Following a two-month holiday hiatus, the Andover Institute opens its second year of programs, workshops, and presentations with two February events aimed in different ways at introducing Andover-area residents of all ages to new opportunities and experiences. The events, both open to the public at no charge, include:
A workshop on “Discovering Andover’s Hiking Trails,” to be held at 7 PM on Wednesday, February 10, in the library of the Andover Elementary/Middle School. The evening will begin with short illustrated presentations on local hiking trails by Proctor Academy woodlands manager David Pilla; Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway volunteer Lee Carvalho; Friends of the Northern Rail Trail-Merrimack County co-president Alex Bernhard; and Andover Planning Board member Paul Currier.
Attendees will then share information about additional local hiking opportunities. The ultimate goal of the workshop is to combine the information collected in the session into a single document or Web site for the use of all area hikers.
An evening with Andover’s own master storyteller Lauretta Phillips, to be held at 7 PM on Wednesday, February 17, also in the AE/MS library. A professional storyteller since 1987 and a founding member of several regional storytelling organizations, Lauretta writes most of her own material, but her repertoire also includes “folk tales, fairy tales, legends, urban tales, tall tales, small tales, cat tales, rat tales, and just plain tales.” In addition to being entertained by Lauretta, attendees will also learn about the art and history of storytelling and about other opportunities to see local storytellers perform.
Formed as a working group of the Andover Community Association in early 2015, the Andover Institute was so-named to recall a common title for many private educational institutions in 19th-century America – the short-lived Highland Lake Institute in East Andover, for one example. Andover residents who have suggestions for future programs and events are urged to contact Association at AndoverCommunity03216@nullgmail.com.
The Andover Institute: Year One
The hiking workshop is the latest in a series of “Space Explorations” offered by the Andover Institute and designed to introduce local residents to venues more-or-less “off the beaten path” for many. Last year’s destinations included the Proctor Academy campus; a now-shuttered summer camp for girls; the City of Franklin; a local heron rookery; the moon and other objects in the night sky (via a high-powered telescope); and the Ice House Museum of automobilia in New London.
The storytelling event falls into another category of Institute presentations: programs that entertain and educate. In 2015 these included a six-session series on permaculture; an illustrated “travel night” featuring photos taken by recent local visitors to Bhutan, Nepal, Cuba, and Alaska; a 20-session tai chi course; and workshops on genealogy, apple-tree pruning, “edible landscaping,” geocaching, hard cider-making, home weatherization, and a “PhotoExpo.”
Local volunteers who contributed time, talent, and other resources to the 2015 programs included Scott Allenby, Andover Energy Group, Deb Brower, Lee Carvalho, Larry and Susan Chase, Charlotte and Luan Clark, Steve Colardeau, Pam Cooper, Tina Cotton, Charlie Darling, Bob Eldredge, Jay Fitzgerald, Glenn Haley, David Kidder, Rick “Mooseman” Libbey, Bob Norander, Harvey Pine, Proctor Academy, Jimmy Sferes, Nancy Tripp, Eric Viandier, Jennifer White, Todd Workman, Marcia Wyman, and Peter Zak.