will examine the Saint of the Elmira POW camp, which existed from 1864 to 1865.
Following the presentation, there will be refreshments and a business meeting.
Also open following the presentation is the SRHS museum at the Shohola Township building, located at 159 Twin Lakes Rd.
This month, the museum has a new exhibit, titled “The Farmer’s Wife.”
For more information, visit the SRHS on Facebook at Shohola Railroad & Historical Society.

Environmental sensing tools to be discussed at UDC meeting

NARROWSBURG, NY — The Upper Delaware Council (UDC) will host a presentation at 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 6, titled “Open Source Tools for Environmental Sensing.” It will be led by Pete Marchetto, the research engineer and instrumentation scientist on staff for FieldKit at conservation group Conservify.
The meeting will be held at the Upper Delaware Council office, 211 Bridge St.
The monthly meeting will follow.
All UDC meetings are open to the public.
For information on how to participate on Zoom, call the UDC at 845/252-3022 or email ashley@upperdelawarecouncil.org.
Visit www.upperdelawarecouncil.org or the UDC social media pages for any meeting updates.

When wildfires raged in the Catskills

DELHI, NY — During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, fires raged out of control in many of New York’s vast wooded areas. Learn more about that time, and what the state did, on Tuesday, October 4 at 6 p.m. at the Cannon Free Library.
The library will host a free lecture by Martin Podskoch, author of “Fire Towers of the Catskills: Their History and Lore.”
The years 1903 and 1908 were particularly disastrous, and because of public outcry for protection, the state created a fire prevention program. It included the building of fire towers.
Podskoch has researched the history of each tower, and gathered the stories of the observers who kept watch on the forest, the rangers who supervised them, and the pilots who, over time, replaced them.
He covers the era of fire towers from the early 1900s through the current Catskill Fire Tower Restoration Project.
The Cannon Free Library is located at 40 Elm St.
For more information about Podskoch and the “Fire Towers” book, visit martinpodskoch.com.
To learn more about the lecture, visit the library’s Facebook page at CannonFreeLibrary.

Godstock at Woodstock

BETHEL, NY — The Lighthouse Ministries Church is sponsoring Godstock, a Christian celebration, from 12 noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday, October 16 at Bethel Woods.
Various churches and ministries will sing, preach and praise the Lord.
Admission is free.
Bethel Woods is located at 200 Hurd Rd.
For more information, call 845/985-7026.

Shane Cook & the Woodchippers to perform

LAKE ARIEL AND WAYMART, PA — The Old Time Fiddlers will sponsor Shane Cook & the Woodchippers in a concert on Saturday, October 8 at the Western Wayne High School auditorium.
Doors open at 7 p.m. and the music starts at 7:30 p.m.
There is no charge to attend the concert.
Also on Saturday, at 2 p.m., Shane Cook and Kyle Waymouth will hold free workshops at the South Canaan Township building. Cook will answer questions and demonstrate fiddle styles, and Waymouth will teach the beginning steps of the Ottawa Valley style of dance.
The Western Wayne High School auditorium is located at 1970 Easton Tpk. in Lake Ariel.
The South Canaan Township building is located at 2238 Easton Tpk. in Waymart.
Learn more about Shane Cook & the Woodchippers at www.shanecook.com, or see videos on Facebook at The Old Time Fiddlers.
For more information about the concert and workshops, email theoldtimefiddlers@yahoo.com or call 570/575-7158.

Teens: learn acting and music theatre

HURLEYVILLE, NY — The Homestead School and River Rep Theater are partnering to offer teens aged 13 to 17 an afterschool program in music theater and acting.
The program takes place on Wednesdays from October 5 to November 9, 4:15 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. at the Studio, 269 Main St.
This class is open to the public. Teens will be able to explore acting and musical theater, while meeting people their age from the surrounding communities.
Led by actor and director Christopher Peditto, students will start with games and exercises and learn the core principles of acting, how to focus and concentrate, how to work as a group, and how to use imagination to create a character. Students will then choose a song, monologue or scene from a popular play or musical.
That work, developed over the six-week course, will become a short program, which will be performed by students for family and friends on the last day of the course.
The class costs $100 for the six-week course. Register by emailing christopher@homesteadeducation.org.

