Clapp Memorial Library

Author Talk: “What the Children Told Us” with Tim Spofford
2022-09-07 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Wednesday, September 7 @ 7pm
Author Tim Spofford joins us to talk about his new book, What the Children Told Us: The Untold Story of the Famous “Doll Test” and the Black Psychologists Who Changed the World. Spofford tells the story of the towering intellectual and emotional partnership between two Black scholars who highlighted the psychological effects of racial segregation. The Clarks’ story is one of courage, love, and an unfailing belief that Black children deserved better than what society was prepared to give them, and their unrelenting activism played a critical role in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case. The Clarks’ decades of impassioned advocacy, their inspiring marriage, and their enduring work shines a light on the power of passion in an unjust world.

Author Talk: “On Her Feet” with Lu Wanda Cheney
2022-09-10 10:30 - 11:30 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Saturday, September 10 @10:30am (Activity Room)
Local author Lu Wanda Cheney joins us to talk about her new book, On Her Feet, which she wrote with her daughter, Ashley Cheney. When she was 14, Ashley jumped off a roof, thinking it would be fun, and suffered a permanent spinal cord injury. Her doctors tell her she will never walk again; her mother tells her to get out of bed and on her feet. On Her Feet is the true story of her mother’s contagious positive attitude and Ashley’s courageous battle to walk against nearly impossible odds.

Author Talk: “Images of America: Belchertown State School” with Kate Anderson
2022-09-21 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Wednesday, September 21 @ 7pm
This program is an overview of the history of the Belchertown State School and its place in special education and the treatment of individuals with disabilities. Based on the Images of America: Belchertown State School book, Kate Anderson will present a collection of historical images and artifacts illustrating the evolution of the state school.
Kate Anderson is the author of a number of volumes on the history of state schools and institutions including Images of America: Belchertown State School. She has been a special educator for over twenty years and is the Director of Education at RFK Academy in Springfield. Kate is also the president of the Belchertown State School Friends Association, an organization dedicated to preserving the history of the state school and institutions for the disabled.

Garden Design 101 with Mary Jo Maffei (Virtual)
2022-09-28 18:30 - 19:30 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Garden Design 101 with Mary Jo Maffei
Wednesday, September 28th at 6:30pm
Virtual program
Combining concepts from architecture, interior design, and garden design, Maffei will provide gardening basics about texture and shape, rhythm and repeat planting, timing and massing, color, maintenance, and more!
Email clapp@cwmars.org for the Zoom link!

Nine You Should Know: Nine People from Belchertown’s History with Cliff McCarthy
2022-11-03 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Thursday, November 3, 7 PM
Do you know which Belchertown native has had a full-length Hollywood movie devoted to his life and has been portrayed by actors John Carradine and James Coburn in other films? Do you know who the first American Protestant missionary to China was? or Belchertown’s connection to the first Governor of Kansas? What Belchertown woman drew the plans for remodeling the Stone House into a museum? To learn the answers and more interesting things about former Belchertown residents, come to hear “Nine You Should Know,” presented by Cliff McCarthy, Stone House archivist and local historian.
This talk will present nine historical figures connected to Belchertown that will astonish and surprise. Some you will admire, some you will despise, but all have interesting stories to tell. You will travel to China and the gold fields of California; you will visit utopian communities in Utah and New York states. You will learn about our town’s connection to “bleeding Kansas” and the U.S. Colored Troops in the Civil War. You will land back home to learn of extraordinary people who lived right here in Belchertown.

Welcome to the Graveyard! with Brenda Sullivan of the Gravestone Girls
2022-11-09 19:00 - 20:30 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Wednesday, November 9, 7 PM
“Welcome to the Graveyard!” is a 90 minute illustrated ‘virtual tour’ chronicling cemetery art, history and symbolism. From colonial New England burial grounds of the 1600s & 1700s, through the nation-wide rural cemetery movement of the 19th century and into 21st century locations, the program examines why we have cemeteries and gravestones, why they look like they do and how styles and art have evolved over almost 400 years. The presentation is robust with photographs of original gravestones and burial grounds found in Belchertown along-side images from cemeteries visited by Gravestone Girls over many years.

