WHAV (https://whav.net/category/communityspotlight/)
The Greater Haverhill Arts Association is presenting a Spring Art Exhibit featuring members’ works in oil, acrylic, watercolor, colored pencil, digital art and stained glass. The display is the latest in the second year of an ongoing series of quarterly exhibits of favorite artworks from the studios of members. Art is on display to the public through Saturday, May 18, during regular hours in the main floor hallway at Penacook Place, 150 Water St., Haverhill.
“Making God Laugh,” a play that visits a span of four decades in the life of an ordinary family, begins a nine-day run Saturday to close the Georgetown Theater Workshop’s 2023-2024 season. An ensemble of local actors and crew from Haverhill, Boxford, Georgetown and beyond deliver a mix of funny moments, relatable situations and heartfelt connection. Written by Sean Grennan, and directed by Matthew Lundergan. The play will be on stage at the Byfield Community Arts Center May 11 to 19. Georgetown Theatre Workshop is nearing 50 years providing community theater committed to showcasing local talent.
A Haverhill organization that offers resources to parents whose children have special needs is making an online workshop about social-emotional learning available to the public
The Haverhill Special Education Parent Advisory Council will team up with the Federation for Children with Special Needs to provide a Zoom link to the presentation, which takes place Tuesday, May 14, from 7 to 9 p.m.
In it, parents will learn what social-emotional learning is, why it’s important, how to identify social-emotional skills and how to acquire them. The presentation will also touch on what social-emotional learning looks like in the classroom and how these skills can be included in a student’s Individual Education Plan. Visit the council’s website, HaverhillSEPAC.com and click on the RSVP button on the event listing page to receive a link to the online presentation.
Wellness Hot Yoga will host a fundraiser for Emmaus House in which shoppers can find handmade items to give as Mothers Day gifts. The yoga studio incorporates charitable giving in its regular business model, hosting fundraisers like the one for Emmaus House, which provides services to the city’s homeless, as well as weekly community hot yoga sessions where the only fee is a donation to a nonprofit or organization that provides a service. More than 10 vendors, each of whom creates a unique set of items, will showcase their talents and offer items for sale. A raffle of items donated by the artisans is also planned. Children are welcome, and will have the opportunity to try their hand at arts and crafts at a special table set up for them.
The Battle of the Badges 2024, Haverhill edition, renews a friendly rivalry among the city’s first responders to see which group can recruit the largest number of eligible donors for an American Red Cross blood drive. Those who wish to help swell the ranks of Team Police or Team Fire can call 1-800-REDCROSS or RedCrossBlood.org, enter “Haverhill” and register with one of the groups to schedule an appointment. This procedure allows prospective donors to complete paperwork before the day of the collections. The actual Battle of the Badges takes place this Saturday, May 4, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Citizens Center, 10 Welcome St., Haverhill. Battle of the Badges is an annual, nationwide event that employs local public servants in a quest to replenish blood and platelet stocks used in lifesaving efforts across the U.S.
The Haverhill & Plaistow Community YMCA Legacy Gala online auction is live
Bidding takes place online through Sunday, May 12, at noon, with items and experiences up for grabs, including tickets to popular local summer events Ciderfeast and Tattersall Farm-to-Table; tickets to the Celtics, Red Sox and Bruins; scratch tickets and overnight stays in the heart of Boston and historic Salem, Mass. The YMCA Legacy Gala takes place Saturday, May 11, beginning at 5 p.m., at Bradford Country Club, 201 Chadwick Road, Haverhill. The sold out event features two signature cocktails and a photo booth for guests to take home memories. All proceeds support the YMCA’s work in fighting food insecurity, sending children to summer camp and educational programming for individuals and families in need of financial assistance.
Haverhill High School Poetry and Spoken Word Club students will share their talents at a special open mic event hosted by the River Bards poetry group. The teens, who write poetry and prose, are the featured performers at the May meeting of the River Bards, a group of local poets who delight in shining a light on literary arts. Twice a year, the Bards gather at HC Media, which records the night’s performances for broadcast. On Wednesday, May 1, the Poetry Club students will open the meeting with readings. Those who are interested in sharing during the open mic portion of the event can sign up on a sheet that will be provided, then wait for their names to be called.
Haverhill is one of only five communities statewide where Red Cross volunteers and members of the Fire Department will work together to “Sound the Alarm and Save” a Life by helping families develop escape plans, install smoke alarms or both in local homes. To participate, either by volunteering or by registering to receive up to three residential smoke alarms and/or training on how to respond if a smoke alarm sounds, visit SoundTheAlarm.org/ma or call 800-564-1234. Deliveries and home visits to devise escape and safety plans will take place Saturday, May 4, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Surya Sarkhel, a longtime Haverhill resident known for local performances of poetry, dance and song, will share her talents in a free performance at the Haverhill Citizens Center. Sarkhel is a songwriter and published in her native Indian language and in English. She also performs traditional, classic Indian dance. For decades, she has traveled the U.S. to entertain in her unique style, and has made her mark locally at various open mic night venues and at the Haverhill Multicultural Festival
Her latest Haverhill performance will be Tuesday, April 30, from noon to 1 p.m. at the Citizens Center, 10 Welcome St., Haverhill.
