Upper Valley Connections Weekly Digest - Issue #12
Upper Valley Connections
Issue No. 12 · June 11, 2026
Your weekly guide to life along the Connecticut River
School's out -- or just about -- and the Valley is kicking off summer the right way: with free parties, pizza, and a whole lot of reading. This week we're looking at what your local libraries have lined up for kids (and adults) all summer long, plus a full weekend of events from Quechee to Fairlee.
-- The Upper Valley Connections Team
Upper Valley Connections is a free, independent community newsletter. If you run a local business, add your listing -- it's free to start. Have an event coming up? Submit it to the calendar. Paid tiers help keep this going every Thursday.
This Weekend
Kids & Family · Free
Remarkable Reptile Day
Sat Jun 13 · 10am-5pm · VINS Nature Center, Quechee, VT
A full day dedicated to the scaly, the slithery, and the surprisingly charismatic. VINS brings out its reptile residents for up-close encounters all day long -- included with general admission.
Arts & Culture · Free
Our Working Lands: Photography by Caleb Kenna
Sat Jun 13 - Sun Jun 14 · 10am-5pm · Billings Farm & Museum, Woodstock, VT
Vermont agricultural photographer Caleb Kenna turns his eye to the working farms and landscapes of the state. On view through the weekend; included with museum admission.
Community · Free
Tastes and Traditions
Sat Jun 13 · 11am-3pm · Lebanon Library, Lebanon, NH
A celebration of the many cultures of Lebanon and the Upper Valley -- music, art, food, and hands-on activities for all ages. Free and at the library.
Literary · Free
Silent Reading Party
Sun Jun 14 · 2pm-3pm · Norwich Bookstore, Norwich, VT
Bring your book, settle in, and read alongside other people doing the same thing. Norwich Bookstore hosts this one monthly and it always fills up. No talking required.
Music · Free
Upper Valley Traditional Music Jam
Sat Jun 13 · 3pm-4:45pm · Howe Library, Hanover, NH
All skill levels welcome for this open acoustic jam session. Drop in, pull up a chair, and play -- or just listen.
Music · $5 cover
Latin Dance Party w/ DJ Chele
Sat Jun 13 · 9:30pm · Sawtooth Kitchen, Hanover, NH
Sawtooth's late-night series delivers again. DJ Chele runs until 12:30am. $5 cover. Need we say more.
Community · Free
Pride Party in the Park
Fri Jun 12 · 6pm-8pm · Lebanon Opera House, Lebanon, NH
Outdoor gathering to kick off the evening before the Pride Dance Party. Free, all are welcome.
Music · Tickets required
DJ Rekha: Bollywood Pride
Fri Jun 12 · 8pm-10pm · Lebanon Opera House, Lebanon, NH
DJ Rekha brings her renowned Bollywood Flashback party to the Opera House for a Pride weekend celebration. Tickets at the door.
See All 145 Events This Week ->
Later in the Week
Kids & Family · Free
Summer Reading Challenge Starts -- Howe Library
Mon Jun 15 · All day · Howe Library, Hanover, NH
The official starting gun for Howe's summer reading program. Sign up any time Monday and get registered for a summer of reading, activities, and prizes. The Launch Party follows on Tuesday.
Kids & Family · Free
Teen Summer Reading Kickoff!
Mon Jun 15 · 3pm-4:30pm · Howe Library, Hanover, NH
Teens get their own dedicated kickoff event the same afternoon. Sign up for the teen reading challenge and get the summer started.
Literary · Kids & Family · Free
Revolutionary Poems & Bomb Pops
Mon Jun 15 · 3pm-4:30pm · Howe Library, Hanover, NH
Poems and popsicles to mark the start of summer. A small, specific, very good idea.
Kids & Family · Free
Dinosaur Stuffie Sleepover
Tue Jun 16 · 3:30pm-4:30pm · Kilton Library, West Lebanon, NH
Leave your stuffed dinosaur at the library overnight and pick it up in the morning -- with photos of what it got up to after hours. A Kilton Library classic, now with a very timely theme.
Kids & Family · Free
Summer Reading Launch Party -- Howe Library
Tue Jun 17 · 4pm-6pm · Howe Library, Hanover, NH
The official party: register for summer reading, make crafts, and walk away with a summer reading T-shirt and a coupon for a free pizza slice. Drop-in, no registration required, ages 12 and under.
Arts & Culture · Free
Opening Reception: World Repair -- Paintings by John Stomberg
Thu Jun 18 · 5pm-7pm · AVA Gallery and Art Center, Lebanon, NH
AVA opens a new show from painter John Stomberg. Free and open to the public -- a good Thursday evening reason to get off the couch.