Book Talk: Lost Towns of the Swift River Valley
2023-01-21 14:30 - 15:30 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Book talk with Elena Palladino on Lost Towns of the Swift River Valley on Saturday January 21 at 2:30

Mysteries of Belchertown's History Research Project
2023-03-13 16:30 - 18:30, 2023-04-10 16:30 - 18:30, 2023-05-08 16:30 - 18:30, 2023-06-05 16:30 - 18:30 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
PROGRAM FULL – Registration Required
March 13 – Clapp Memorial Library
April 10 – Stone House
May 8 – Stone House
June 5 – Clapp Memorial Library
There is so much to learn about our town’s past and so few people doing it! We’re offering a fun, four-session class exploring what resources are available for local history research and how to access them. The goal is to stimulate interest in discovering pieces of Belchertown’s history by indulging the curiosity of each participant. Cliff McCarthy, archivist at the Stone House Museum and author/editor of several books on Belchertown’s history, will lead the group.
Participants should come with possible research questions that interest them – anything from “How did my street get its name?” to “Who were the Indigenous people in our area?” to “What was Belchertown’s role in the run-up to the American Revolution?” or “Did Belchertown residents support Shays’ Rebellion?” While we may use some genealogy resources and databases, this is not intended to be a family history research class.
Space is limited and registration is required. Co-sponsored by the Clapp Memorial Library and the Stone House Museum, sessions 1 and 4 will take place at the library and sessions 2 and 3 will be at the Stone House Museum.

Safe Storage and Disposal of Medication
2023-03-15 16:30 - 17:30 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Wednesday, March 15 @4:30pm
Learn how to safely store and dispose of medications with Kirsten Krieger RN, BSN, Quabbin Health District Public Health Nurse and special guest Kristen Hoag, Program Director/Project Coordinator for Belchertown Public Schools DFC/BUOY. Free medication lockboxes will be available for attendees. Co-sponsored by the Clapp Memorial Library and the Quabbin Health District.

Feeling Beautiful As We Grow in Wisdom
2023-03-23 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Thursday, March 23 @ 7pm
Registration Required – click here to sign up
As we evolve in our role as mothers, let’s work with the tools that help us to feel beautiful – skin care, foot care, nutritional and hormonal support, mindset care. Participants will leave with the supplies to make a personal beauty blend. This program is offered by Nora Zinan, RN, Holistic Nurse and Certified Aromatherapist. Nora is dedicated to introducing people to the benefits of essential oils and natural support for wellness. Space is limited and registration is required.

Bigfoot in Massachusetts with Ronny LeBlanc
2023-04-04 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Tuesday, April 4, 7pm
The Clapp Memorial Library will host Ronny LeBlanc and his program, Bigfoot in Massachusetts, on Tuesday, April 4 th at 7 PM. Growing up in Leominster, Massachusetts, Ronny LeBlanc learned of a section of the city near his childhood home that was called Monsterland. Ronny will discuss his personal experiences in Massachusetts and what led him to be a part of the Expedition Bigfoot television show on Discovery+. He will talk about the strangeness and sightings in and around Monsterland as well as
highlighting some interesting cases involving UFOs across the country. Ronny is the author of two books: Monsterland: Encounters with UFOs, Bigfoot and Orange Orbs and the follow up book, Monsterland: Shamans, Sasquatch, Synchronicity and High Strangeness.

Introduction to Homesteading
2023-05-02 18:00 - 19:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
REGISTRATION REQUIRED – Click here to sign up for one, two, or all three sessions
All are welcome to our series of Homesteading Workshops, by local teen Zackery W. Zawalski. You can come to one, two, or all three, and learn about ways to grow and raise your own food and make use of the land you live on.
Tuesday, May 2: Introduction to Homesteading
Tuesday, May 16: Livestock Basics
Tuesday, May 30: Gardening Basics
Zackery Zawalski has raised livestock since 2010, including ducks, chickens, goats, doves, dogs and a pig. He has helped his parents with their local 4-H club and has been a member of 4-H since 2013. Zackery takes pleasure in helping with his family garden since he could walk and still enjoys it to this day.
All workshops start at 6:00 PM in the Clapp Memorial Library’s Activity Room and include a presentation and activity.

Livestock Basics
2023-05-16 18:00 - 19:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States

Gardening Basics
2023-05-30 18:00 - 19:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States

Out of the Shadows: Hollywood’s History with the LGBTQ+ Community with Frank Mandosa
2023-06-14 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
The Clapp Memorial Library invites all film buffs for Out of the Shadows: Hollywood’s History with the LGBTQ+ Community by film historian Frank Mandosa. On Wednesday, June 14 at 7PM, Mandosa will take a look at LGBTQ+ representation in mainstream film, both onscreen and off. Over the past century, Hollywood has had a troubled history with both onscreen depictions of the LGBTQ+ community and their real-life interactions. This program explores not only the ongoing evolution of this dynamic before, during, and after the cameras roll, but also the portrayals of the LGBTQ+ community in films of all genres, both past and present.

