Massena Public Library hosting two guest speakers on Saturday
Feb. 23—MASSENA — The solar eclipse and cooking on a ship take the spotlight Saturday at the Massena Public Library.
Aileen A. O'Donoghue and Elaine Fortin, board members of the Adirondack Sky Center and Observatory in Tupper Lake will be on hand at 10 a.m. to talk about how and when eclipses occur, and why the afternoon of April 8 will be filled with awe and wonder.
O'Donoghue is the Henry Priest Professor of Physics at St. Lawrence University in Canton, and Fortin is a NASA solar system ambassador.
A total solar eclipse, like the one that will be viewable in the north country on April 8, happens when the moon passes between the sun and Earth, completely blocking the face of the sun. When it hits Earth, People in the center of the moon's shadow will experience a total eclipse or totality.
Then, at 1 p.m. Catherine Schmuck, the "Ship to Shore Chef", cook, entrepreneur and self-published author will talk about her experiences and adventures while cooking for the crew on board various ships sailing the St. Lawrence Seaway and Great Lakes.
She is the author of the cookbook "Recipes & Stories As I Sail Through My Day" and children's book "The Stowaway Adventures", and also runs a blog at www.shiptoshorechef.com. Both books will be available for purchase, and Schmuck will donate $5 from every purchase to the library.
"I think she has some pretty good stories to share. I think it's going to be a good one," library Director Krista Briggs said.
She said the talk by O'Donoghue and Fortin is a prelude to eclipse activities that will be taking place as the event draws closer.
"We actually have two different things planned. We don't have a date nailed down yet, but we have a T-shirt craft that we're doing with teens and tweens. We're using fabric and a black shirt to make an eclipse on the shirt for the kids. That will be before the eclipse," she said.
Briggs said that on April 8, they'll be holding an eclipse viewing in the library parking lot. They will have free eclipse viewing glasses available, along with some fun.
"We have a food cart that will be in attendance, the I Dream of Weenies. We're doing some crafts with kids on that day out in the parking lot. We're going to sign people up for library cards. We're going to try to recruit people for our Friends group. We also just a few minutes discovered that the WellNow Clinic will sponsor the event. They are sponsoring us and helping pay for these crafts. They will have a table set up as well to give away information and some of their swag," she said.
She said they're also hoping for some musical entertainment, "but that's not a huge deal."
More information can be found on the library's Facebook page at http://wdt.me/3fdzoL.
