Altrusa Elves travel to the North Pole!

On Sunday afternoon, Dec. 1st, a group from Carroll County Altrusa and friends traveled to the North Pole (in Intervale) to volunteer for the Believe in Books Literacy Foundation as Elves, welcoming families who traveled on the Polar Express.  Our group, about 20 strong, quickly changed into our Elven clothes and magical glitter, picked up our lanterns and followed the path down to meet the train as it steamed into the North Pole Station.  We welcomed children and their families as they climbed off the train, chatting about our jobs as Elves in Santa's workshop, our ages (most elves are over 100-years-old!)  and sharing our excitement about meeting Santa.  We enjoyed the performance and the reading of The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg.  I think we all had as much fun as the wide-eyed children did and loved sharing in the magic of the afternoon.

Marcia, Rachel and Cindy waiting for directions from the Head Elf.

Pat M., Kathy M. and Cathy B. ready to help Santa.

Pam and Nancy grinning for the camera.

District One Fall Workshop hosted by Altrusa of Carroll County

     On Saturday, November 2, our club hosted the Altrusa District One regional Fall Workshop at the Madison Elementary School in Madison, NH. The theme of the day-long workshop was "Harvesting Ideas to Share" and covered fundraising and name recognition strategies.  Sue Hawes presented new mentoring ideas with efforts to encourage leadership.  The special guest speaker was Marion Posner, a native Briton who makes her home in Tamworth, NH.  She is a teacher and presently the Director of the Chocorua Public Library.  A colorful storyteller, Marion entertained the 70 attendees and addressed the many faces of literacy.
     Many thanks to the members who decorated, baked, prepared served a wonderful lunch and snacks to the 70 women attending.

Marion Posner, Special Guest Speaker

      Our special guest speaker at the Fall Workshop last Saturday was Marion Posner, a native Briton who makes her home in Tamworth, NH.  She is a teacher and presently the Director of the Chocorua Public Library.  Marion is a colorful storyteller who uses a range of accents to capture her audience and is greatly enjoyed by children as well as adults.  Marion's stories are both humorous and profound, weaving truth with fantasy about life in the British Isles.  Marion and her husband Richard started a small independent school in Tamworth, The Learning Circle, design "walking through history" trips in Europe.  More recently they have started a children's theater in Tamworth.  We enjoyed Marion's stories illustrating the many kinds of literacy.

Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk raised $2,730

For the second consecutive year Altrusa of Carroll County has encouraged 100% participation from its club members in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk.  And we did it again!!  Every member of our club contributed in some way to this great event held in North Conway on October 20th.  We had a total of 20 walkers on our team, an increase over previous years.  We also had club members who were on the organizing committee, assisted with registration and greeted walkers as they arrived, were guides along the route and assisted with both set-up and clean-up.  As a group we raised a total of $2,730.00 to support those struggling with this disease and to promote research to fight breast cancer.

Day at Wells Beach

On July 18th a large group of club members joined Lorraine for the day at her summer get-away in Wells Beach, ME.  We all trouped to the beach with coolers, umbrellas, towels and sunscreen on a hot and sunny day - perfect weather for the beach. 

Merchant Clipper Tea House lunch

On June 28th, 8 of our members enjoyed a delicious lunch and trip to the Tea House in Limerick, ME.  The food was great and we had fun looking at the charming Victorian decorations in each of the different rooms of the home.

We welcome 3 new members and 2 Board members to our Club!

On Monday, June 10th, we had fun at our year-end cookout at Cathy's home in Tamworth.  We enjoyed delicious pizza, salads and conversation.  It was also a good opportunity to initiate our three new members, Cathy Sholtanis, Melinda Fallen and Betsy Lloyd and welcome them into our busy group. Also, Barb Kennett and Terry Packard were welcomed as new Board members.  Plans were also made for summer social events which we are all looking forward to.

Barb and Terry welcomed by Cindy as Board members.



Melinda and Cathy were welcomed as new members.

Serving the Volunteers at the Gibson Center

On Tuesday, May 7th, 5 members of Altrusa of Carroll County helped the Gibson Center for Senior Services by being the wait staff for the annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon.  There are many individuals who help the elderly in our county by bringing Meals on Wheels, driving to doctor's appointments and helping in many other ways.  The Gibson Center provides a special lunch and ceremony each year to thank these wonderful volunteers, and we provide service by serving the volunteers and helping with the luncheon.

