WESTFIELD — The Westfield Memorial Library event calendar for November is full of programs for the artistic, historically and health oriented. The library is located at 550 East Broad Street.
Visual Arts for Seniors will begin a new session of classes on Tuesday, November 19, and Wednesday, November 20, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. In this workshop, local artist and instructor Margaret Smith will teach students how to paint a floral still life.
Workshops are designed for seniors (ages 65 and up) with little or no artistic experience. Each workshop will be self-contained and requires separate registration. Students may take the workshop multiple times, depending on demand. Registrations open exactly two weeks prior to the workshop.
This year-long series of art instruction workshops is made possible by funds from the Friends of the Westfield Memorial Library, and the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs, a partner of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. The program is presented in partnership by the Westfield Art Association, Lifelong Westfield, the Westfield Regional Health Department and the Westfield Memorial Library.
The History of the Morris Canal will be presented on Monday, November 18, at 7 p.m., by Tim Roth of the Canal Society of New Jersey. Mr. Roth will explore the history of the Morris Canal from its inception in the 1820s to its abandonment 100 years later. Audience members will learn about the technology used to overcome 1,674 feet in elevation change. They also will discover how boats navigated along the Morris Canal, and what life was like for the people who lived and worked along it.
Mr. Roth will further cover why the canal was abandoned, and what is happening today to develop and expand the Morris Canal Greenway. More information about the Canal Society of New Jersey is available at https:// www.canalsocietynj.org/ . On Thursday, November 21, between 6:30 and 8 p.m., crafters can bring their craft projects to the library and work on them with other crafters at Crafterdark. Crafterdark is a group of fellow crafters who work together for fun, encouragement and inspiration.
“Whether you knit, crochet, scrapbook, embroider, draw, etc., as long as your project is portable, please join us,” said librarian and craft expert Marge Barkan, who hosts the evening. No registration is required.
The Gut-Brain Connection also will be presented on November 21, from 7 to 8 p.m. Functional medicine experts Cheryl Schmid,AFMC-SLP, and Elana Mundorff, LCSW,AFMC, will talk about gut health and the connection to mental health. They will provide a 30-minute presentation, followed by a lively question-and-answer segment. In describing their program, they wrote, “This ain’t your typical, ‘eat right and de-stress.’ This is the gut-brain connection through the functional medicine lens.”
Audience members will learn about Irritable Bowel Syndrome, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth, food sensitivities, heartburn and how these conditions may connect with anxiety, depression, brain fog and fatigue.
To register for these programs, sign up for a library card, or to learn more about the library’s resources, visit the library’s website at https:// wmlnj.org/. Library hours are Monday through Thursday, 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. The library will close at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, November 27, and be closed on Thursday, November 28, for Thanksgiving.
