Jon lit up the scoreboard at the NHTI Wheelchair Basketball Benefit
During the middle of winter, it’s not as easy to stay active and have fun as it is in the warmer months. My days are often spent entirely indoors, with little to no physical activity whatsoever. But last week I had the chance to get a good, fun workout in at NHTI’s 14th annual Wheelchair Basketball Benefit. The wheelchair basketball game, which features a team of NHTI staff and a team of students, is a fundraiser for the NHTI Student...
Join the ‘WE Are Concord’ conversation
“WE Are Concord” is a collaborative effort aimed at getting our community talking together and shaping solutions to promote collaboration and healthy problem solving by building trust, strengthening relationships and increasing understanding in the community. We invite everyone to join us at a series of community conversations starting Saturday, Feb. 13, from 9 to 11 a.m. for breakfast and conversation at IBEW Local 490, 48 Airport...
Get a dose of Love, Lust & Desire with McGowan’s V-Day show
The eighth annual Love, Lust & Desire show is currently on display at McGowan Fine Art, featuring the work of more than 50 artists. Each piece is priced $300 or less and sized at 8½ by 11 inches or smaller, so all the work is sized to fit in any space in your house. The exhibit runs through Saturday.
City Briefly
Last week, City Manager Tom Aspell was so excited about Valentine’s Day, he spent many late nights making chocolates in the shape of Concord landmarks, filling out Concord-themed Valentine’s Day cards and writing personal notes to each citizen. But never fear, he also had time to pen his weekly city memo, too. Writing checks New property on the books The Concord Housing + Redevelopment Authority (CH+R) has added a new purchase to its...
This Week in Concord History
Feb. 9, 1988: Fresh from a first-place finish in Iowa, U.S. Sen. Bob Dole takes a hard anti-Communist line in a Concord campaign appearance. He warns against “glasnost fever,” saying: “Whatever glasnost is, it is not democracy. Whatever else Gorbachev may be, he is still a hard-as-nails Communist.” Feb. 9. 2001: Concord High sophomore Rachel Umberger wins the 300-meter and 1,000-meter runs at the state Indoor Track and Field...
Bulletin Board
Stamp collectors to meet Feb. 16 in Bow The Merrimack County Stamp Collectors will hold its monthly meeting at the Bow Mills United Methodist Church, 505 South St., Bow, on Feb. 16 at 1 p.m. All who are interested in stamp collecting are welcome to attend. Meet other collectors and learn more about their hobby and varied interests in Philatelic resources and issues. For more information, call Dan Day at 228-1154. Dan Day Quilters...
Everything you need to know about the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center
To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Challenger disaster, we decided to do an issue all about the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center, the museum that bears the name of Concord High School teacher Christa McAuliffe, who tragically perished in the explosion. We figured we’d go down there and see what was going on and what they had to offer. But it occurred to us that maybe some of you don’t know about the Discovery Center at all....
Look at what we found walking around the Discovery Center
We’re all about learning new things and taking a trip to the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center last week sure did help us expand our knowledge. The place is filled with all kinds of cool stuff involving space, the study of the universe and things we just found quirky. And of course we took pictures to document our travels so we could share it with all of you.
Food Snob: The CountDown Cafe is serving up food that’s out of this world
If you haven’t stopped into the McAuliffe-Shepard Discover Center since the latter stages of 2014, you’ve missed out on a lot of cool things related to space stuff. And you also probably didn’t know the little cafe on the left as you walk in the door has gone through quite a transition. Back in September 2014, the former operator of the cafe ended its contract after opening a new restaurant in Manchester. So for about the next 10...
Want to connect with people all over the world? Try using a ham radio
Kilo (K) Alpha (A) One (1) Sierra (S) Kilo (K) Yankee (Y) Those words strung together probably don’t mean a whole lot to you, but in the world of ham radio, that’s the call sign of The Sky is Not the Limit Amateur Radio Club at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center. It’s their way to connect with the rest of the world – and the way other amateur radio enthusiasts can identify who they’re speaking with. They use the phonetic alphabet...
Well, there’s wheelchair basketball, films and plenty of talks
Tuesday NHTI’s Wings of Knowledge series continues with UNH Professor Harvard Sitkoff, who will be presenting “The Martin Luther King Few Remember or Know.” Sitkoff kinda knows what he’s talking about since he did after all write a biography titled, King: Pilgrimage to the Mountaintop. The presentation will be held in the Sweeney Hall Auditorium (S-122) at 6 p.m., and is free and open to the public. Refreshments will follow his...
Discovery Center keeps kids entertained for light years on end
The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center is no stranger to school field trips – it sees about 10,000 school kids every year – and Chichester Central School just took one there last week. Those kids really love space-type stuff!
There’s lots to learn at Super Stellar Fridays
Have you ever wondered what the sky looked like hundreds of years ago over Concord? What about how the stars aligned just last week high above the Arctic Circle? Well, if you make your way to the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center this Friday night, you might just find out. Tonight’s Sky is a planetarium show that’s part of a little program called Super Stellar Fridays, which is not only held this week, but the first Friday of every...
The Harlem Wizards blew the doors off Bishop Brady High School
The Harlem Wizards took their high-flying basketball road show to Bishop Brady High School last week as a fundraiser for Tedy’s Team, a Boston Marathon team started by former Patriot Tedy Bruschi to raise awareness about strokes. The house was packed, and a great time was had by all.
Take a look at who took home the N.H. Theatre Awards this year
The 14th annual New Hampshire Theatre Awards were held at the Capitol Center for the Arts on Jan. 23. Production companies, professional and community actors, as well as those who work behind the scenes, were recognized for all they had done over the previous year. Many local actors and theater groups were nominated for their worthy productions and as you will soon find out, a few even took home some hardware. Concord Community...