Learn to plant bulbs with Sullivan Renaissance

LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY — The beautification and community-development group Sullivan Renaissance will host a bulb-planting demonstration on Thursday, October 6 at 5:30 p.m. at the Lazarus I. Levine residence hall at SUNY Sullivan.
The program is being held in partnership with SUNY Sullivan.
Those interested are invited to join Carmela Hugel, beautification program manager, and beautification coordinator Alan Carroll from Sullivan Renaissance. They will instruct and demonstrate how to plant autumn bulbs for early-spring blooms.
“Planting bulbs in the fall gives you something beautiful to anticipate in the spring,” said Hugel.
All sessions are free, but pre-registration is requested. To register, visit SullivanRenaissance.org.
Event details can also be found on the Sullivan Renaissance Facebook page.
Learn more about the work of Sullivan Renaissance at SullivanRenaissance.org or on Facebook at SullivanRenaissance.

Anxiety and hope, shown in dance

NEW YORK, NY — Johanna LjungQvist-Brinson will premiere her new works, as well as older works, in “An Evening with Hanna Q,” at 7 p.m. on Friday, October 7 at the Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand St.
LjungQvist-Brinson’s company has also performed at her home in Dingmans Ferry, PA.
The performance examines Hanna Q’s emotions and thoughts on the state of America and the world, expressed in dance. “With bursts of passion and athletic expressions,” a spokesperson said, the “Hanna Q Dance Company sweeps the audience into a world full of emotions. She wants people to know that they are not alone.”
The Hanna Q Dance Company will perform four pieces: “Threat to Freedom and Democracy,” “Andare,” “As We Grow” and “We Are All Going To Be Fine.”
Tickets cost $30 for general admission, and $20 for seniors and students. A wine and cheese reception will follow the shows.
LjungQvist-Brinson describes her choreography as modern contemporary, composed of technically
rigorous movements and partnering “that is both intricately acrobatic and viscerally human.”
Learn more at www.hannaqdancecompany.com/home.

Silent auction

HONESDALE, PA — The Greater Honesdale Partnership (GHP) is asking for donations for its upcoming silent auction.
The event will raise funds for the GHP revitalization plan for downtown Honesdale.
Gift certificates, baskets and single items will all be accepted.
Items can be dropped off by Monday, October 24 at the GHP office, located at 32 Commercial St., Ste. 3.
To donate an item, describe the item and its value. Email the information to Sandi at sandi@visithonesdalepa or call her at 570/253-5492.

The fishery and the flow at ‘Water, Water Everywhere’

ONLINE — The Friends of the Upper Delaware River (FUDR) will hold its annual conference on Tuesday, October 11 and Wednesday, October 12 on Zoom.
The event is hosted by Friends of the Upper Delaware River (FUDR) and its conservation partners.
The conference offers a chance to catch up on all the critical issues facing the Upper Delaware River. Topics cover trout and the flexible flow management program, protecting the watershed, funding, the fishery and more.
Friends of the Upper Delaware River (FUDR) works to protect and restore the Upper Delaware watershed for the benefit of local economies, communities, people and the environment.
For information and to register, visit www.fudr.org.

Pie all ‘round on October 8

LIVINGSTON MANOR, NY — “Bring home a pie!” the Apple Pie Palooza poster proclaims. “Eat pie! Win! Dance!”
Radio Catskill WJFF will host an “Apple Pie Palooza,” a pie contest and dance party, on Saturday, October 8.
The event takes place from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., and is held at the Catskill Brewery.
You can bring a pie—or an apple dessert—to be judged in the pie contest. You can eat pie and join the dance party.
The dance party in the tent will be hosted by WJFF DJs Kassie Carlson, Jason Tougaw and Nick Nolte.
Jason Dole will emcee the pie contest.
The brewery is located at 672 Old Rte. 17.
For more information, visit wjffradio.org.

