East Bay

01:00 AM EST on Thursday, January 26, 2006

REGIONAL

Continuing education classes: The Bristol County Adult Education Program is now enrolling students for its spring semester. Classes, ranging in cost from $20 to $85, cover subjects in many areas including business and computers, creative arts, dance and music, fitness, fun and sport, health and safety, image and lifestyle and travel. Most classes begin the week of Feb. 17.

Spring day trips scheduled include a trip to the Boston Flower Show, the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., New York City and Holyoke, Mass., for a Neil Diamond tribute concert. Two August cruises, one to the Bahamas and one to the Caribbean are also offered. Pick up a brochure at local libraries or call the office at (401) 245-3392 for a brochure and registration information.

Event for teens: The Women's Resource Center of Newport and Bristol Counties, in observation of National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week (Feb. 6 to 12), will host an event Feb. 3 from 7 to 10 p.m. at The Grange, Jamestown Teen Center, Jamestown.

The event is free and includes refreshments and live music by Univesity of Rhode Island students Ben Carter and James Grande, who will be performing their alternative/folk rock music live. In addition, "mocktails" will be sold for $2 each. This event is sponsored by Students Against Domestic Abuse, Newport County Youth Council and the Jamestown Substance Abuse Prevention Task Force. For more information, call Barbara Zammer, (401) 846-5263.

Benefit cocktail party: Aquidneck Island's Potter League for Animals will hold its 33rd annual Have a Heart Cocktail Party and silent auction Feb. 13 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Newport. The silent auction includes art, jewelry, animal gifts, getaways, clothing, sports items, golf packages and gift certificates.

This year's items include private yacht charters, tickets to the U.S. Women's Open and airline tickets.

Tickets prior to Feb. 10 are $35 per person, which includes hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar. Tickets purchased after Feb. 10 are $45 at the door. For tickets and information, call Susan Ryan at the Potter League, (401) 846-0592 or e-mail her at susanrATpotterleague.org. The Potter League is at 87 Oliphant Lane, Middletown.

Scholarships available: The Matthew Siravo Memorial Foundation for Epilepsy offers $1,000 college scholarships to Rhode Island high school seniors diagnosed with epilepsy. Scholarship applications may be downloaded for the foundation Web site at MattyFund.org or by calling (401) 789-7330. The deadline to submit an application is April 1.

Roundtable discussion: The Newport County Chamber of Commerce monthly Human Resource Roundtable will be held Wednesday from 9 to 10 a.m. at Chamber offices, 45 Valley Rd., Middletown. This month's featured topic will be management training and an open discussion of attendee's questions and issues.

The Chamber holds a roundtable discussion the first Wednesday of each month from 9 to 10 a.m. at its offices. Chamber member human resource professionals are invited to attend to share their policies or get feedback from other human resource professionals. Past topics have ranged from employee benefits to policy and personnel manuals.

The roundtable is free to Chamber members. RSVP to Sara Walker saraATNewportChamber.com

Chorus meets: The Jamestown Community Chorus meets Mondays at 7 p.m. at the Central Baptist Church, 99 Narragansett Ave., for its spring concert rehearsals.

Directed by B.J. Whitehouse, the "Love and Spirit" concert will be held May 6 and 7. A few selections by old favorites, Brahms and Britten, along with lesser known works by Hatton, Berger, Finzi, Farmer and Morley, will be on the program.

The theme running through the program includes songs that illustrate love, spirit and nature. This theme is enhanced by very eclectic madrigal selections. The madrigal form of music began in Italy and it became the model for compositions that followed in Europe. A 17th-century madrigal, along with several English madrigals will be included in the spring concerts of the chorus' 56th season.

The chorus hopes to expand its membership. Interested singers are invited to join on Monday evenings. There are no auditions. There is a nominal fee for music and modest fee for membership.

Call (401) 423-1574 or visit jamestownri.com/chorus for additional information.

BARRINGTON

Women's Club to meet: The Barrington Woman's Club will hold its next meeting Feb. 1 noon in St. John's Parish House, County Road. This month's guest speaker will be Debbie Norman, owner of Rue de L'Espoir restaurant on Hope Street in Providence.

In other business, the Sexual Assault and Trauma Center recently thanked club members for their donation of many items to the center.

Preparations are under way for the club's largest fundraiser of the year, the Dessert Card Party, set for April 8 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Barrington Congregational Church (White Church), County Road. Members are asked to be ready to offer their assistance on a committee to make it a success. The quilting group is working toward finishing the quilt, which will be the prize in a drawing at the card party.

