Recognizing the need to help others, especially during this most difficult time in our nation’s history, Connie Eye, volunteer coordinator at New Hope Hospice, has a suggestion.

“In light of the recent senseless tragedies that have taken the lives of so many,” she wrote me recently, “I am hopeful that those who wish to help make a difference may wish to volunteer to give support to those who are dying in our own community.

“There is a great need for these precious people, who are able to offer the gift of their empathic, caring selves, allowing patients and families to cope with facing end of life, and to offer support through bereavement.”

Eye pointed out that “hospice volunteers provide the extras that go above and beyond medical care – the one-on-one attention and the time to be present to listen, and to do whatever it takes for the comfort and well-being of the patients and families we are privileged to serve.”

NHH will conduct a hospice volunteer training session beginning Saturday, Oct. 13, and continuing through Saturday, Nov. 3, at NHH on Route 9 in Eddington.

The six-hour sessions will help individuals who want to assist patients and families struggling with a terminal illness to understand the physical, social, emotional and spiritual needs of hospice patients and their families.

Volunteers are members of an interdisciplinary team that includes medical, social and spiritual professionals, and the only qualifications to become a hospice volunteer are excellent listening skills, flexibility, compassion and being able to work as part of a team.

No fee is charged for the training program, but an advance application and screening interview are required.

For information about the program, call Eye at 843-7521.

Bill Robertson, vice president of the Franklin Historical Society, writes that the final meeting of the 2001 season for that organization will be an event to remember.

The meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, at the museum on the Hog Bay Road, Route 200, in East Franklin, features Sviata Duma, The Maine Women Balkans Choir.

Sviata Duma, which means “sacred voice,” is made up of a diverse group of women, including gardeners, journalists, fisherwomen, teachers and grandmothers.

Singing music that has been handed down from generation to generation, the choir sings songs of the field, the sewing bee, the spinners and community celebration.

Their performances, we understand, have been exceptionally well received wherever they appear.

If you have questions about this evening, which reflects upon not only the history of Franklin but around the world as well, or questions about the FHS, call 565-3336.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Joyce Given, president of Millinocket Regional Hospital Auxiliary, writes that organization is helping get the word out about opportunities and information available through the hospital this month.

MRH invites members of the public to attend the Breast Cancer Awareness and Education Open House from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 3, in the hospital’s main entrance lobby, 200 Somerset St. in Millinocket.

The open house will feature door prizes, raffles, educational information, giveaways and refreshments.

And while other Breast Cancer Awareness Month activities will take place throughout October at MRH, the final open house will be 1-4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26, at the hospital.

Glenburn Elementary School pupil Tristan Hersey is now in Wisconsin, where he underwent a bone marrow transplant for leukemia.

He is expected to be there for several more weeks, according to GES special education director Kathleen Kazmierczak.

“I know he would like to hear from people back home,” she said.

“Cards and letters would be appreciated, and he also has an e-mail address.”

Anyone wishing to bring a smile to Tristan’s face can do so by writing him at Ronald McDonald House, 8948 Watertown Plank Road, Wauwatosa, Wis. 53226-4802.

His e-mail address is www.caringbridge.com/me/tristan2/.

The John F. Kennedy Library, located on Columbia Point in Boston and designed by internationally acclaimed architect I.M. Pei, is worth the visit, especially for those who would like to view the special exhibit “Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years.”

Members of Wellesley in Eastern Maine invite the public to join them in a coach trip leaving the Park and Ride lot on Odlin Road in Bangor at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 10, with prearranged stops along Interstate 95.

The exhibit features 80 original outfits and accessories worn by the former first lady to state events, and includes documents and photographs associated with her historic preservation and restoration work on the White House.

Also available is an informational film and some of the 20 exhibits relating the presidency of the late John F. Kennedy.

The cost, $79 per person, includes admission to the exhibit, the museum, film and dinner in Portland.

Reservations must be made by Friday, Oct. 5, with Wellesley alumna Nancy Ziegenbein, 41 Linden St., Bangor or by calling her at 947-7965.

The trip benefits Wellesley College in Wellesley, Mass.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402; 990-8288.