Nothing says winter in Concord quite like Black Ice Pond Hockey
The sixth annual 1883 Black Ice Pond Hockey Championship took over White Park last weekend, with more than 90 teams in seven divisions taking part in the three-day festivities that saw teams come from all over New Hampshire and beyond. Some play at a high level, while others simply play just to put the skates on again. So we had to stop by and check out the action and here’s a sampling of what we found.
City Briefly
Last week, City Manager Tom Aspell decided he wanted to become the first Concord City Manager in Space, so he spent many hours researching outer space at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discover Center in hopes the program would one day be created. Luckily, Aspell also had time to write his weekly city memo for the good people of Concord, which we decided to print a portion of. That sounds expensive Water main breaks An early morning water main...
Instagram Photo of the Week
Instagram user @a_bacher15 took this shot of a professional snow sculptor – yes, that’s a real thing – carving the 1883 Black Ice Pond Hockey Championship logo into a somewhat man-made snow bank at White Park last weekend. Nice work, snow sculptor. Now, how can we apply for your job?
This Week in Concord History
Feb. 2, 1942: Concord’s chief air raid warden, Gladstone Jordan, has signed up 304 wardens to watch the skies over the city. Jordan says 200 more are needed. Feb. 2, 1996: President Bill Clinton visits Concord’s Walker School and speaks to students at the Capitol Center. He praises Concord schools for innovative use of computers in the classroom. Feb. 2. 2001: WKXL, Concord’s local radio station, is about to make dramatic changes to...
Bulletin Board
Capital Area ARES to meet Monday at Red Cross The Capital Area Amateur Radio Emergency Service will hold its monthly meeting on Monday, Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. at the Concord American Red Cross, 2 Maitland St. This meeting is open to all interested hams or people who are interested in getting a ham radio license. For more info, visit ca-ares.org. Don Curtis ‘Calendar Girls’ up next for Community Players The Community Players of Concord will...
Book of the Week: ‘The Fold’
The Fold Peter Clines 2015, 384 pages Fiction Mike Erikson’s students would say that he’s a normal teacher. His friends know differently. Although Mike doesn’t like to use it, his gift for synthesizing information and his photographic memory have made him the go-to guy for solving mysteries, and his best friend has just presented him with a new one. In the California desert, a team of scientists has invented teleportation (possibly)...
There’s a whole lot that goes into setting up the Black Ice tourney
The 1883 Black Ice Pond Hockey Championship has become a signature event in Concord every year. When late January rolls around, a chill fills the air and excitement fills the hearts and minds of the city. Everybody knows that a weekend of classic outdoor hockey – and general good times – is about to get under way. But the tournament is a big undertaking – eight rinks have to be set up on solid ice, tents need to be put up, boards and...
We tasted 603 Brewery’s Black Ice American Ale for you
You have to admit, we get to try some pretty cool food at the Insider. In addition to the occasional baked goods that get dropped off for us (thanks again), we’ve eaten at a lot of restaurants in the area as the world famous Food Snob and been given plenty of tasty samples at events like the Taste of Concord and the annual Mac and Cheese Bake Off. And with the 1883 Black Ice Pond Hockey Championship set to begin this Friday, we wanted...
It’s a cold day at the office for the city’s pond-spraying crew
Most people have zero interest in being awake at 5 a.m. And even fewer want to be at work well before the sun pops up, especially these days when a child who can only count to 10 can read the thermostat. Now try having the jobs of Patrick Lanman, Justin Wheeler and the rest of the Concord Parks and Recreation grounds division. Cause most days, they’re in the shop by 5 a.m. and out on one of the city’s frozen skating surfaces by 6....
It was a chilly and fun weekend at White Park and Beaver Meadow
There was all kinds of winter fun to be had around Concord this past weekend. White Park hosted the Winter Carnival on Saturday, and Beaver Meadow Golf Course held the Blast Into Winter Family Fun Day on Sunday. The Winter Carnival saw dozens brave the super-cold temps and take to the ice and sled slopes. The Blast Into Winter event wasn’t quite as popular, despite undoubtedly nicer weather. Perhaps the looming Patriots game had...
Check out the print edition!
So we have a special Black Ice edition of the Insider this week, but a lot of the “special” content isn’t exactly formatted to go online, unfortunately. But don’t worry – our print edition is all over the city, and it’s very free. Grab a copy from one of those cool red boxes around town (but not Redbox) and check it out. There’s lots of useful stuff in there, like schedules, times and other...
Breakfast, basketball and programming
Wednesday If you’re an early bird who likes to eat breakfast – and you are or want to be a captain at the Rock ‘N Race – you’ll want to check out the Merrimack County Savings Bank Rock ‘N Race Captains’ Breakfast. It’s a chance for you to enjoy a delicious breakfast, learn how to organize a team and maybe even take home a special token of appreciation. And it will support Concord Hospital Payson Center for Cancer Care, which is always...
NHTI wheelchair game set for Feb. 3
The legacy of Zech DeVits lives on, as NHTI hosts its 13th Annual Wheelchair Basketball Benefit on Wednesday, Feb. 3 at 4 p.m. in the Goldie Crocker Wellness Center. This year’s competition will feature a team composed of NHTI students coordinated by Athletic Director Paul Hogan. The opposing team is made up of NHTI faculty, administrators and staff, backed by players from event sponsors Granite State Independent Living (GSIL) and the...
Get set for some good old winter fun
By now, you’ve probably noticed that winter’s in full swing. The things that gave it away for us were the frigid temperatures, slippery walking surfaces and snow covering the ground, which there will likely be more of before spring makes its much-anticipated appearance. And you have two choices: either stay inside and only leave your house when absolutely necessary – like for food, beer and work, in that order – or embrace the frozen...
