WENDELL — The Wendell Free Library will host a book launch party on Saturday, Nov. 5, for author Sylvia Wetherby, who has published the children’s book “Polly Gone.”
The event, set to start at 1 p.m., will consist of a book reading and signing. There will be live music and snacks. The book chronicles Percival Porcupine, who helps Tabitha Turtle find her missing friend, Polly. Wetherby created the Percival Porcupine character while in graduate school.
Wetherby is a retired early intervention specialist who has been reading to children for more than 50 years. She conducts weekly playgroups at the Wendell Free Library.
Haley’s Antiques and Publishing in Athol released “Polly Gone” in early October. The book is available at the New Salem General Store, Trail Head Outfitters and General Store, Haley’s Antiques and Publishing, from online vendors and at sylviawetherbybooks.com.
For more information, contact Wetherby at rosebriarfarm68@gmail.com or 978-544-6146.
Another reading is planned for the Athol Public Library at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 12.
ORANGE — Quabbin Food Connector — a nonprofit founded in 2020 to help fill voids and spark connections among local food producers, sellers and consumers — has received a $28,849 grant to expand its “Protein Bundles for Healthy Eating” program over the next six months.
The money will provide animal- and plant-based protein foods from area farmers to low- and moderate-income households in the Orange and Athol area. The program is based at Quabbin Harvest food co-op in Orange and is part of its Community Shares Program. Funding is from the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts, which supports projects addressing food security issues in the wake of the pandemic.
The Protein Bundles Program launched in the spring of 2022. Over the past several months, 31 households with more than 100 individuals have been receiving distributions of protein-centered foods, along with additional items and recipes for meals ranging from soups and salads to bowls and wraps.
“The Quabbin Food Connector board of directors is excited to receive a second grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Massachusetts to continue to help bridge the gaps for fair food for low- to moderate-income households in the North Quabbin while continuing to work with local farmers,” Quabbin Food Connector Board Chair Pat Larson said in a statement. “This grant will not only provide more protein bundles for households through its work with Quabbin Harvest but will allow Quabbin Food Connector to begin a series of cooking demonstrations.”