Backyard Orchards
2023-06-22 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
On Thursday, June 22 at 7 PM, Kate Donovan, owner of Blackstone Valley Veggie Gardens, will present Backyard Orchards at the Clapp Memorial Library. If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to grow fruit trees on your own property, this program is for you. Donovan helps clients grow food through lectures, garden planning, soil testing, tilling, and building raised beds. She’s the founder of a 69,000-member Facebook gardening group called “Vegetable, Fruit, Herbs and Flower Gardening.” Kate maintains seven extra-long raised beds, considers her home her horticulture laboratory, and tries new varieties and techniques every year.

Red Sox Nation
2023-07-13 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Take a fun and enlightening journey through Boston Red Sox history with the author of The Ultimate Boston Red Sox Time Machine Book. This presentation features exciting and nostalgic videos of the greatest and most fascinating players, teams, events and moments in franchise history. The program also includes trivia questions for patrons to ponder and covers Sox history from the Royal Rooters, who launched Red Sox Nation, to Babe Ruth to Ted Williams to The Impossible Dream Season of 1967 to Lynn, Rice and ’75 to the heartbreak of 1986 all the way to the four World Series championships and beyond. It will conclude with a question-and-answer period. Author Martin Gitlin will have autographed and personalized copies of his book available online following the program.

Raising Our Voices with Davis Bates
2023-07-18 14:00 - 15:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Raising Our Voices Together: A Song and Story Performance and Workshop by Davis Bates!
Teens are invited to the library on Tuesday, July 18th at 2:00PM for a lively event by award-winning singer and storyteller, Davis Bates! The program will include sea shanties, songs from the sixties, union songs, civil rights songs, & stories about Davis’s journey as a storyteller and involvement in various social movements over the last 60 years. There will also be exercises designed to get folks to share their own stories. Register at the library or by emailing clapplibrarytab@gmail.com.
This performance is funded, in part, by a grant from the Belchertown Cultural Council, a local agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
To sign up for Summer Reading, visit clapplibrary.beanstack.com or use the Beanstack app.

Forensic Genealogy
2023-08-01 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Delve into the world of Forensic Genealogy, also known as investigative genetic genealogy, and advances in solving cold cases of missing and murdered persons!
Dr. Redgrave will present a general overview of forensic genetic genealogy, examples of cases that he has worked on with his team, and the particular difficulties inherent in cases involving LGBTQ+ victims. Dr. Redgrave will also be available to answer any technical or ethical questions presented by attendees.
Anthony Redgrave (he/him) of Redgrave Research Forensic Services is a founding board member of the Trans Doe Task Force, an organization that seeks to resolve cases of missing, murdered, and unidentified members of the queer community, especially Transgender individuals. His dissertation focused on determining barriers to communication between members of key stakeholder groups affected by the use of forensic genetic genealogy in order to develop standards of practice that support its use to resolve cold cases of fatal violence towards marginalized victims. He is also the founder and instructor of FG4LE (Forensic Genealogy for Law Enforcement), an online education program designed to teach forensic genetic genealogy to law enforcement professionals, and Redgrave Research Forensic Services, a forensic genetic genealogy research team for hire by law enforcement clients and private clients with difficult genetic genealogy questions that others haven’t been able to answer. He has assisted in the resolution of dozens of cold cases since 2018 and presents frequently at universities and academic conferences on the topics of forensic genetic genealogy and the reduction of postmortem violence towards Transgender individuals.
For more information on Dr. Redgrave, his work, and cases he has worked on, visit https://www.facebook.com/redgraveresearch

Saving Nature with Doug Tallamy: A Film Viewing & Discussion
2023-09-05 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Join us at the Clapp Memorial Library on Tuesday, September 5th at 7pm for a showing of “Saving Nature with Doug Tallamy” followed by a discussion led by Heidi Dollard. In his presentation, Dr. Tallamy breaks down the concept of “You don’t have to save biodiversity for a living but you CAN save it where you live” with specific strategies to improve your own immediate local ecology. After the presentation, Heidi Dollard will invite attendees to dive into the topics introduced in Dr. Tallamy’s presentation, and how to apply these ideas to our homes and town!
Heidi Dollard will return to the library on September 19 to present “Transform Your Yard to Support Pollinators: A 12 Step Program” and this film provides excellent background information for that talk

Transform Your Yard to Support Pollinators: A 12 Step Program
2023-09-19 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Many people now realize the importance of pollinators and other essential wildlife. They want to make their yard pollinator-friendly, but don’t know where to start. This talk will step you through the process of evaluation, planning, and implementation, with many options for large and small changes.
Heidi Dollard is Co-chair of the Massachusetts Pollinator Network’s Steering Committee. She works to educate gardeners and homeowners on how they can support pollinators and other beneficial wildlife while creating a beautiful and low maintenance landscape. She has a MS in Biology and is a Master Gardener. She has been an enthusiastic native plant gardener for many years.

