Community Calendar

Join Great Works Regional Land Trust (GWRLT) for an enthralling evening exploring international short films focused on the environment. These stories inspire us to contextualize our own beloved conservation land.

More than an inspiring and fun evening together, GWRLT is aiming to raise $20,000 from ticket sales, donations, and event sponsors that will make it possible for us to continue our mission of conservation "...For Everyone, Forever!"

Please comeby to see us on Friday, September 19th from 4 to 7 pm in our lovely gallery space just down the street from historic City Hall and around the corner from Front Street. Many beautiful works to peruse including new paintings, ceramics and sculpture in a variety of styles, and our member artists will be on hand! Snacks and soft beverages available. All are welcome!

FRIDAY, 5-8 PM, SEPTEMBER 19, PANEL DISCUSSION:
ASTRID REISCHWITZ, SUSAN ROSENBERG JONES, JEANNIE HUTCHINS, TARA SELLIOS, SUSAN THEODORA WHITE, CHRISTINE HIGGINS, LISA MOSSEL
Unlike other mediums, women were at the forefront of the advent of photography as makers. Because of this, they helped shape the development of the art form, and experimented with every aspect of the medium. One hundred and eighty- ish years later in Maine it’s still happening. MMPA is lucky to collaborate with quite a few contemporary innovators and experimenters; women photographers that we esteem. This exhibit runs the gamut from the traditional to the avant-Garde, and is executed with superior works in a range of contemporary and antique processes (many artists employ several all at once). The topics also have a breadth of variety; The self, the landscape, conservation, motherhood, companions (or in some cases dogs), aging, place, unconditional love, documentation, the psyche, trees, identity or cultural heritage (via food), feminism and beauty are all explored in this exhibit. Come, meditate on the medium and the great women photographers of Maine and New England. - Denise Froehlich, Director of MMPA

5:00 PM: Events begin! National Anthem by Zeny, Riverfest dedication, Sponsor Recognition

7:00 PM: Motor Booty Affair

9:00 PM: Fireworks!

Join us at Libby Library on Friday, September 19 at 5:30pm for an Author Talk with Robin Foster. She’ll be here to discuss her book Grit & Ghosts: Following the Trail of Eight Tenacious Women across a Century.

Copies of the author’s books will be available for purchase & signing at this event. This program is free, open to the public, and no registration is required.

About the book:

As a student and teacher of history, Robin Foster is well aware that humans have persisted through major hardships as long as they have existed. When faced with the anxious dread many felt at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Foster began seeking stories of tenacious women of the American West who had survived their own hardships in a world that threw the unexpected at them. During one of the most uncertain periods of her life, Foster hit the road, embarking on a journey to find these determined women of the past and finding herself along the way. Grit and Ghosts tells the stories of eight women who speak to a shared human experience of struggle, and the grit required to move through it.
Landscape and memory become deeply intertwined throughout Grit and Ghosts as Foster wanders through park ranger Marguerite Lindsley’s Yellowstone, through Mexican faith healer Teresa Urrea’s Sonoran Desert, and through author Gertrude Stein’s deeply altered Oakland. Part excavation, part resurrection, Grit and Ghosts is permeated with the individual and collective memories of Foster and her subjects, like ghosts of history.

About the author:

Robin Foster studied creative writing at Bennington Writing Seminars and has a PhD in American Studies from Rutgers University-Newark. She is the author of GRIT AND GHOSTS: FOLLOWING THE TRAIL OF EIGHT TENACIOUS WOMEN ACROSS A CENTURY (Nebraska Press Bison Books, 2024); Carl Van Doren: A Man of Ideas (National Indie Excellence Awards Finalist for 2019); and The Age of Sail in the Age of Aquarius: The South Street Seaport and the Crisis of the Sixties (2016). Her work has been published in Rooted2: The Best New Arboreal Nonfiction, Another Chicago Magazine, Goats Milk Magazine, and the Journal of Urban History.

Family friendly - stretch out and enjoy some kitty time while chillaxing with some classic movie selections.

We ask that kids under 12 are limited to two per one adult.

Join us for (one hour) Trivia in the brewhouse with our friend Megh. The questions will commence every Friday starting promptly at 6 pm. We recommend arriving early to get settled as missed questions are not repeated. Tickets are free but reservations are strongly recommended as we've been packed recently! Walk-ins are not guaranteed a seat, but we'll absolutely do our best to squeeze you in, if we can. If you are making a reservation for your team, please account for all the members of your team. Groups can be up to six players. Bite Into Maine will be here for all of your tasty dinner or snacking needs. As always we’ll have delicious beer, wine, cider, and n/a bevs flowing. We can’t wait to see you and your fantastic team names!

FYI, as our brewhouse is a food production space, sadly dogs must stay on our covered patio.

The prizes are:
First - $75 gift card
Second - Fun merch pack
Third - Rotating "prize pack"

Open Mic hosted every Friday evening with Paul Connor. Great musicians, great music. You will see a wide variety of musicians each week. Paul is a very organized and talented musician. He always draws lots of new and seasoned talents. You will enjoy the family of musicians. Cherished Pub has great food & beverages available. Come enjoy all of the great music, have fun and relax. Come early to sign-up to perform. See you there!

Blending the heartfelt spirit of Americana with the timeless sounds of Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead, Cosmik Blue delivers a soulful, high-energy performance that’s as vibrant as it is unforgettable — the perfect soundtrack to enjoy with a fresh pint at Orange Bike Brewing.

The Rockport Library Foundation is excited to welcome award-winning journalist, director, and best-selling author Sebastian Junger for a talk at the Rockport Opera House on Friday, September 19, at 6:30 p.m.
Known for riveting and emotionally compelling books like "The Perfect Storm," "War," and "Tribe," Junger will present his latest book, "In My Time of Dying." His near-fatal health emergency lead to this powerful reflection on death—and what might follow. The book is part medical drama, part searing autobiography, and part rational inquiry into the ultimate unknowable mystery.

Barswallow Books will offer a selection of Junger’s books for sale and signing at the event following the presentation. The event is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. Tickets can be reserved by visiting: https://rockportoperahouse.thundertix.com/events/252208

This program is generously supported by The Rockport Library Foundation, a non-profit whose mission aims to sustain a legacy of sharing worlds of experience and information within our community. Learn more about The Foundation at rockportlibraryfoundation.org.