The TRC returns with a new show that will carry you into the stars. See us September 12, 13, and 14 in our third annual production.
The Traveling Rhubarb Circus has returned for a third time with another combination of theater and circus. When a grandfather's story takes new life, his two grandchildren will get to explore the realm of the stars. They will meet Cassiopeia, the queen of the stars, and the people of her noble court, such as Orion, Perseus, and the Pleiades. When Corvus the crow steals Cassiopeia's crown, it is up to the children to save the day!
Get ready to race in the Montague Soapbox Derby on Sunday, September 22nd, 2013!
Visit our website www.MontagueSoapboxDerby.com to sign up for one of the 100 available racing slots. We've kept the advance racer fees at the same rate to make it affordable. Sign up right now! As an incentive, the first 25 racers will get some free derby shwag.
We are also looking for race day volunteers; please let us know if you can help. We've got t-shirts and other collectibles for volunteers, and will provide refreshments.
Good News For Local Businesses
We are working with many local public access TV stations so we can air the race live on more area cable access stations this year in addition to Montague, including Greenfield, Shelburne, and very likely Bernardston / Northfield and the Deerfield area as well. We can offer some great publicity to the fine local businesses who have sponsored the Derby as well as some new ones. Space is limited, so if you know of a business that would like to be a sponsor, please let us know. All sponsors will not only have a hay-bale banner at the race, but will be mentioned on the air by the announcer, as well as showing up in print on the screen. Don't miss it.
We will also be listing sponsors on our Facebook page as they come aboard. Please check it out, like it, and pass it on.
For those of you who participated last year, note that we will have 2 reliable back-up generators to avoid any electrical interruptions. We apologize for last year's long interruption and will conduct intensive public relations to boost attendance.
If you have questions, please visit the website. All will be answered there.
Make and take Craft Fair at Montague Grange, Sunday
Grange Hall, Main Street at the Common, Montague Center
Make gifts, come for lunch, peruse the indoor mini-flea market -- and help raise funds to save the Grange building
Sunday, December 4 from 10 AM - 4 PM
For adults, teens and children
Admission $1
Gifts cost $3 - $10 each to make
Gift making stations will include most or all of the following: rolled beeswax candles and holders -- wreaths -- beaded snowflakes and earrings -- stamped greeting cards -- decoupaged objects -- colored blown glass ornaments -- fleece scarves -- gnomes and fairies -- glass magnets -- shrinky dink ornaments -- gilded acorns -- twig animals -- and more crafts!
Baked potatoes, chili, soup, baked goods and hot drinks for sale
Mini Flea Market - table space for $20
Contact Cindy Tarail cindy@thealchemystudio.com or call 367-0042 to volunteer, secure a flea market table space, or for more info.
Montague Community Cable, Inc., the 501(c)(3) non-profit that owns and staffs MCTV channel 17 in Montague, MA, is seeking two professional positions.
Outreach and Communications Coordinator: $15/hr @ 10hrs - 20hrs per week. Major duties include contacting local agencies and residents and creating organizational and production partnerships; creating underwriting and sponsorship solicitations; writing the newsletter and all public communications; writing the quarterly and annual report narratives. Applicant should have a flair for writing, a passion and understanding of the place public access has in Montague, and a gregarious nature, at ease in front of an audience. Video skills would be a definite plus but are not required.
Technical Coordinator: $20/hr @ 10hrs - 15hrs per week. Major duties include maintaining the digital broadcast rack; researching and implementing emerging technologies; providing community training in editing, cameras, field production, etc.; maintaining and inventory all equipment. Applicant must have solid video technical skills and work well with the public, with good communication skills and a positive attitude in an office-like environment.
MCTV is also seeking interns to assist in video editing, titling and field production. Contact us for more information.
Applicants should mail resumes to MCTV, 34 Second Street, Turners Falls, MA, 01376, or send by email to: Jobs [at] MontagueTV [dot] org. No phone calls, please.