Members are reminded daffodils will be sold at the February and March meetings for $7 a bunch and, with a Boyd's Bear, the cost is $25. The sale of these daffodils benefits the American Cancer Society. Members are also reminded to bring canned goods to the meetings for Tap-In.

The next board meeting will be held Feb. 6 at 10 a.m. in the Living Room at St. John's Church.

BRISTOL

Food drive: The Bristol Rotary Club and the Bristol Fire Department will team up Sunday, along with volunteers throughout the community, and canvas the northern part of the town door to door, collecting non-perishable food, for the Bristol Good Neighbors Food Pantry. Fire trucks will blare their sirens, alerting residents to their presence, while Rotarians, firefighters and other volunteers collect food door-to-door.

Because of time constraints, this effort is able to cover only about 50 percent of the town in one afternoon. Bristol Fire Chief Bob Martin wants residents to know which neighborhoods they will canvass, so that the neighborhoods that they can't canvass can donate on their own. The department will canvass north of the Hopeworth neighborhood, Chestnut Street and the Fales Road neighborhood to the Warren Line, excluding North Farm. With the equipment and volunteers they have, that is a lot of work in just four hours, to solicit, collect, box up and deliver an estimated 4,000 to 5,000 pounds of nonperishable food to the Bristol Good Neighbors Food Pantry.

For those residents in the areas that this effort will not be able to canvass, particularly in the downtown area and southern part of town, food donations can be dropped off at the Dreadnaught fire station, High and Church streets, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and at the Food Drive BankNewport headquarters, from noon to 4 p.m.

Volunteers, who are still being sought to participate in the food drive, can report to the BankNewport headquarters at 11:30 a.m. Sunday. Volunteers will be treated to a macaroni and meatball dinner at 4 p.m., when all the donated food will be delivered to the Food Pantry on Hope Street.

For more information, contact Rotarian Doug Gablinske at (401) 253-9910.

Seniors meet: Harbor Lights, the activity organization for senior citizens, will hold this month's meeting Tuesday from 12:30 to 3 p.m. at the Benjamin Church Manor, Hope Street. The meeting is the first of several to be held in a temporary location due to renovations under way at St. Mary Church auditorium, where the group usually meets.

Paula Bradley, field liaison for Rep. Patrick Kennedy, will be this month's speaker. She will share the latest information on Medicare Part D and other programs.

Nurse Rose Lavard will hold the regular monthly blood pressure screenings and discuss health concerns with seniors. Brian Nihill will also be on hand to order new orthopedic shoes for those in need.

In other highlights, Cecelia Lopes and friends will present line dancing, there will be pizza from Caldo Pizza and refreshments, "Five Free Bingo," door prizes and more. Those attending are asked to bring Lighthouse cards.

LITTLE COMPTON

Scholarship available: Applications for the Little Compton Citizen's Scholarship Foundation scholarship are now available to undergraduate college students residing in Little Compton. Applications may be picked up at the Brownell Library, Wilbur & McMahon Schools Portsmouth High School, Bishop Connolly High School and Bishop Stang High School. The deadline for applications is April 15.

MIDDLETOWN

Area kickoff meeting: The American Cancer Society will hold a kickoff meeting for its upcoming Relay for Life of Aquidneck Island event, Feb. 8 at 6 p.m. at the Middletown Senior Center, 700 West Main Rd. Those interested in volunteering for a committee, forming a team or becoming a sponsor are encouraged to attend.

The Relay for Life of Aquidneck Island will be held May 12 to 13 at the Gaudet Middle School track, Turner Road. Last year's event raised $34,400 with the help of 317 participants and 30 survivors. Proceeds support the society's local programs on research, education, advocacy and patient services.

For more information, call Lee Anne DeCarlo, (401) 243-2617.

NEWPORT

Art exhibit: Newport artist Greta Kessler is exhibiting her original origami and cut-paper Valentines and Mardi Gras origami decorations at Cadeaux du Monde's Galerie Escalier, 26 Mary St.

Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. For more information, call (401) 848-0550.

Internet library offerings: The Newport Public Library now offers downloadable audiobooks and e-books. Downloadable audiobooks are books that can be downloaded from the Internet and listened to on a home PC or any other device that can play Windows Media Audio (.wma) files. E-books are digital vrsions of print books that can be read on a home PC or Mac or PDA. Some children's e-books come with sound effects and audio narration.

