Each December, members of the Seacoast Garden Club hold a holiday workshop where they make boxwood Christmas trees for shut-ins and senior residents in the communities of Arundel, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Wells.

The long-standing club holiday tradition took place on December 12, and over 60 trees were created and decorated by club members and then delivered to various social service agencies, area libraries, and friends of garden club members.

New Year’s Eve Kennebunk plans in place

New Year’s Eve Kennebunk will host its annual Blueberry Ball Drop on Dec. 31 in downtown Kennebunk.

The family-friendly event takes place at First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church on Main Street. A brightly lit wild Maine blueberry ball will drop from the bell tower.

There’s an early-bird Blueberry Ball Drop at 9 p.m. and the Wild Blueberry Drop at midnight. The festivities will include open skating at the Waterhouse Center.

For more information, visit the NYEKBK Facebook page.

Graves Library hosts Games & Crafts

Graves Memorial Library announced that it will host Early Release Wednesday – Games & Crafts on Jan. 4. The program is scheduled for noon to 4 p.m.

Patrons can spend their early-release Wednesday at the library building with Legos, playing games, doing crafts, and more. Graves Library is located at 18 Maine St., Kennebunkport, and is open Monday-Friday 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturdays 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

For more information, call 967-2778 or visit www.graveslibrary.org.

Genealogical group offers Zoom seminar

The Greater Portland Chapter of the Maine Genealogical Society is offering a free online (Zoom) meeting on Saturday, Jan. 7 at 1 p.m.

The guest speaker will be Roberta Ransley-Matteau of the Osher Map Library who will present “Getting By: The Immigrant Working Class on Main Street in Biddeford, 1880-1932.” The program is about immigrant groups, primarily Irish, Greeks, Albanians, and Chinese, who worked in textile mills as well as owning or working in small businesses.

Ransley-Matteau will focus on Dennis Delany as an illustration of the times. Delany came from Ireland and is an example of a struggling immigrant trying to “get by.” In addition to tracing his family, Ransley-Matteau covers his various occupations (baker, laborer, restaurant “keeper”). He usually got into trouble with the law for smuggling rum, organizing illegal boxing matches, and dog fights. He also was a champion boxer. Delany’s activities were frequently reported in the Biddeford Daily Journal, which is where she found plentiful information about him. She will also discuss some organizations that were active during the time, such as the Know-Nothing Party that was regarded as anti-immigrant.

To register for the free program, email gpcmgs@gmail.com.

Camden Conference to host immigration discussions

The Camden Conference and Kennebunk Free Library will host John Sutherland on Monday, Jan. 30 at 6 p.m. at Kennebunk Free Library. Sutherland will discuss Immigration to America During the Industrial Age: 1800-1924.

A direct cause of modern immigration to the U.S. is the Industrial Revolution and the mass-manufacturing of products, the need to get workers to produce those products, and their export to other nations. The competition from those relatively inexpensive goods meant that hand-craftsmen could not compete, causing more workers to emigrate to the industrialized countries. Immigration also has been a controversial political issue since the late 18th century and remains so. Fear of competition for jobs and bias against certain nationalities drives the controversy.

John Sutherland is professor of history emeritus and former director of the Institute of Local History at Manchester (Connecticut) Community College. He also taught at the University of Connecticut and Eastern and Central Connecticut State universities. Currently an instructor at the University of Southern Maine’s Osher Life-Long Learning Institute, he co-authored with Bruce Stave of UConn, “From the Old Country: An Oral History of European Migration to America.”

The Camden Conference and Kennebunk Free Library will host Kathleen Sutherland on Monday, Feb. 6, at 6 p.m. for a discussion that will be a companion to John Sutherland’s Jan. 30 visit.

Kathleen Sutherland will discuss 21st Century Global Migration and Global Trade.

Migration is caused by people searching for a better material life and safety. What is the effect of this migration process on global trade? We look at the late 20th and 21st century picture and in particular the impact of increased migration to the U.S. from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Discussion will also include the economic impact of migration from Asia and Africa to Europe.

Kathleen Howard Sutherland (Ph.D. Indiana University) is associate professor emerita of political science at Bowling Green State University. She teaches at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Southern Maine. She presented a paper on Somali and Sudanese refugees at the Middle East Studies Association annual meeting.

The program is free and wheelchair accessible. For more information call 207-985-2173 or email  kfl@kennebunklibrary.org.

Sunday services to change by a half-hour

First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church of Kennebunk will hold Sunday services at 10 a.m. beginning Sunday, Jan. 1.

According to a church news release, “The time is a half-hour earlier than it has been for many decades, if not centuries.” Services are held in-person in the upstairs sanctuary and on Zoom. For more information about Zoom services,  call 985-3700.

Speers Gallery announces January exhibit

The Speers Gallery at the Kennebunk Free Library will present Seacoast Moderns: Unexpected, an exhibition of new artwork, Jan. 4-30.

The Seacoast Moderns are a group of artists from the New England seacoast area, founded in 2010 within the Kittery Art Association. Their work attempts new modes of representation, often depicts unusual subjects, and ranges from abstract to conceptual to whimsical.

The public is invited to an artist’s reception on Saturday, Jan. 7, from 2:30- to 4:30 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

Unexpected consists of over 25 paintings, prints and 3D assemblages, all with subjects or approaches that viewers are unlikely to have seen before.

The public is invited to view the exhibit in the library’s Speers Gallery from Jan. 4-30 at 112 Main St., Kennebunk, during regular library hours when the gallery is not in use for library programs. For current hours and gallery access, visit www.kennebunklibrary.org.

Astronomical society announces Jan. 6 meeting

The Astronomical Society of Northern New England will hold its monthly meeting on Friday, Jan. 6, at 7:30 p.m. at The New School in Kennebunk. A business meeting, also open to the public, is scheduled for 7 p.m.

The New School is located at 38 York St., Kennebunk.

The January meeting agenda includes: Bernie Reim’s What’s Up for the Month and Astro Shorts, where attendees and members share questions, activities, news and observations.

The Astronomical Society of Northern New England is a local association of amateur astronomers that meets monthly at the New School. Meeting are on the first Friday of each month, all those interested in astronomy are welcome, from stargazers and hobbyists, to serious observers, astro-photographers, and those interested in astronomical theory.

The society also hosts Star Parties at Talmage Observatory at Starfield on Route 35 in West Kennebunk.

For more information, visit www.asnne.org.

Mid-Week Music series features music of Neil Young

Mid-Week Music kicks off the New Year with “An Evening Without Neil Young (but with his music)” on Wednesday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m. The monthly concerts are held at the Kennebunkport Historical Society’s Town House School at 135 North St.

Guitarist and pianist Dana Pearson will be joined by drummer Ron Breton for this concert of music by the Bard of Canada, Neil Young. There’ll be plenty of popular tunes from Young’s decades-long career, including “Heart of Gold,” “Helpless,” and “Harvest Moon,” as well as a few obscure songs, like “It’s a Dream” and “Silver & Gold.”

For more information, visit kporths.com/events, email info@kporths.com, or call 967-2751.

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