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FROM ELM HILL FARM
The Blanchard Means Foundation ended 2005 with a flurry of activities at Elm Hill. On Oct. 29, we held our first annual Celebrate Fall Festival. Our volunteers in residence, Janice St. Hilaire, who was working on development and fundraising for the Foundation, rallied the board members to pull off this very fun day. Our executive director, Vince Rubino of Ohio, manned the barbecue, cooking hamburgers and hot dogs for many hungry attendees. Phil Peirce, a local board member, wore the hat (literally!) of ticket taker. Gail Dolan’s Girl Scout troop displayed their Halloween best and members of the Quaboag Valley Baptist Church and St. Mary’s Catholic Church youth groups ran the children’s games and activities, which included sack races, bobbing for apples and pumpkin painting. Our neighbors Andrew and Mary assisted with the horse-drawn hayrides. Visits to our miniature barnyard zoo animals were a very popular activity! Demonstrations were put on by the Brookfield Garden Club, Wild Bird Crossing’s Bill Cormier and watercolor artist and teacher Rebecca Marona. Our silent auction included a beautiful painting that Rebecca completed at the demonstration, an elegant dinner at Blanchard House and a baby grand piano! Local musical favorites Dick Chase and the Hill Boys entertained from the front porch, thanks to a grant from the Brookfield Cultural Council. Nov. 12 was the first of several monthly watercolor workshops offered by Rebecca Marona at Blanchard House. Participants completed a beautiful painting of hibiscus flowers. By the time this article is in print, we will have held the second workshop, completing a landscape of the Maine seacoast! Rebecca is a wonderful and patient teacher with all the tools to make each student feel successful. To hear more about the workshops and upcoming dates, e-mail Rebecca at rebeccasstudio@verizon.net. She has a website as well at www.rebeccamarona.com.
Nov. 26 brought another of Janice’s wonderful ideas to fruition. Board member Kathleen Wild agreed to chair, and good friend Linda Peirce assisted to present the first Music Thanksgiving at Blanchard House. You can read more about this elegant evening of fabulous food and music in a separate article. The terrific Christmas caroling in the front parlor around the grand piano had featured musicians David and Eva Brown talking about starting an Elm Hill Chorus! We are ready for your direction, Eva! On Dec. 3, we celebrated the fourth Christmas at Elm Hill. It was a beautiful day, and Santa arrived for visits with the children. Many people bought photos of their kids with St. Nick, but a few were left behind! If you want to retrieve yours – call us! Linda Peirce, who has to be one of the best cooks I know, and Kathleen Wild, who is no slouch in the kitchen either, put on a lovely lunch of soup and sandwiches and hot dogs for the kids. It was the first time lunch was offered, and it was a big hit! Now we get ready to resume our weekly activities after a winter break. On Thursday and Friday afternoons, we offer recreational activities for adults with developmental disabilities from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. If you or someone you know would like to participate in these fun activities, call us at 508-867-4407 for more information. What’s next? Saturday, May 6 will be our third annual Daffodil Days. With a walk through the beautiful daffodil fields and a chance to pick your own from 10 or more different varieties at a very reasonable price, this is a great treat for Mom on the weekend before Mother’s Day. There will be a community Yard Sale with spaces available for tag sale or craft items, food, music and Mother’s Day card and gift making activities for the kids. Visits to the barnyard zoo, of course! Mark the date, and come have some fun at Elm Hill Farm! For information about the Blanchard Means Foundation at Elm Hill Farm, call (508) 867-4407.
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