Exhibition of Leslie Watkins’s Prints

The National Iron Bank in Norfolk will be presenting an exhibition of Leslie Watkins’s nature prints from Oct. 30 through Dec. 30. The illustrations are from Watkins’s gardening column “Through the Garden Gate,” published in Norfolk Now. The prints are hand painted and signed by the artist, and orders may be placed at the show.

Coffee House Presents Veterans’ Stories

The next Coffee House features an evening of heartfelt stories from four our local veterans—Sarah Bruso, Tom McGowan, James O’Brien and Michael Sconyers. Homemade desserts and fresh coffee will be served. The Coffee House is Friday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m., at the Church of Christ Congregational. A $15 donation at the door benefits the church. For more information, call 860-542-5721.

Organizations Needed for Alternative Gift Market

The Church of Christ will be holding their Alternative Gift Market this year on Dec. 3 and 10. This market is a wonderful way to raise money for your organization. Items from the Heifer catalog, Burkina Faso Scholarship Fund for Girls and angel tree gift tags will also be available.  If you have items that you would like to sell on your organization’s behalf, please contact Tina Olsen at olsen.tina@hotmail.com.

WINter Weekend Planning Meeting

All Norfolk organizations and groups are invited to come to a meeting on Saturday, Nov. 4, at 10 a.m., upstairs in Town Hall, to help plan for a WINter version of Weekend in Norfolk, to be held Feb. 24 and 25. Bring your ideas and prepare to brainstorm to make this a festive two-day weekend regardless of the weather. Questions? Want to help? Call Sue Frisch, 860-542-6076, or Dawn Whalen, 860-541-0463.

Road Race to Benefit NW Regional 7

On Saturday, Nov. 4 (no rain date), Northwestern Regional High School is holding a 5K run and noncompetitive walk race. Registration forms are available at nwr7.com; fee is $20 in advance, $22 on race day. Prizes will be awarded for the top finishers. Location is Barkhamsted Elementary School, 65 Ripley Hill Road. Registration opens at 8 a.m. on the day, and the race will start at 9:30. Proceeds go toward the cost of the 2018 high school graduation ceremony at the Warner Theater in Torrington.

Norfolk Library Classic Film Series

Explore Hollywood’s extensive predigital canon of fantastic films, forgotten classics and silent movies as the Norfolk Library’s classic film series continues on Thursday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m., with It Happened One Night, a 1934 romantic comedy starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert. Come at 6:30 for refreshments. Please call the library at 860-542-5075 to register for this free program.

Veterans Day Open House at Historical Museum

Did you have a relative that fought in World War I? A grandmother who drove an ambulance or knitted socks for soldiers? Please bring your family stories to share at an open house at the Norfolk Historical Museum on Saturday, Nov. 11, from 2 to 4 p.m. The exhibition “Norfolk in the Great War” will be on display, and the program will begin at 3.

Francis Baudry Presents a World War I POW’s Diary

On Sunday, Nov. 12, at 2 p.m. at the Norfolk Library, Dr. Francis Baudry will read from a translation of a diary his father kept during his three years in captivity in German camps during World War I. Dr. Baudry, a Norfolk and New York resident, is a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. He is a member of the Soldier’s Project, an organization dedicated to giving free mental health care to veterans and their families.

Norfolk Land Trust Work Day

The Land Trust’s Fall Trail Work Day will be Saturday, Nov. 18. Participants should meet at 1 p.m. near the fountain at Station Place. Please wear shoes and clothes for the weather and bring work gloves. Work sessions end around 3 p.m. If you plan to attend, please help us get a head count by contacting Bill Couch at billcouch1@mac.com or 860-480-4981.

 Simon Winchester at Norfolk Library

On Saturday, Nov. 18, at 4 p.m. noted author Simon Winchester will speak at the library in advance of the film adaptation of his book The Professor and the Madman. The book recounts the story of Professor James Murray, who began work on the Oxford English Dictionary in 1857, and Dr. William Chester Minor, who submitted more than 10,000 entries to the project while an inmate at an asylum for the criminally insane. To reserve a seat for this free program, please call the library at 860-542-5075.

Post-Thanksgiving Walk           

Walk off that Thanksgiving meal with a hike hosted by the Norfolk Land Trust on Friday, Nov. 24, at 1 p.m. on Pine Mountain. Meet outside the trailhead off Grantville Road for the hike. Please wear waterproof shoes because portions of the trail can be wet. The hike should last about two hours.

Annual Carol Sing at the Library

Please join us as we welcome in the holiday season with the annual carol sing at the library on Saturday, Nov. 25, at 5 p.m. Refreshments will be served, followed by the lighting of the Christmas tree on the green and a visit by Santa Claus on the fire engine.