Music · Free
Lake Morey Summer Concert Series: Jeff Kazee + Adam Ezra Group
Thu Jun 18 · 7pm-9pm · Lake Morey Resort, Fairlee, VT
The Lake Morey concert series opens for the season with a double bill: Jeff Kazee at 7pm, followed by the Adam Ezra Group at 8pm. Free, lakeside, hard to beat.
Food & Drink · Music · $18/plate
Summer Dinner & Music Series: Burger Night with Route 5 Jive
Thu Jun 18 · 4:30pm-7pm · King Arthur Baking Company, Norwich, VT
King Arthur's summer outdoor series kicks off with burgers and live music from Route 5 Jive. $18 per plate.
History · Education · Free
African American Soldiers and Sailors of New Hampshire
Fri Jun 12 · 6pm-7:30pm · Enfield Shaker Museum, Enfield, NH
A talk on the largely untold history of Black service members from New Hampshire. Worth the drive to Enfield.
This Week in the Upper Valley
The Library Is Open (And This Summer, It's a Dig Site)
School gets out this week -- Monday for some, Tuesday for others -- and for a few days the Valley will have that particular mid-June feeling: kids everywhere, schedules dissolved, parents consulting their phones. If you have children and haven't yet thought about what summer looks like, your local library has done some of the thinking for you.
This year's national summer reading theme is "Unearth a Story," chosen by the Collaborative Summer Library Program, a nonprofit that coordinates reading programs for thousands of libraries across the country. The theme leans into dinosaurs, archaeology, and the joy of digging -- metaphorical and literal. Vermont libraries are all running this program. New Hampshire libraries are using a parallel program from a separate consortium, with slightly different materials but the same spirit: read books, earn things, come back.
The specifics vary by library and they're worth knowing. At Howe Library in Hanover, the program officially opens Monday, June 15, and the Launch Party falls on the last day of school -- Wednesday, June 17 from 4 to 6pm: drop in, register, make crafts, and pick up a summer reading T-shirt and a pizza coupon while supplies last. No registration required, ages 12 and under. Across town at the Etna Library, their own launch party runs the same evening, also June 17 from 3:30 to 6pm, with a crafts table, dinosaur buttons, and pizza. Two launch parties, same evening -- the Upper Valley has opinions about summer reading.
In West Lebanon, the Lebanon/Kilton library system launched their program on the first day of summer break, June 11 -- today. Their angle: read 10 books and earn a coupon for a free ice cream cone from Ice Cream Fore U. This is a good incentive. Over in Woodstock, Norman Williams Public Library kicks off their six-week program on June 27, with a special opening -- a free screening of Night at the Museum on the evening of June 26. Their program runs through August 8 and includes story times with archaeology-themed crafts, a raised garden bed on the library lawn where kids planted seed potatoes in May, and prizes for completed reading logs. The Hartford Library in White River Junction runs year-round Thursday story hour with crafts and a snack; summer doesn't slow them down.
A note for Vermont readers: if your town has a public library, your card may work at more libraries than you think. About 17 Upper Valley Vermont libraries -- from Fairlee south through Windsor, including Norwich, Hartland, Quechee, Hartford, and Wilder -- are part of OneCard, a borrowing network that lets cardholders walk into any member library and borrow. If your card has a yellow OneCard sticker, it's yours to use. If you're not sure, ask at your library desk. It's one of those quiet community infrastructure things that nobody advertises.
The reading programs are free, the libraries are air-conditioned, and the summer is long. A reasonable combination. Start at your closest branch -- and if your kids have a stuffed dinosaur handy, Kilton Library's Dinosaur Stuffie Sleepover (Tuesday, June 16, 3:30pm) is an event they will not forget.
Dinosaur Stuffie Sleepover at Kilton Library ->
Farmers' Markets
Four Upper Valley markets are running for the season.
Lebanon Farmers Market Thursdays 4-7pm · Colburn Park, Lebanon NH The midweek anchor. SNAP/EBT accepted. Rain or shine through mid-October.
Norwich Farmers Market Saturdays 9am-1pm · Route 5 South, Norwich VT The big one -- 55+ vendors, live music, SNAP/EBT. Rain or shine through October.
Hartland Farmers Market Fridays 4-6:30pm · 153 Route 5, Hartland VT A smaller market with a loyal following. Now in its third week.
Market on the Green, Woodstock Wednesdays 3-6pm · The Green, Woodstock VT Woodstock's midweek market, now in full swing for the season.
Mt Tom Farmers Market, Woodstock Saturdays 9:30am-12:30pm · Saskadena Six, Woodstock VT In its 41st year, with 20+ vendors -- farmers, makers, and bakers. Rain or shine through October 10.
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