Blood drives scheduled for Masonic Hall
The Red Cross and York Lodge Masonic Hall announced plans for a blood drive noon to 5 p.m. Monday, March 30 at the Masonic Hall in West Kennebunk.
According to an email from the York Lodge, the Red Cross is experiencing a “serious decline in blood donations due to collection sites canceling schedule blood drives” due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Red Cross requested that the Kennebunk Masonic Hall be used as an emergency collection site on Mondays, through the end of April. The blood drives will not be canceled. Donations will be by appointment only. People with a fever or symptoms will not be admitted.
“Donating is a safe process and people should not hesitate to give or receive blood or platelets. We have implemented additional precautions to ensure safety of our donors and staff,” said Andrew Palmeri, Sr., of the York Lodge. “This blood shortage could impact patients who need surgery, victims of car accidents and other emergencies, or patients fighting cancer. One of the most important things you can do to ensure we don’t have another health care crisis on top of coronavirus is to give now.”
Additional blood drives at the Masonic Hall are scheduled for:
- Monday, April 6, noon to 5 p.m.
- Monday, April 13, noon to 5 p.m.
- Monday, April 20, noon to 5 p.m.
- Monday, April 27, noon to 5 p.m.
According to the press release, “the Red Cross will properly clean its collection stations and the facility after each use. Proper donor distancing will be used during each drive.”
To register, visit www.redcrossblood.org and search “Kennebunk Masons.” The Masonic Hall is located at 159 Alfred Road in West Kennebunk. For more information, call 207-391-2029.
York County Shelter Programs’ food pantry offers drive-through
In compliance with Gov. Janet Mills’ ban on gatherings of 10 people or more, York County Shelter Programs’ food pantry will offer a drive-through service for patrons. The service began on March 20.
The ban on gatherings, issued March 18, is part of the state’s efforts to prevent transmission of COVID-19/coronavirus.
The food pantry will be open its regular hours: Fridays, noon to 3 p.m. and Tuesdays, noon to 3 p.m.
Food pantry volunteers will direct cars through the rear entrance of the parking lot to a tent, where there will be pre-packaged boxes of food. A volunteer will place the box in each car.
The pantry is at 5 Swetts Bridge Road, just off Route 4, in Alfred.
Local resident named to Simmons University dean’s list
The following local residents were named to the 2019 fall semester dean’s list at Simmons University in Boston.
* Olivia Sweet of Kennebunk (04043)
Museum offers digital programs during shutdown
A museum without walls is a challenge – but one that the Brick Store Museum is taking on wholeheartedly. Since 1936, the museum in downtown Kennebunk has celebrated local history, art and culture through exhibitions, education and programs. With the onset of COVID-19, museum staff and volunteers have stepped-up efforts to put programs such as tours, collections spotlights, lectures and more online.
The Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk has launched an offering of digital programs during the COVID-19 shutdown. Jeffrey Stevensen courtesy photo
The museum’s new website, launched this week, features a Digital Learning Center and more resources for anyone staying at home – ages 1 to 101.
“What is a museum without a physical space? ” said Cynthia Walker, museum director, in a written statement. “For years, this has been a challenge question posed in museum graduate programs. Now, we get to see the full strength of our digital outreach in practice. We want to make sure everyone in our community knows about the free resources on www.brickstoremuseum.org. Our mutual history and culture keeps us all sharing together in this time of physical separation.”
Programs featured online include the museum’s monthly podcast “The Brick,” which recently discussed Kennebunk’s history with pandemics; Youtube videos featuring readings from 19th century letters and diaries; online exhibitions; and printable activities for children and students.
The museum also launched a “Community Diary” series, which seeks to collect community members’ experiences during the COVID-19 outbreak via a form through which site visitors can answer questions posed by museum staff. The form can be found on the museum’s website and Facebook page, and is a family activity.
The museum is planning to schedule live lectures via video conference, and record “Museum of Home” video calls with visitors and members.
For more information about programs and schedules, visit www.brickstoremuseum.org.
The Center extends closing through April 26
Based on the recent intensifying of the Coronavirus crisis, The Center announced it would extend the temporary closure and the temporary hold its FISH medical ride program through April 26.
According to a Center press release, issued March 23, “The health and safety of our members, volunteers, and staff continues to be our first priority. We are continuing to follow the recommendations from the CDC, state and local health authorities regarding the precautions to take to minimize the spread of the Coronavirus.”
The Center staff will work both remotely based on the recommendations of state and local health agencies. Should the situation change, the staff will only work remotely for the remainder of the closure.
The board of trustees and Center team will meet periodically to determine when the Center can reopen.
According to the statement, The Center is “looking for some creative ways to try to bring some virtual programming in the next few weeks …”
For more information, visit www.seniorcenterkennebunk.org and or call 207-967-8514.
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