NORTHAMPTON — Volunteers in Northampton Schools will hold its 17th annual family fun event: “March Forth with Your Dog, Not Your Typical Dog Show,” from 12 to 3 p.m., Saturday, March 1. The show will be held in the gym at Northampton High School, 380 Elm St., Northampton. (The snow date is March 2).
All dogs attending or competing at the show are required to be leashed. All are welcome to the event, which is free for people with or without their dog. Dog owners may join Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra in the Parade of Dogs at the start of the show. Adults and children can register their dogs to compete in categories like “Best Fetcher,” “Best Dressed,” or “Most Obedient” with preregistration available through Feb. 26. The two-legged audience attends free with donations welcome. Vendors and a country store raffle are included in the show.
VINS (Volunteers in Northampton Schools) recruits, trains and places volunteers in all district schools, and this is the primary fund-raiser for the organization.
AMHERST — The Amherst Historical Society has announced its lineup of speakers for the Spring History Bites. The popular lunchtime lecture series, now in its 12th year, explores a variety of topics presented by local scholars and history enthusiasts. The one-hour lectures will take place at 12:30 p.m. in Room 101 at the Bangs Community Center, 70 Boltwood Walk.
The spring series begins on Feb. 28 with a talk by Emma John entitled “Interning at the Historical Society.” John, a PhD candidate in history at the University of California Santa Barbara, will talk about her time as an intern at the AHS which led to a career in public history, and share some of her favorite objects from the collection.
On March 14, Bryan Harvey, a North Amherst resident who has been instrumental in the formation of the Mill River History Trail, will present “The Mills of Factory Hollow,” exploring the mills and factories that once lined the Mill River and Cushman Brook.
The Great Flood of 1936 will be the subject of Author Josh Shanley’s talk on March 28. The release of a massive ice jam in the northern Connecticut River resulted in flood and ice floes destroyed bridges and flooding communities from Bellows Falls down to Hartford and Middletown, leaving more than 200,000 people homeless.
Susannah Muspratt, who has led walking tours of downtown Amherst stained glass installations, will speak on her process and research on April 11.
The Spring Series will wrap up on April 25 with a talk by Elizabeth Cardaropoli, an AHS fellow in the graduate program at Salem State University. She will discuss her research and planning for the upcoming Summer 2025 exhibit “Amherst Then and Now: 125 Years of the Amherst Historical Society.”
The lectures are free and open to the public. Bag lunches welcome.
Doors open at 6 p.m. and close at 6:25 p.m. No late entry is permitted. The event starts promptly at 6:30 p.m. The event is capped at 20 participants. To buy tickets, visit pathofthemasters.info/product/journey-into-your-past-a-guided-regression-meditation-with-path-of-the-masters/.