Because of the popularity of downloadable audiobooks, the Newport Public Library offers two ways to access these books. Both services offer more than 500 titles each, with the number of titles growing daily.

The first service is offered through Recorded Books/NetLibrary. Users must set up a NetLibrary account from a computer inside the Newport Public Library. Once an account is set up, audiobooks may be downloaded from any home PC connected to the Internet.

The Rhode Island Public Library E-Zone, provided by a consortium of 11 public libraries in Rhode Island, offers both downloadable audiobooks and e-books. This service can be accessed from home, but requires a Newport Public Library card. To begin using either of these new services, visit the library's Web site, (newportlibrary.org), click on the "Downloadable Audiobooks" banner and explore.

Each service is sure to have something that appeals. From popular novels by Nora Roberts, Catherine Coulter, Deen Koontz and Amy Tan; to the classic works of Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, Franz Kafka, even Homer -- the audiobook and e-book collections spans nearly every genre. The Recorded Books/NetLibrary service carries language learning downloads as well as the entire Bible. The R.I. Public Library E-Zone offers children's, teen's and educational titles and a wide variety of nonfiction including business, history and self-help.

Digital books are compatible with most home computers, e-books (digital text based versions of a book) can be read on PCs, MACs, PDAs and Smartphones. Downloadable audiobooks (digital versions of traditional audiobooks on tape or CD) can be enjoyed on one's PC or on hundreds of portable WMA/MP3 players.

Visit the Newport Library's digital library 24-hours a day, seven days a week at newportlibrary.org or, for more information, contact the reference desk, (401) 847-8720, ext. 208.

Donations for fashion show sought:20 The junior class at Rogers High is looking for new and used prom gowns, dresses, tuxedos, bling-bling and other accessories for its upcoming night of fun and glamour, a fashion show fundraiser and tag sale. The event, which will be held Feb. 11 from 2 to 6 p.m. at Area One, Broadway, will offer students the opportunity to purchase items shown in the fashion show at an affordable cost.

Rogers High School students will model the latest fashions and students from the Newport Area Career and Technical Center's Cosmetology program will provide hair styling and makeup for the models.

The tag sale, which will begin after the fashion show, will also include entertainment, prizes and baked goods. The event will also include SADD, MADD, local clothing stores, florist and other local businesses showcasing all the latest fashions, accessories and safety tips. Each student will have the opportunity to register to win prom prizes.

To donate items, call Stephanie Martland to schedule a pickup. Donations can also be dropped at the high school cafeteria, Wickham Road, or mailed to RHS Fashion Show Fundraiser, 15 Wickham Rd., Newport 02840. Donations should include the name and/or company name, address and phone number of the donor, or, donations may also be anonymous. All donations are tax deductible.

PORTSMOUTH

Spaghetti dinner: The Portsmouth GOP will be holding a spaghetti and meatball dinner tonight from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Masonic Hall, 81 Sprague St. Tickets are $10 each or free for children under 10. The meal includes unlimited amounts of food along with free beer, coffee and soda. This event is open to all. Call Huck Little (401) 846-3232 or Peter McIntyre (401) 683-0210 for tickets or reservations.

TIVERTON

Community blood drive: A Tiverton Community blood drive will be held today from 2:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Amicable Congregational Church, 3736 Main Rd. Since this is national blood donor month, Dunkin' Donuts is providing a pound of coffee to anyone donating a pint of blood.

Anyone 17 or older weighing 110 pounds or more can donate. For more information, contact the Rhode Island Blood Center at (401) 453-8360.

WARREN

Acting class scholarships: 2nd Story Theatre will offer five scholarships to East Bay high school students. Sponsored by a grant from MetLife Foundation's Volunteer Ventures program, the scholarships will be awarded to students who reside in the East Bay area. Selected students will participate in an acting class offered at the Actors' Workshop, the studio-based training program of 2nd Story Theatre, during the spring or fall class session 2006.

Scholarship recipients are selected after an audition process. Auditions will be held Feb. 13 from 4 to 7 p.m. at 2nd Story Theatre, 28 Market St. Interested students should call the theater to schedule a time. Each student should prepare a one-minute memorized monologue. Educators are welcomed to nominate up to three students for this unique opportunity. For more information or to schedule a time, call Joanne Fayan, (401) 247-4200 or e-mail infoAT2ndStoryTheatre.com.