Let’s Talk Emergency Preparedness
2023-09-27 18:00 - 19:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
September is Emergency Preparedness Month! Join Kirsten Krieger, Public Health Nurse for the Quabbin Health District, for a presentation and learn about preparing for an emergency.

Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors
2023-09-27 18:30 - 19:00 | Virtual, MA
Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors with Tory Stephens Climate Fiction Creative Manager for Grist
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27th 6:30—7:00 PM EST
Virtual Event: Email clapp@cwmars.org for Zoom link!
Join Tory Stephens of Grist Magazine, an independent non-profit media organization focused on the climate crisis, and learn how he created Imagine 2200: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors. Imagine is a storytelling initiative that calls for fiction writers to envision the next 180 years of equitable climate progress, imagining intersectional worlds of abundance, adaptation, reform, and hope. The initiative also seeks narratives that center solutions from the communities most impacted by the climate crisis, and stories that are rooted in cultural authenticity (a deep sense of place, customs, cuisine, and more) and rich subcultures that uplift traditions not often seen in mainstream literature. Over the course of three years the project has encouraged 3,000 plus writers from 91 countries to submit stories, and of which 700,000 people have read. Writers and readers alike will enjoy this climate justice romp.
About the Speaker: Tory Stephens creates opportunities that transform organizations and shift culture. He is a resource generator and community builder for social justice issues, people, and movements. He currently works at Grist Magazine as their climate fiction creative manager, and uses storytelling to champion climate justice, and imagine green, clean, and just futures. In another life he owned a kick-butt streetwear company, and he would have gotten away with eating the last cookie too, if it weren’t for his three meddling kids.

Program is part of Climate Prep Week, and is hosted by libraries through out Massachusetts and is coordinated with CREW and Blue Marble Librarians. This year, CREW’s theme recognizes the interconnectedness of climate change with other injustices such as health, race, food, ableism, and so many more. The impacts of extreme weather affect all of us, but it’s also important to recognize that the consequences are not experienced equally. CREW is planning on hosting 3-5 central events this year focussing on climate education and uplifting the work of organizations supporting environmental justice (EJ) communities.

A Pleasant Pairing: Tea & Fine Chocolate
2023-10-21 14:00 - 16:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
REGISTRATION REQUIRED – Click here to sign up.
Join the Clapp Memorial Library on Saturday, October 21 from 2 – 4p.m., when we welcome Kim Larkin of Klassic Kreations for a tea and chocolate workshop & tasting. This is an educational talk highlighting the history and health benefits of tea and dark chocolate (cacao) with insights from Kim’s commercial chocolatier background. This program includes samplings of tea, tea infused food, various chocolates, trivia, poetry, and an antique teapot/lace display. Kim Larkin of Klassic Kreations has been teaching students 5 – 75+ for over 20 years. She has a commercial chocolate business and she is a licensed chocolatier. She holds programs at libraries, schools, women’s groups, retirement communities, and fundraising events in Connecticut and Massachusetts. You can find out more information about Kim Larkin at klassickreations.weebly.com.
This library program is free and open to the public. Due to the popularity of programs, registration is required. This program has limited space.

Things That Go Bump in the Night: The History and Impact of the Horror Film
2023-10-26 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Come join film historian Frank Mandosa at the Clapp Memorial Library on Thursday, October 26 as he shows us the fascinating history of horror films on the big screen – just in time for Halloween! You will view all kinds of spooky and outrageous bits from great scary films through the ages in this fun event and learn more about them.
Even if you have never been a fan of horror movies, this funny, entertaining look at snippets of some brilliant films produced by American cinema shown on our big screen will send some thrills your way! Hopefully this program might entice you to then maybe watch a spine-chilling film all the way through! Mr. Mandosa is a very entertaining speaker and has tons of movie information to share.

Bigfoot, Jr
2023-11-06 17:30 - 18:30 | Town Hall Auditorium, 1 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
Join us in the Town Hall Auditorium on Monday, November 6 when the Clapp Memorial Library is hosting an evening of the strange and mysterious with Ronny LeBlanc from the Travel Channel / Discovery+ television series Expedition Bigfoot & Paranormal Caught on Camera and author of Monsterland: Encounters with UFOs, Bigfoot and Orange Orbs.
At 5:30pm, Ronny will host a program for kids ages 5 and up where he will talk about his experiences filming the Expedition Bigfoot series.
Then, at 7pm, Ronny will host a program for adults where he will talk about UFOs of New England, highlighting some historic and recent sightings. The truth may be closer to home than you think!

UFOs of New England
2023-11-06 19:00 - 20:00 | Clapp Memorial Library, 19 South Main Street, Belchertown, MA, 01007, United States