Kathy, Cathy, Barbara, Lorraine and Dorothy, servers extraordinaire!

Great Spring Conference in Bangor, ME

Eight members of Carroll County Altrusa made the trip to Bangor, ME for the District One Spring Conference held April 26-28.  There were the usual workshops with help for Presidents and Treasurers, workshops on Internet tips and a new workshop titled "Conversations".  Many of us found our "Conversations" very interesting as sisters from all over (New England, Quebec, Bermuda) shared ideas, raised common problems, and discussed solutions.  I heard about great fund raising idea which I can't wait to share with everyone.  Our club received some nice accolades in the form of Awards - 2nd place for our newsletter, 1st place for the most new members attending the Conference, and 2nd place for our increase in membership with 7 new members.  We will share more at our next meeting!

Spring Conference - one week away!

This year the Altrusa District One Spring Conference will be held in Bangor, Maine on April 26 - 28.  The theme this year is "Altrusa Conversations - Exploring the Possibilities".  Our club has a group of about 7 or 8 members going and looking forward to sharing ideas with other Altrusans, lots of camaraderie, delicious food and enjoyable workshops.  The keynote speakers are from Camp Safe Haven and will help us to understand how we help those children who are HIV positive with our fundraising efforts.

Tri-Club Birthday Party

What a Birthday Party!  Here are a couple of pictures from Remick Farm.  We had door prizes at the end of the evening, a basket of fresh mushrooms from NH Mushroom Co., a family pass and a pint of maple syrup from the Remick Farm and a family pass to our 2014  Spaghetti Dinner.  There were 50 members from the Carroll County, Meredith and Laconia Clubs in attendance.  Twenty-five of us went to the mushroom farm for a tour followed by a get-acquainted game that Pam organized.  Pat K. welcomed everyone and we sang Happy Birthday to two members and ourselves whose birthday was the same day.

 What a delicious buffet dinner!

Strolling around the grounds of the Remick Farm and Museum in Tamworth, NH.

A feast enjoyed by all 50 members attending.

A Visit with Lisa in Charlotte...

A visit with Lisa by Kathy....

Lisa moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in December and she has settled into an exquisitely decorated little 2-bedroom apartment in an upscale area on the south side of Charlotte.  She started a new job on March 1st for Ethan Allen Furniture working with customers in furnishing and decorating their homes.  She is very excited about her new job, and says she is happy in her new home.  I had an opportunity to visit Lisa (and her little dog Chase) and had lunch with her in February and want to share some photos I took at her apartment.  

Come to a Birthday Party!

Join our Tri-Club Birthday Party

"Come to the Farm"

Monday, April 8, 2013 at Remick Country Doctor Museum and Farm, Tamworth, NH

5-8 PM,  Cost $25 per person

5 - 6 pm - Farm and Building Tours

6 - 6:45 - Social Hour, byob

6:45 - 8 Country Dinner and Dessert

Dinner will be a Spring Saute with turkey, asparagus and leeks in a creamy mushroom sauce over rice, featuring organic mushrooms from the NHMC.  Seasonal greens with maple balsamic vinaigrette, fresh baked bread with roasted garlic butter, and ending with mixed berries with lemon curd and fresh cream for dessert.

Limited seating(60). Make reservations at cathybaybutt@gmail.com by March 23rd

3rd Annual Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser Planned

As a follow-up to two previous highly successful outings, Carroll County Altrusa is planning a third late winter Spaghetti Dinner on Saturday, March 23, 2013, 5-7 PM at Runnell's Hall in Chocorua.  The storm date is to be Sunday, March 24 from 5-7 PM.  The dinner will include spaghetti, tomato sauce, meatballs, salad, bread and dessert.  Cost is $7 (adults), $5 (children), $3 (children under 5)

All funds raised will be used to support Altrusa Literacy Projects and the popular "Mail for Me" program which provides educational reading materials to children in needy homes.  President Pat Kehoe notes that "this affordable, late winter evening out has been one of our best attended events.  It supports a good cause and is the perfect antidote to March "cabin fever"."  Come join us!