Delmar Animal Hospital has announced the following local forums:  Ticks and Tick Borne Disease - A Primer Thursday, 9/24 7:00 p.m.  Learn more about ticks including tick biology and life cycle, as well as the symptomology of various tick borne diseases;  Keeping Ticks Away, Thursday, 10/15 7:00 p.m.  Discover integrated pest management techniques you can implement at home, and learn about managing ticks when you own pets;  Living with Deer in Bethlehem Tuesday, 10/27, 7:00 p.m.   Topics to include gardening with deer, traffic safety, and hunting options.  All forums will be held in the Town Hall Auditorium and are open to the public. Following the formal presentations, there will be tables with additional information on topics related to deer and tick management, so that residents can talk to experts and get their questions answered.

Amelia's Garden Sewing Boutique is offering a sewing class to create the queen of all zipper pouches - The Sew Together Bag! Join us as we walk through this pattern with you and trust us you'll be hooked to make many more. The bag features three interior zipper pouches and a large exterior zipper that not only closes the whole bag but becomes its own handle. Saturday, October 3 from 10am-3pm, with Instructor Mary Hayes. Class fee is $35. Fee does not include pattern or supplies, 15% off class supplies offered at shop. Stop in the shop to sign up or, visit us online to book your spot in the class as spaces are limited.

Security Supply Corp is offering a Steam Class in Albany on Thursday, October 1 from 11am-1pm. Speakers are Steve Ballard and Toby Burns of Frank P. Langley Co. See flyer for details and register on their website.

In celebration of National Fire Prevention Week, the Delmar Fire Department will be holding an Open House on Sunday, October 4, from 1-4pm. Free food, fire prevention information, climbing wall, bouncy bounce, apparatus displayed, a live burn demonstration and much, much more. We hope to see you there!

a two-part course about the mushrooms of the Capital Region. Learn from a classroom presentation about mushrooms and apply your knowledge during a field session while enjoying a sneak preview of the Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy's new Bozen Kill Preserve, opening to the public later this fall.  Dave Muska of  Ondatra Adventures will be the instructor. Join us on Thursday, September 24 from 6-8 pm. Classroom presentation at MHLC office, 425 Kenwood Ave. Delmar and Saturday, September 26 from 9 am-1 pm for Field session at MHLC's Bozen Kill Preserve in Knox, NY. The cost is $10 per person. In this course, we will learn the fascinating ecological roles of our local fungi, as well as key characteristics used in the identification of mushrooms. Topics covered will include identification techniques, taxonomy, morphology, edibility & toxicity, and medicinal fungi, as well as 'best' harvesting practices. Learn more and register here.