Church sets ?benefit walk

The First Congregational Church of Durham will be holding a 5-mile walkathon on Sunday, Oct. 21, at 11:30 a.m. (the rain date is Sunday, Oct. 28). Fifty percent of the proceeds will be donated to the Durham Fuel Assistance Program. Pledge sheets are available at the Durham Town Office. Call 353-9040 for more information.

Harvest dinner

The Durham Community School Garden committee will be hosting an all-day harvest dinner on Saturday, Oct. 20 from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. at the Eureka Community Center on Route 136. The cost is $3 and residents are invited to drop in to enjoy a simple meal aimed at supporting the future of Durham Community School gardens. For more information, call 944-8273.

Durham PTA craft fair

The Durham Community School PTA will host its second annual craft/business fair on Saturday, Nov. 17, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. in the Durham Community School gym. Admission is free.

The PTA will be serving coffee, breakfast pastries, baked goods, homemade soups and breads and hot dogs. The cost of an 8-foot table is $20 and the PTA is also looking for donations of baked goods and homemade soup to be served at the fair. The event will benefit the school’s student enrichment programs and field trips.

For more information and to confirm a food donation, please contact Laurel Gervais at 522-1919 or [email protected] or Nancy Decker at 751-1323 or [email protected].

AA meeting in Durham

The First Congregational Church of Durham now hosts an AA meeting at 7 p.m. in the fellowship hall on Tuesdays, with around 12 people regularly attending to date.

‘Soup and Chat’ Institute

Have you wondered what “Post Modernism” really means? Why there is so much political turmoil at this time? How people of different generations look at our society?

College professor and First Congregational Church of Durham pastor, the Rev. Michael Johnson, will host informal supper gatherings as part of the Institute of Religious & Sociological Trends, held Mondays from 6-7:30 p.m., Oct. 8 through Nov. 12, in the church hall. A free will offering will be taken for the family supper.

The topics include

• Oct. 8 – “Post Modernism in Perspective” What does it mean? How does it impact our society?

• Oct. 15 – “Generational Thinking” What are the different thinking patterns and behaviors of generations born from 1900 to the present?

• Oct. 22 – “Managing Disruptive Behaviors” How can we respond, as individuals and as a family, to childhood, teen and adult positive and negative mental health/substances- based behaviors?

• Oct. 29 – “Development Issues – part I” What should we expect from people at different ages? What are the specific challenges and needs of the different ages/stages?

• Nov. 5 – “Development Issues – part II”

• Nov. 12 – “12-12-12” What is being said about this via scientific and spiritual reports. Why are the very wealthy building secret underground bunkers?

Election update

Absentee ballots for the Nov. 6 election will be available starting Oct. 8. There will be a local referendum question on a potential withdrawal of Durham from Regional School Unit 5. A public hearing on this referendum question will be on Oct. 22 from 7-10 p.m. at the Durham Community School gym.

Durham PTA event

The Durham Community PTA Halloween party will be held on Saturday, Oct. 20, from 3-5 p.m. at the school. The PTA will also be sponsoring a Fall Scholastic book fair from Oct. 20-Oct. 26.

Masonic bean supper

The Durham Masonic Lodge will be holding a bean supper on Saturday, Oct. 13, from 4:30-6 p.m. The lodge is located on Route 136 across from the River Park. The prices are $7.50 for adults, $3 for children ages 5-12 and children under 5 free. The menu includes baked beans, chop suey, hot dogs, potato salad, cole slaw, bread, pickles and homemade pies.

Scrap metal drive under way

The Amvets are holding a scrap metal drive from now until Nov. 1. All metal can be dropped off by the Dumpster at the Amvets hall on Royalsborough Road.

The Amvets will also be holding a yard sale on weekends through Nov. 1. The sale runs from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information, call Bill at 713-2100 or Harvey at 256-2203.

Upcoming ?meetings, hours

The Durham Planning Board will be holding its monthly meeting on Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. in the town office.

Town office hours

The town office is open Mondays from 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The office is closed for lunch from noon-1 p.m. and all day on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. For more information, call 353-2561.

Town seeking ?board members

The Durham planning and appeals boards are seeking new members to be appointed. There are also openings on the Scholarship and Eureka committees. If interested, stop by the Durham Town Office and fill out a committee application, or for more information, call 353-2561, ext. 10.

Local church services

The First Congregational Church of Durham has services at 10 a.m. every Sunday. The pastor is Michael Johnson. There will be a family brunch at 11 a.m. on each Sunday in October. All are welcome and donations will be accepted.

Services for the Shiloh Church are every Sunday at 10 a.m. The pastor is Ron Parker

Services for Friends Meeting are every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. The pastor is Daphne Clement.

Community Center for rent

The Durham Eureka Community Center is available to rent for small groups of 50 or less. The building is great for showers, birthday gatherings and meetings. Contact Anita Sellars for more information at 353-6217. The Community Center Committee is seeking new members. For more information call Nancy Decker at 751-1323.

Durham online, on TV

Local resident John Ricker has been hired as the town’s new public information technician. He will be handling the town’s website and cable television channel. To reach him to put your non-profit information/event or meeting on the website or town channel e-mail [email protected], [email protected] or call 751-0037.

Durham’s website is durhamme.com. You can view a calendar of events, meetings, announcements, ordinances and links to other sites such as the school and fire departments.

Lisbon Area Christian Outreach

The Lisbon Area Christian Outreach’s food pantry and clothing bank hours are: Wednesday: 6 p.m.-8 p.m., Thursday: 10 a.m. to noon and Saturday: 8 a.m.-10 a.m. LACO serves the communities of Bowdoin, Durham and Lisbon. The website is www.lacopantry.org.

The physical address for food and clothing is the Marion T. Morse Community Center, enter from the Berry Avenue side behind the Lisbon United Methodist Church. The clothing bank cannot accept furniture, appliances, etc., as they do not have the room to store them. For more, call Debbie at 240-1637.