Seeking crafty folks and cooks for easy fundraiser for the Montague Grange!
People of all ages come to the Grange for the day one weekend before mid-December, make gifts at stations led by our town's talented craftspeople, eat a delicious lunch, drinks and snacks made by the neighbors, and walk out with a bagful of completed gifts for their families and friends.
Offer activities like beaded earrings, felted baby booties, hand-blown glass ornaments, and all manner of twiggy, herbal, fabric, up-cycled, and colorful handmade gifts, far less expensive than any participants could buy at the store, for the slew of birthdays and holidays coming up! You can use inexpensive materials; we need you to donate or secure donated materials. We can help with this.
Email cindy@thealchemystudio.com to pledge your craft skills, food donations and teaching time, or for more info. Sign up by the end of this week, October 30th. If we do not have enough crafts and volunteers by the end of the week we will start signing people up for 2012!
The 2011 Montague Soapbox Derby will be held on Saturday afternoon, September 17th, in Unity Park, Turners Falls. Race Applications are available on the website, as are the Race Rules. Deadline for entry is Wednesday, August 31st.
Due to the overwhelming enthusiasm for the race last year, and the potential to have more racers than can be handled, the committee is capping the number of entrants to 100. If you plan to enter you are urged to get your application in early. Racers who raced last year may apply for the same racer number, and may also enter the same cart if they wish. Racer fee: $25.
Montague Race Entry Deadline Extended to August 30th
Turners Falls - People wishing to enter the Montague Soapbox Races who haven't yet sent in their entry form now have an extra two weeks to get them in. The new entry deadline is Monday, August 30th, 8:00 PM.
The Montague Soapbox Races, the first of a new annual event, is a fundraising event for Montague Community TV, and will be held on Sunday, September 19th, from high noon till the last cart goes down the hill. Winners will be handed real metal trophy cups in a winners ceremony at the end, hosted by Russ Brown, State Senator Stan Rosenburg, and Montague Selctboard chair Pat Allen.
Entry forms are still coming in to the TV station every day. The race will stop at a maximum of 150 racers. The race entry fee is $25. Spectators attend for free.
Race entrants who need technical assistance putting their cart together will be invited to a cart building party on Sunday, August 29th, in Turners Falls. Some of the Race Inspectors and Race Officials will be on hand as well to give professional advice.
Racers should bring whatever they have already completed, as well as all parts and supplies they intend to use, including bolts, screws, nails, wood, concept drawings and their own tools (very important). the build party host has a large supply of bicycle parts and wheels to provide for free. All racers under 18 years old must be accompanied by an adult.
Race rules and applications can be downloaded from the official race website and printed. If you don't have a printer you can pick up a pre-printed application at the Montague Town Hall clerk's office, any of the three Montague public libraries, or the TV station itself, at 34 Second Street in Turners Falls.
The race is still looking for vendors, either to sell food or wares, or distribute their information or fundraise. Please contact Nancy Paglia (413) 548-9015.
The race is also looking for sponsors and hay bale advertisers. Please contact Doug Fontaine (413) 522-8382.
WesternMA Connect, Inc. July 2010 Broadband Update
MBI Application Successful!
On July 2, 2010, Governor Deval Patrick and members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation announced that the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) had been awarded $45.4 million of federal ARRA funds. These funds will be used to construct over 1,100 miles of fiber-optic middle-mile infrastructure in western and north central Massachusetts. The award was formally announced at a ceremony held on July 8 at Greenfield Community College. Event attendees included U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, U.S. Senator John Kerry, Governor Patrick, and Congressmen Richard Neal and John Olver. Both Senator Kerry and Congressman Olver recognized Connect for its decade-long support for the creation of an advanced telecommunications landscape throughout the region. All speakers made reference to the many letters received in support of the application. Your compelling stories definitely impacted the application outcome. Thank you to everyone who submitted letters and congratulations to the MBI!
What Does This Mean For You?
