Like most of her novels, this dark drama is set in the fictional hilltowns of western Massachusetts.

Livingston will also give a sneak peek at “Missing the Deadline,” No. 7 in her Isabel Long mystery series, which will be released later this year by Darkstroke Books.

Books will be available to purchase at a discount.

Sen. Mark to hold office hours

BUCKLAND — State Sen. Paul Mark’s staff will hold office hours at Buckland Town Hall, 17 State St., on Tuesday, Oct. 24, from 10 a.m. to noon.

Residents of any of the 57 municipalities in the senator’s Berkshire, Hampden, Franklin and Hampshire District are encouraged to ask for assistance with issues involving any state agency, or to share ideas on current or potential state legislation. Appointments are not required.

SHELBURNE — The town will hold a public listening and feedback session on Monday, Oct. 23, to discuss the results of a Community Resilience Building Workshop that was conducted as part of its Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) Planning Grant from the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. The workshop identified community strengths and vulnerabilities, as well as priority action items to advance the town’s resilience to climate change impacts.

The listening session will include a presentation, discussion and interactive polling to gather feedback. It will take place at 6 p.m. during the regularly scheduled Shelburne Selectboard meeting on Monday, Oct. 23. The meeting starts at 5:30 p.m.

Access the meeting and listening session through Zoom at us02web.zoom.us/j/3590583442, or by calling 1-929-436-2866 and entering Meeting ID: 359 058 3442.

Elementary school to host tree planting

SHELBURNE — The Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts and New England Forestry Foundation will lead a volunteer tree planting day of 50 native trees at Buckland-Shelburne Elementary School on Sunday, Oct. 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

In the case of heavy rain, the event will move to Saturday, Nov. 11. Participants are advised to bring a shovel and gloves, if possible.

The planting is part of a riparian restoration effort funded by the U.S. Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program. The goal of the grant-funded project is to create a process to identify where climate-adapted tree planting can serve as a tool for resilience and to plant at least 150 trees at four different riparian restoration sites in Franklin and Berkshire counties. So far, trees have been planted in Conway and Williamstown, with those plantings funded partly through a matching grant from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

The Woodlands Partnership and New England Forestry Foundation commissioned a report from students at the Conway School of Landscape Design — called “A Place for Trees: Riparian Restoration in the Deerfield River Watershed” — to determine areas where riparian restoration was needed.

New Salmon Falls
exhibit opens Nov. 3

SHELBURNE FALLS — Charles Malzenski’s art exhibit “On Land” will be on display at the Salmon Falls Gallery, 1 Ashfield St., from Nov. 3 to Dec. 31.

Malzenski is a painter of representational landscapes; non-representational work including color field and minimalist studies; and conceptual work including dowsing, drawing on the ground, and altering and arranging landscape elements. “On the Land” features those representational landscapes.

Rather than commenting on his own intentions, Malzenski prefers that the audience observe the work in silence and arrive at their own conclusions. His only comment is that “Paint should look like paint. Brushwork shows the intuitive connection between hand and heart.”

Malzenski, who earned a bachelor’s degree from Hartford Art School in 1970, divides his time between western Massachusetts and Enfield, Connecticut. He has participated in many group shows and his work has been featured in national and international publications.

Colrain starts CPA
exploratory panel

COLRAIN — The Selectboard recently established an ad hoc committee to explore and study the Community Preservation Act (CPA) as it relates to Colrain, and is seeking members to join.

Interested residents can submit a letter of interest to the Selectboard to be appointed to the committee.

Local student honored for academic prowess

BUCKLAND — Mohawk Trail Regional School student Will Van Vleet was recently named as a “Commended Student” in the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program.

Commended Students are recognized for the exceptional academic promise demonstrated by their outstanding performance on the qualifying test used for program entry. About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized.

Students entered the National Merit Scholarship Program, a nationwide competition, by taking the 2022 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) last October.