'Journey to Bethlehem'
“Journey to Bethlehem” is an experience that takes the whole family back to the days of Jesus's birth in the little town of Bethlehem. It is a chance to walk around replicated Bethlehem marketplace and hear the excitement residents have as the word spreads of the savior being born. Families can visit the shepherd field where the angels announced his birth, they can visit the inn where Mary and Joseph were turned away,...
High school art contest
The Merrimack County Conservation District is asking all high school students in the county to participate in an art contest. The district produces a local food guide every year to give citizens information about local farms and the types of food they produce. The winning piece of artwork from this contest will be next year's guide cover. This guide is distributed to 33,000 people annually and will provide an excellent place for...
The needle is truly mightier for Susana Patterson
Name: Susana PattersonOwner, Susana's Sewing Studio, which is moving to 26 Warren St.How long have you been sewing?At least 30 years.When did you open the business in Concord?We opened in the winter of 2009. We do tailoring for everybody's clothes, and most of the clothes I wear, I make.What's the funkiest thing you've ever stitched?A straightjacket for a kid in a band somewhere. It was a crazy request, but I make...
Food and toy drive
The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center is once again conducting a food and toy drive to help New Hampshire families in need this holiday season. Now through Dec. 16, the Discovery Center will be collecting new, unwrapped toys to benefit the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots campaign. And, through Dec. 31, non-perishable food items will be collected to support the New Hampshire Food Bank.As part of the food drive, visitors who...
The Holistic Veterinary Center has animals on pins and needles
When Dr. Katherine Evans took the leap and opened the Holistic Veterinary Center on West Street in 1998, she hung onto her full-time job at an emergency clinic in Manchester, just in case.It didn't take long, though, for the new venture to turn into a full-time gig – and a full-time passion.”It's being able to really help some patients that have really chronic illness, to improve their quality of life,” Evans...
Winterberries brighten the bleak midwinter
Winterberries at this season of the year lift up our spirits as we hunger for color in the drab days of winter. A species of holly that loses its leaves in the fall, winterberries are hardy plants with bright red berries clinging to bare branches long into the winter. Seeing this bush in the center of a windswept field of frozen snow or in a table centerpiece gives a festive jolt to our winter weary eyes.In the winter landscape under...
It turns out we only sort of beat the Grammarnator
Fred Graf is absolutely correct that something got transposed in the last paragraph of my original column on number and amount, fewer and less. Then I wrote that a simple way to tell which word to use is to look for an s or es. “If it's there (lunches, bills, vandals), you want amount and fewer. If it's not (food, cash, damage), you want number and less.”In correcting my error last week, the Insiders got it wrong,...
A well-tooled grease monkey
My girlfriend and I were recently hanging out with her (male) best friend from the time they were kids, who happens to be super-jacked and way more “manly” than I am. She mentioned that her car was having some issues and she wanted to get it checked, and I made sure to offer my services before Casanova chimed in.The problem is, I don't know jack about cars, and she keeps asking when I'm going to get around to...
Pick of the week
Think you're a great speller? Think again! Challenge yourself while watching the fun and hilarity of Main Street Concord's 2011 Spelling Bee!Watch it on public access channel 22 on Dec. 10 at 8 p.m.(Editor's note: When the word “appellation” comes up, you may want to change the channel. It's hard to watch.)
This Week in Concord History
Dec. 6, 1963: Dr. Thomas Ritzman, a Concord obstetrician and a backer of Barry Goldwater's presidential campaign, tries to undo the damage he did the day before with a statement to an Associated Press reporter.Ritzman told the reporter that President Lyndon Johnson had a heart attack on the day of the Kennedy assassination. He based the claim on a photograph of LBJ gripping his left arm at Parkland Hospital in Dallas. Now Ritzman...
Local Fenway faithful have their own hallowed ground
Fenway Park, the hallowed home of the Boston Red Sox, will celebrate its 100th anniversary this year. About 70 miles north, Noonan Field will celebrate its fourth.So what's the connection?Noonan Field is a miniature replica of Fenway Park's fabled outfield wall, Green Monster and all, erected by the Noonan Family on Branch Turnpike in 2008. It's an accurate enough representation that the Revelator spent 20 minutes...
City briefly
Each week, City Manager Tom Aspell dusts off his old vinyl collection, grabs his favorite Black Sabbath album, plays the whole thing through backward and writes down the subliminal messages embedded within. Then, he slaps the words “City Memo” on it and calls it a day!Be there or McKee squarePublic input soughtThe Engineering Services Division will hold a public information meeting Dec. 8 at 6 p.m. to present potential...
The Insider visits the YMCA
Seems like every city has a YMCA. I know I grew up playing floor hockey, learning to swim and taking part in afterschool activities at my local Y. I recently visited the Concord Y and received a tour from membership director Brian Brown. When I opened the door to the pool and took that first breath of humid, chlorinated air, I was immediately hit with a wave of nostalgia. The Y was a part of my childhood; there must be thousands of...
Y not stick around?
We got our hands on the list of the 49 Concordians that have been Y members the longest. These wily workout veterans could probably treadmill you or me under the table. 1. Paul Makris – 12/20/1957 2. David Mann – 9/27/1963 3. Henry Lupien III – 10/16/1968 4. Barbara Filleul – 6/29/1972 5. Catherine Hok – 9/11/1978 6. Arthur Ellison – 10/1/1978 7. Bonnie Larochelle – 10/1/1978 8. Steven Rhodes – 10/1/1978 9. Francis Meyer – 10/3/1978...
