The Eldred Central School’s Performing Arts Club is putting on another great production of the Broadway classic Annie Jr. Based on the book by Thomas Mehan and music by Charles Strause and based on “Little Orphan Annie” there will only be two performances on Friday, March 22 and Saturday, March 23rd starting at 7pm in the auditorium of the school. I have attended other productions of the Performing Arts Club and they have been wonderful. The cast and crew work so hard to bring a first-rate show and the plays have always been a great evening. Preferred tickets are $12.00, general admission are $10.00 and students and seniors are $8.00. You can purchase tickets at the door or at www.epac.booktix.com. The Eldred Performing Arts Club events are always a fun night out and shows our community support for our local students. For more information go to the Eldred Performing Arts Club (EPAC) on Facebook.

Even though we have been experiencing some torrential downpours of rain, and we now officially have an actual “mud season” New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has announced the start of the annual Burn Ban against open residential brush burning which began on March 16th and continues through May 14th. Instituted in 2009 the ban aims to reduce the risk of wildfires and protect communities during heightened conditions for fires. While we are witnessing the devastation of record-breaking fires in Texas, which has no outside burn ban policy, New Yorkers are still at risk of forest fires here in New York. The winter season did not provide the typical snow cover across much of the State leaving dormant vegetation exposed. The new updated State regulations prohibits burning any household trash in wood stoves, fireplaces, barrels, and outdoor wood boilers. Since the inception of the annual burn ban there has been a significant decrease in spring fires and according to the Department of Environmental Conservation open burning remains the primary cause of wildfires in New York. For additional information about the ban regulations and other interesting information go to dec.ny.gov.

The tradition of an egg hunt at Easter originated in Germany during the 16th century when the religious reformer Martin Luther is said to have held the first egg hunts for his congregation. The eggs would be boiled with onion skins to give them a golden color-and then hidden for the women and children to find. The egg hunt was a nod to the story of the resurrection when the empty tomb was discovered by women. Artificial and chocolate eggs first appeared in London in the 1850s and egg hunts became more popular in the late 19th and 20th century. As a result, Easter moved away from being primarily a religious and more centered on a holiday for children. Growing up our family always participated in egg hunts at our local parish and also at the homes of our relatives which was really fun so I was happy to see that a local Easter egg hunt will be taking place in Barryville. Sponsored by the Barryville United Methodist Church The Easter Egg Hunt will take place on Saturday, March 23rd starting at 1:00pm. In addition to the hunt there will be crafts and refreshments, and event is open to all ages and everyone is welcome to attend. The Church is located at 3405 Route 97 (at the site of the Farmers Market)