Fall performance by the Old Time Fiddlers

DAMASCUS, PA — The Old Time Fiddlers will hold its family-friendly fall performance on Friday, October 14 at 8 p.m.
The concert will take place at the Unity Grange Hall, 554 Galilee Rd.
Admission costs $10 at the door.
Refreshments will be available for purchase.
The proceeds from the concert will benefit the Unity Grange #1710.
Learn more on Facebook at The Old Time Fiddlers and at Unity Grange 1710.

The Wild West, theme-park version

MONTICELLO, NY — On Thursday, October 6, learn about Cimarron City, a Wild-West-themed park that flourished in Monticello in the 1950s and ‘60s.
The discussion, led by Myron Gittel, will begin at 6 p.m., and will be held in person at the library.
The park offered bank robberies, a saloon, a riverboat, alligator wrestling and much more.
Maybe you went there. Maybe you worked there. Wouldn’t you like to learn more? Bring your memories and memorabilia, said a library spokesperson, and share what you know.
The program is presented by the Ethelbert B. Crawford Public Library. It will be held at the library’s Robert D. Norris Community Room.
Registration is required. Visit ebcpl.org and click on Adult Calendar.
Masking and social distancing are strongly recommended.

Nature photography and more at PEEC

DINGMANS FERRY, PA — The Pocono Environmental Education Center (PEEC) is offering the following activities this weekend.
Learn some beginner techniques in nature photography on Saturday, October 1, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. The cost is $5.
After you’ve learned some basics, you’ll go out onto the PEEC campus to practice. The education center calls it a great program for children and those starting from scratch.
Bring a camera; even a phone camera will work.
That evening, join the owl prowl at 7 p.m. Pennsylvania is home to several species of owls, and some live in the PEEC area.
The cost to prowl for owls is $5.
And on Sunday, October 2, beginning at 10 a.m., PEEC will host an animal-tracking class. “Animals leave behind clues that give us glimpses into their lives. Explore our natural areas for tracks, trails, scat, territory marks, chew marks and other signs animals leave” behind, the center said.
The cost is $5.
To learn more, visit peec.org.

Casting call for SCDW youth holiday show

SOUTH FALLSBURG, NY — The Sullivan County Dramatic Workshop (SCDW) is seeking young actors, aged five to 14, to cast its youth holiday show, “A Christmas Carol.”
Audition dates are Saturday, October 8 and Sunday, October 9, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Rivoli Theatre.
This version of the beloved story is a comedic adaptation of Charles Dickens’ tale. In this short version, the Ghost of Christmas Past is Belle, Scrooge’s former fiancée. The Ghost of Christmas Present is, well, a present, a spokesperson said, and the Ghost of Christmas Future is a rapper and wannabe comedian.
Will the ghosts be able to help Scrooge snap out of his need for greed? They’ll have to tug on his heartstrings and purse-strings to put some Christmas spirit into the old miser.
The following characters will be cast: Scrooge, Bob Cratchit, Marley, Tiny Tim, Mrs. Cratchit, two sisters and the three ghosts.
Show dates are Friday, December 9 and Saturday, December 10, both at 7 p.m., and Sunday, December 11 at 1 p.m.
For more information, email Bunny at bwoloszczak@gmail.com.

Ten-week express semester at SUNY Sullivan begins soon

LOCH SHELDRAKE, NY AND ONLINE — SUNY Sullivan is offering face-to-face and online classes this fall as part of the college’s 10-week express semester.
Classes begin Wednesday, October 5, and run through Friday, December 16.
Express semester courses offer students the opportunity to earn regular course credits at an accelerated pace.
It’s a way to jump-start general education requirements, pick up extra credits, retake a class, or explore personal interests.
Courses include English Composition I, Elementary Statistics, General Psychology, Introduction to Green Buildings, Basic Weight Training and many others.
Enrollment is open, so you don’t have to take the SAT or the ACT, and GPA requirements are minimal.
There is no charge to apply.
Fall Express classes are offered online unless otherwise indicated.
For more information about this program, or to apply, visit sunysullivan.edu/fall-express-2022.
To schedule a free video consultation or in-person campus tour, contact admissions@sunysullivan.edu, or call 845/730-3125.