Canadian Cultural Diversity

Travel through Canada with four critically acclaimed books that make manifest Canada’s cultural diversity.  The Vermont Humanities Reading & Discussion will be facilitated by Rachael Cohen.  Rachael has been a freelance editor specializing in environmental and regional studies, a teacher of writing, literature, and natural history, a caller of contra dances, and a farm hand. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English from Cornell University and a Master of Science in Environmental Education from the Audubon Expedition Institute/Lesley University. When she’s not teaching for the University of Michigan’s New England Literature Program, held each spring at a camp in New Hampshire, she’s a caretaker in southern Vermont.

• Emily Carr, Klee Wyck (1 February 2025 - first Saturday only this month)  Klee Wyck is Canadian artist Emily Carr’s memoir. Through short sketches, the artist tells of her experiences among First Nations people and cultures on British Columbia’s west coast. The book won the 1941 Governor General’s Award and occupies an important place in Canadian literature.

• Alistair MacLeod, Island (8 March 2025)  The sixteen exquisitely crafted stories in Island prove Alistair MacLeod to be a master. Quietly, precisely, he has created a body of work that is among the greatest to appear in English in the last fifty years.  A book-besotted patriarch releases his only son from the obligations of the sea. A father provokes his young son to violence when he reluctantly sells the family horse. A passionate girl who grows up on a nearly deserted island turns into an ever-wistful woman when her one true love is felled by a logging accident. A dying young man listens to his grandmother play the old Gaelic songs on her ancient violin as they both fend off the inevitable. The events that propel MacLeod’s stories convince us of the importance of tradition, the beauty of the landscape, and the necessity of memory.

Join us to practice, practice, practice our ASL with the guidance of experienced practitioners. No pressure but lots of fun in explorations in communication!

The Varnum wishes to support all members of our communities in their educational and community-needs, and we would love to hear from you! Please join us as we make space and time to figure out collaboratively how best to support our homeschooling folks.

We will gather to do a small project together and have the space for socialization. Come meet your homeschooling community members!

Please bring your needs, ideas and young ones to create a supportive community for our homeschooling families. The more, the better!

Join Legal Services Vermont staff attorney Bradley Showman to learn about advanced planning for seniors. We will cover what you need to know about wills, advanced directives, and powers of attorney. We’ll also discuss how you can get started with your own planning and how we can help.

Bradley Showman grew up in Toledo, Ohio and graduated from law school at University of California, Davis in 2014. He started his career as a civil legal aid attorney with Legal Services of Northern California shortly after bar study. In 2020, he moved to Vermont and continued to work as a civil legal aid attorney with Legal Services Vermont (LSV). At LSV, he is the Pro Bono Manager responsible for connecting attorneys to volunteer opportunities. His legal advocacy specializes in eviction defense, Social Security, and emergency housing benefits.

Come with a mug or without, we’ll fill you up a cup of hot coffee while we talk around the table with each other and build community. Have a particular interest you’d like to discuss with the group? Bring it! We talk birds, fitness and anything else that builds excitement and connection within our fabulous community. All ages welcome, all encouraged to attend!

Join us for a craft and a snack (maybe even a story) and time to decompress and reinvigorate your brain. Low pressure and low key, all ages are welcome to the craft table!

Interested in finding out more about your family's history? Want to know if your family's stories have some truth to them? Stuck on a particular ancestor & don't know where to look next? 

Stop by the Varnum Memorial Library on Tuesdays from 2-6 and Wednesdays from 3pm to 5pm to talk & do all things Genealogy with 2 local genealogists with over 50 years combined experience!

This is a drop-in style of meeting, so no need to call for reservations.

Join us to practice, practice, practice our ASL with the guidance of experienced practitioners. No pressure but lots of fun in explorations in communication!

Interested in finding out more about your family's history? Want to know if your family's stories have some truth to them? Stuck on a particular ancestor & don't know where to look next? 

Stop by the Varnum Memorial Library on Tuesdays from 2-6 and Wednesdays from 3pm to 5pm to talk & do all things Genealogy with 2 local genealogists with over 50 years combined experience!

