PEOPLE & EVENTS
FRIDAY - OCTOBER 6 Townsend  Habitat For Humanity Townsend Project will host their second annual Texas Hold'em event fundraiser at 7 p.m. at the Townsend VFW. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets will be sold at the door. First come, first served with limit of 120 players. Buy in is $100 - no limit Texas Hold'em. First prize is $3,500.00. For more information please call Don at 978- 597-5527 or email dloullette@msn.com.

Piano Concert ... The Historical Piano Concerts Series 22nd Fall season continues at Ashburnham Community Church at 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 8, with pianist Sharona Joshua performing a program of compositions by Beethoven. Admission is $10; children and students, free. For information, call (978) 827-6232 or visit their Web site at www.FrederickCollection.org.

SATURDAY - OCTOBER 7 Ashby  The annual Ashby Pumpkin Festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the town common. The festival will feature games, food, crafts, contests and attic treasures for sale. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library. Rain date is Oct. 8.

 The First Parish Church, located on Main Street, will host their annual Harvest Supper from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Dinner will be served family style and will include roasted turkey with stuffing, vegetables, rolls and homemade dessert. Cost is $8.50 per person; $5 for children 5 to 12 years of age; under 5 years of age free. Tickets are available at the church during the Pumpkin Festival, reserve seats by calling Martha Morgan at (978) 386-7106, or at the door. Take out dinners available by calling the church at (978) 386-5660 during the scheduled supper. Advanced ticket purchases and reservations are recommended.

Ashburnham The Ashburnham Historical Society will sponsor its annual Fall Barn Tour from 9 a.m. to noon, beginning at The Meeting House, 79 Main St. This is a free family event. For more information, call (978) 827-9908.

Westminster  The Westminster Friends of the Senior Center will hold a fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Westminster Senior Center, upstairs from the American Legion Hall, 127 Main St. The fair will feature crafts, baked goods, and a Chinese auction table. Volunteers and items are needed. For more information, call (978) 874-7402.

SUNDAY - OCTOBER 8 Other  The Williams Barn Committee will host the fifth annual Open House at the Williams Barn, 160 Chicopee Row, Groton, from 1 to 5 p.m. This free family event will include live music, farm animals to pet and admire, a display of farm tools, cider pressing, guided nature walks, a wildlife display from the Nashua River Watershed Association, tours of the Williams Barn, plus blacksmith demonstrations by Ray Ciemny. Refreshments served; cider will be available for purchase.  Mestizo Manta, a Peruvian folk music ensemble, will perform at 2:30 p.m. at the Fitchburg Public Library, 610 Main St. They will perform traditional Indian music of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Columbia, and other countries of the Andes region of South America. Free. For information, call (978) 345-9635. TUESDAY - OCTOBER 10 Townsend  A Toddler Storytime will be held at 10:30 a.m. in Room 1 of Memorial Hall, Townsend Public Library. For children ages 2 to 4 and their siblings. For information, call (978) 597-1714.

 The Townsend Public Library is holding a Book Discussion Group at 7 p.m. in Room 1 of Memorial Hall. The group, open to adults, will be reading and talking about "St. Albans Fire" by Archer Mayor. Stop by the library to sign up and pick up a copy of the book. For more information, call the Townsend Public Library at (978) 597-1714.

Westminster  The Westminster Historical Society will hold their first calendar of events of the year 2006-2007 at 7:30 p.m. at the society, 110 Main St. Roger Gerard will present a talk on Yemen and the Arab world. This will include a slide show presentation on a trip from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia to Yemen that Roger and his wife Ann made while living in the area. Roger spent 10 years living and working with various international firms in the area. Free; refreshments served. For information, call (978) 874-5569.

Other  The Twin City Toastmasters will meet from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Ronald M. Ansin Foundation Office, 1 Main St., Leominster. To learn more, contact Sara Marks at (978) 343-7259 or visit www.twincitytoastmasters.com.

THURSDAY - OCTOBER 12 Westminster  A free concert with Youth Explosion, featuring Kingpin Wrecking Crew and special guest, Crusade, will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Bread of Life Church, 22 State Road East. For information, call (978) 874-2848. Sponsored by a consortium of North Central Mass Churches and Businesses

FRIDAY - OCTOBER 13 Townsend  The Friends of the Townsend Public Library will host their annual book sale today from 4 to 8 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 14, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Town Hall Annex (between the library and Memorial Hall). Buy a Townsend Public Library book bag for $10 and fill it with as many books as will fit for free. For information, call the library at (978) 597-1714.