Child care symposium

BANGOR – The Child Care Training Coalition will host its annual child care symposium, Something for You and Me, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20, at Rangeley Hall, Eastern Maine Community College. The symposium offers 17 workshops on topics that include sensory strategies, play and early childhood education from infancy to school age, reaching and teaching children with music, the Child Development Associate credential, creative movement for young children and cooking with children.

Penquis Community Action Program Resource Development Center; Eastern Maine Community College, University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion; University College of Bangor, Maine Association for the Education of Young Children, UCP of Maine and Alliance for Children’s Care, Education, and Supporting Services are members of the Child Care Training Coalition. The symposium is funded in part by Maine Department of Human Services and Bangor Savings Bank.

The conference fee is $30. Continuing education units are available. For more information, call Sheila Higgins, Penquis CAP Resource Development Center, at 941-2840.

Course on Merton

BREWER – Sister Elizabeth Wagner, Benedictine hermitess and member of Transfiguration Hermitage in Thorndike, will conduct a course about American monk Thomas Merton from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Mondays, Sept. 22 and 29, Oct. 6, 20 and 27, and Nov. 4, at St. Joseph’s Church in Brewer.

Thomas Merton, 1915-1968, mystic, hermit, poet and spiritual master, was, perhaps, the greatest spiritual teacher of the 20th century, Sister Wagner said. Deeply committed to his life of contemplation and solitude, he was at the same time an outspoken writer and leader in the social issues of the 1960s – civil rights, Vietnam War protest, ecumenism and religious change. A complex, multi-faceted person, he continues to attract millions through his writings, she said.

The course focuses on Merton as a spiritual teacher, situating him within the context of his time and milieu, as well as emphasizing his innovations and his importance to spiritual seekers today.

To register for the course, call 989-5388. The cost is $25. Scholarships are available.