AMHERST — Poetry and visual art that eighth graders at the Amherst Regional Middle School have annually displayed in the atrium of the Jones Library to recognize Human Rights Day will be shown online this year.
As Human Rights Day is being marked by town officials with the adoption of a proclamation and the reading of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on the Town Common this week — a small, in-person and socially distanced candlelight vigil was set for Thursday — other activities timed to the day will be virtual.
That will be the case for the artwork by the students, with many digital pieces composed as “blackout poetry.” These are completed by taking the texts of the U.N. declaration and the U.S. Constitution and then, by blacking out words, leaving behind other words and phrases that become the poetry.
The project is coordinated by teacher Irene LaRoche, and many of the works will be shown on the Jones Library website. Martha Spiegelman, the Amnesty International local chapter coordinator, also spoke to the students as they completed their works.
Dec. 10 was the day in 1948 when the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Amherst proclamation notes that in 2009 Amherst Town Meeting adopted a human rights bylaw and since then has also passed a sanctuary community bylaw and established Race Amity Day.
The Bridge Amherst Family Resource Center at 101 University Drive, where families can get several free resources, has a new director.
Jennifer Kimball recently began her work at the site, a program of the Northampton-based Clinical & Support Options. Parenting support groups, social activities, child development playgroups and homework help are provided.
“The Bridge offers community-based, strength-based opportunities for any family to engage with other families experiencing some of the same challenges,” Kimball said in a statement,
Kimball, who takes over for Sarah Presson in the position, previously served, since 2001, at Head Start, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ early childhood development program.
CSO President & CEO Karin Jeffers said the Bridge is vital. “Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re seeing many families facing financial and housing challenges,” Jeffers said.
Several small grants are available to Amherst residents through the Oliver Smith Will.
Carol Gray, Amherst’s elected elector for the will, wrote in an email that even with the financial challenges many families and individuals are facing during the pandemic, the grants, available for brides, widows, nursing students and apprentices for tradespeople, are often forgotten.
Women at least 18, born in Amherst, can receive a $100 grant within 90 days of their first marriage, while widows with children under 18 can receive $300 for their first child and $100 for all other children annually.
Nursing students enrolled in a program can receive $600 if in school before their 21st birthday, and tradespeople can get $600 if applying by age 19, with the payment made at age 22.
Applications are available through the town clerk’s office. Grants are administered through Smith Charities in Northampton, established following the death of Oliver Smith in 1845. Amherst is one of nine communities, which also include Hadley and Deerfield, that were included in the will.
Town Council this week honored Marilyn V. Patton, who founded the dance program at the University of Massachusetts in 1965 and led the Five College Dance Program.
The citation came in advance of what is being called the “MVP 85th Birthday Gala Celebration” for Patton, a Zoom special event Saturday night.
The council’s recognition states that it joins Marilyn in saying, “Remember to DANCE, DANCE, DANCE your whole life through!”