Area briefs: Amherst College to host girls in sports day on Saturday; Beit Ahavah to host first Ketubahs of Love exhibit; Valentine’s Day luncheon at Belchertown Senior Center

Amherst College will host National Girls and Women in Sports Day on Saturday.

Amherst College will host National Girls and Women in Sports Day on Saturday. GAZETTE FILE PHOTO

Published: 02-04-2025 12:02 PM
Girls, women in sports day at Amherst College

AMHERST — The Amherst College Athletics Department, in partnership with the town of Amherst and Amherst Recreation Department, will host National Girls and Women in Sports Day on Saturday, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Alumni Gym.

This event, dedicated to honoring the achievements of girls and women in sports, aims to recognize the power of sports and play in unlocking limitless potential.

The day will provide girls and nonbinary youth in grades 4-7 with a chance to explore various sports, play and have fun together. The participants will be divided into smaller groups to enjoy different fundamental skills in a variety of sports (no previous experience necessary). The event will feature activities led by women’s sports teams, including: squash, golf, crew, track/cross country, soccer, field hockey, softball and volleyball.

The program will kick off in Middleton Gymnasium at 11:30 a.m. with pizza and then a chat with current scholar-athletes followed by a dynamic stretch warm-up. Girls will then be divided into groups so they can try different sports and games through a continuous timed rotation.

Parents are able to drop off their children at 11:30 and pick them up at 2:30 p.m. For parents who choose to stay, there will be a yoga class for adults offered by Christine Paradis in the Friends of Amherst Athletics Room at 12:30 p.m.

All participants and their families can attend for free the Amherst College women’s basketball team as they take on Connecticut College at 3 p.m. in LeFrak Gymnasium.

To register for Saturday’s event, visit https://forms.gle/ACEkzU8hjyoWngLU7.

For more information, visit athletics.amherst.edu or contact Jennifer Chuks at jchuks@amherst.edu.

Beit Ahavah to host first Ketubahs of Love exhibit
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FLORENCE — Beit Ahavah, the Reform Synagogue of Northampton, will hold its first Ketubahs of Love art exhibit and reception on Sunday at 4 p.m. in the Peacock Room at 130 Pine St.

Ketubahs of Love brings together dozens of ketubahs (illuminated marriage contracts) to celebrate Jewish diversity, creativity, art, commitments, families, and love. Illuminated ketubahs are an ancient, artistic, and proto-feminist Jewish tradition for marriage, signed at the wedding with close friends as witnesses, propped up on an easel at the celebration, and eventually hung in the home as a daily reminder to the couple to manifest their loving partnership.

In this first-ever community Ketubahs of Love art exhibit, BeitAhavah (which is Hebrew for “House of Love”) invited community members to share their own framed Ketubah art with us for the exhibit. After Sunday’s reception, the exhibit will be on display throughout the month in the Peacock Room.

Valentine’s Day luncheon at Belchertown Senior Center

BELCHERTOWN — Musician Dan Kirouac will provide live music for the Belchertown Senior Center Valentine’s Day luncheon on Friday, Feb. 14, at 10:30 a.m. The senior center is located at 60 State St. (Route 202) in Belchertown and the program is open to members of the senior community and others as space and interest allows. Please call 413-323-0420 ext. 501 to inquire.

Kirouac is a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who has performed extensively throughout New England since the 1980s. More about his music can be found on Facebook searching Dan Kirouac Music.

This program is sponsored in part by a grant from the Belchertown Cultural Council, a local agency, which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.