This is a drop-in style of meeting, so no need to call for reservations.

Come with a mug or without, we’ll fill you up a cup of hot coffee while we talk around the table with each other and build community. Have a particular interest you’d like to discuss with the group? Bring it! We talk birds, fitness and anything else that builds excitement and connection within our fabulous community. All ages welcome, all encouraged to attend!

Interested in finding out more about your family's history? Want to know if your family's stories have some truth to them? Stuck on a particular ancestor & don't know where to look next? 

Stop by the Varnum Memorial Library on Wednesdays from 4pm to 5pm to talk & do all things Genealogy with 2 local genealogists with over 50 years combined experience!

This is a drop-in style of meeting, so no need to call for reservations.

Join us for a craft and a snack (maybe even a story) and time to decompress and reinvigorate your brain. Low pressure and low key, all ages are welcome to the craft table!

Come practice your written craft and be inspired by others in our community for this intimate, authentic gathering. Bring your ideas, whatever you’re working on at the moment, or come open and prepared to put your words down however you feel compelled to.

All ages welcome; self-directed but supported within a group context.

Bring yourself and your preferred medium.

The Varnum wishes to support all members of our communities in their educational and community-needs, and we would love to hear from you! Please join us as we make space and time to figure out collaboratively how best to support our homeschooling folks.

We will gather to do a small project together and have the space for socialization. Come meet your homeschooling community members!

Please bring your needs, ideas and young ones to create a supportive community for our homeschooling families. The more, the better!

When: Ja 30th

4-5PM

Join staff from LRSWMD for final of a three-part winter book discussion series.

The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and our Health – and a Vision for Change by: Annie Leonard

Overview: A classic exposé in company with An Inconvenient Truth and Silent Spring, The Story of Stuff expands on the celebrated documentary exploring the threat of overconsumption on the environment, economy, and our health. Leonard examines the “stuff” we use everyday, offering a galvanizing critique and steps for a changed planet.

Come with a mug or without, we’ll fill you up a cup of hot coffee while we talk around the table with each other and build community. Have a particular interest you’d like to discuss with the group? Bring it! We talk birds, fitness and anything else that builds excitement and connection within our fabulous community. All ages welcome, all encouraged to attend!

Interested in finding out more about your family's history? Want to know if your family's stories have some truth to them? Stuck on a particular ancestor & don't know where to look next? 

Stop by the Varnum Memorial Library on Wednesdays from 4pm to 5pm to talk & do all things Genealogy with 2 local genealogists with over 50 years combined experience!

This is a drop-in style of meeting, so no need to call for reservations.

Join us for a craft and a snack (maybe even a story) and time to decompress and reinvigorate your brain. Low pressure and low key, all ages are welcome to the craft table!

Come practice your written craft and be inspired by others in our community for this intimate, authentic gathering. Bring your ideas, whatever you’re working on at the moment, or come open and prepared to put your words down however you feel compelled to.

All ages welcome; self-directed but supported within a group context.

Bring yourself and your preferred medium.

Come with a mug or without, we’ll fill you up a cup of hot coffee while we talk around the table with each other and build community. Have a particular interest you’d like to discuss with the group? Bring it! We talk birds, fitness and anything else that builds excitement and connection within our fabulous community. All ages welcome, all encouraged to attend!

Interested in finding out more about your family's history? Want to know if your family's stories have some truth to them? Stuck on a particular ancestor & don't know where to look next? 

Stop by the Varnum Memorial Library on Wednesdays from 4pm to 5pm to talk & do all things Genealogy with 2 local genealogists with over 50 years combined experience!

This is a drop-in style of meeting, so no need to call for reservations.

Join us for a craft and a snack (maybe even a story) and time to decompress and reinvigorate your brain. Low pressure and low key, all ages are welcome to the craft table!

Come practice your written craft and be inspired by others in our community for this intimate, authentic gathering. Bring your ideas, whatever you’re working on at the moment, or come open and prepared to put your words down however you feel compelled to.

All ages welcome; self-directed but supported within a group context.

Bring yourself and your preferred medium.