In 2008, Governor Patrick and the Massachusetts Legislature established the MBI with the mission to extend affordable high-speed Internet access to ALL residential, commercial and public places across the Commonwealth. This new federal award will be combined with the $26 million of state funding already in place to make this a reality. Internet service providers have stated that once the MBI's network is complete, it will become more cost effective for them to bring high-speed Internet access to those who currently have none.
What's Next?
In the coming months, the MBI will continue to be very busy designing and engineering the network, negotiating access to state-owned assets, forming partnerships to support network deployment, and encouraging the telecommunications industry to be prepared to provide services and invest in the region. Meanwhile, the MBI has contracted with Connect to work collaboratively with regional planning agencies, local municipalities, and other organizations to ensure that this network is constructed as quickly, cost-effectively and efficiently as possible. Under the terms of the federal grant, two-thirds of the project must be built by 2012 and the network completed in 2013. This is a huge undertaking. Although you may not visually see progress right away, be assured that the MBI and many others are working diligently to meet the federal timeline and requirements set.
How Can You Help?
If you have not already done so, please visit http://www.massbroadband.org/mapping/survey.html and complete the online survey. Encourage your friends and neighbors to do the same. This information will assist the MBI in its effort to more accurately map where broadband does and does not exist. If you are an elected official or local department head, please respond to outreach conducted by the MBI and Connect. This network cannot succeed without your participation!
MONTAGUE TO HOST SOAPBOX RACES, SEPTEMBER 19th, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONTAGUE TO HOST SOAPBOX RACES, SEPTEMBER 19th, 2010
First Local Soapbox Race in Decades
Montague will host the first Soapbox Race in Franklin County in decades on Sunday, September 19th, 2010. The gravity-fed race will take place at Unity Park in Turners Falls on the 1st Street hill. Racers must be at least 8-years old on race day. All carts must be made from scratch, not from kits or pre-fabricated, and must include no propulsion of any kind.
The entry fee is $25 per racer and only 150 applications will be accepted. There will be three age brackets: kids, teens and adults. Yes, adults may race! The application deadline is August 16th. Racers may obtain sponsorship to help defray the cost of building their vehicle.
Racers in each age bracket will win real-metal trophy cups based on distance or creativity. The event will be free to watch, and it is hoped families will come out to picnic with the many local food vendors.
Race Director Mik Muller remarked “Unity Park is a perfect location for a downhill race: the 1st Street hill is quite steep and the bend at the bottom requires some skill, both in vehicle construction and driving; the wide lawns in the park are perfect for spectators to gather and cheer; there is plenty of room for vendors to sell their food and wares; and of course there is the Connecticut River spanned by the Turners Falls Gill Bridge as a beautiful backdrop, an icon for Turners Falls.”
This is the first derby since the Old Home Days derbies of the mid-1960’s in Montague Center, and before that the 3rd Street derbies of the late-1940’s in Turners Falls.
Vendors interested in having a table at the race should call Nancy Paglia at (413) 548-9015. Those wishing to advertise, sponsor or underwrite the race please call Doug Fontaine at (413) 522-8382. Anyone wishing to volunteer on race day (free staff t-shirt!), please call Mik Muller at (413) 320-5336.
Race rules, all required forms, and more information can be found on the official race website.
In case you didn't already know, the MontagueMA.net website turns ten years old in October. Woohoo!
We are planning a party in Peskiumskut Park on Saturday, October 17th, probably from about noon to 5:00, and are looking for the following:
= Local food vendors to set up booths
= Local musicians and bands to play
= Any other activity-based events
= EVERYONE who ever logged in or joined MontagueMA.net !!
A full itinerary will be announced once it's been put together. If you want to help steer the party, please get in touch.
SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, October 17, 2009. Peskiumskut Park, Turners Falls. FREE!
- Tue, Aug 6, 2013, 1:26 P
Get ready to race in the Montague Soapbox Derby on Sunday, September 22nd, 2013!