The public is invited to attend a Benefit Day for the Family of 1st Sgt. Michael Jones, who died last month.

The benefit begins with an auction from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 16, at the Belfast Armory on Route 1 south of Belfast.

It continues with a potluck supper from 5 to 7 p.m. and a nonalcoholic dance featuring traditional country music, from 7 to 10 p.m.

Jones, a Unity resident, was 43 when he died March 3 at a Syracuse, N.Y., hospital after a brief illness.

He had just returned to the United States from Iraq, where he served more than a year with the Maine Army National Guard 133rd Engineer Battalion A Company.

Jones is survived by his wife, Lori Jones, three children and one grandchild.

The auction features gift certificates and many donated items, and the cost for the supper is by donation.

If you are unable to attend, but would like to make a contribution to assist this soldier’s family, you can make a check payable to The Jones Family Fund and mail it to Ron Mitchell Sr., 43 Brooke Ave., Belfast 04915.

More information can be obtained by calling Mitchell, 338-4985 or Lauri Jewitt, 845-2761.

Linda Jaffe, director of the Bangor Museum and Center for History, has announced that a new exhibit is opening this week.

“Crossing the Bridge: Bangor in the 20th Century” is the first permanent exhibit at the museum and can be viewed by the public for the first time from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 16.

The exhibit features a re-creation of a Bangor covered bridge and movies about 20th century Bangor.

The exhibit is a collaborative effort of BMCH, Bangor Noontime Rotary and Bangor Breakfast Rotary.

It documents and illustrates the last 100 years of the history of the Queen City.

Admission is free.

Visitors are also invited to visit The Golden Fleece, the retail museum shop offering books, jewelry, children’s items and Maine-made products.

The Bangor Symphony Orchestra annual “Springing” Dinner Auction is 5 p.m. Sunday, April 17, at Wells Commons on the University of Maine campus in Orono.

The benefit follows the orchestra’s 3 p.m. classical concert at the Maine Center for the Arts.

Among the items up for bid are a 2005 Subaru Outback, courtesy of Stanley Subaru in Ellsworth, and an opportunity for conducting lessons with Maestro Xiao-Lu Li.

Tickets are $40 per person or $285 for a table of eight and can be reserved online on www.bangorsymphony.com or by calling the BSO box office (800) 639-3221 or 942-5555.

Have the spring rains and high water made you think about getting out your canoe or kayak?

If so, you should register now for Paddle for Pine Tree Camp, which will take place at five Maine sites on Saturday, June 4, and Sunday, June 5.

Erin Rice of the Pine Tree Society, which runs Pine Tree Camp for Handicapped Children and Adults on North Pond in Rome, reports that “this event attracts hundreds of kayakers and canoeists of all ability levels, from experts to beginners to paddlers with a disability.”

This year’s Paddle will be larger in “size and scope, with more statewide locations,” she wrote, and will feature pre-event workshops, post-event celebratory barbecues for all registered participants, “a fabulous prize structure,” and “an opportunity to create Paddle Partner teams.”

Since its inception in 1997, the event has raised more than $78,000 through pledges and contributions.

This year’s Paddle opportunities include the Kennebec River, with Maine Guide Darrell Buzzell; Saco River with SacoBound; Androscoggin River with Sun Valley Sports and Maine Handicapped Skiing; Swan Lake State Park; and Sea Kayaking in Brunswick with Seaspray Kayaking.

For complete details and registration information, call PTS at 934-7962, visit www.pinetreesociety.org and click on Paddle for Pine Tree Camp at the top of the page or e-mail kdorer@pinetreesociety.org.

Sue Osgood of Bangor called last week to say that she is seeking information about any hepatitis C support group in our readership area.

Or, she said, “if there is anyone who is afflicted [with this disease] and wants to connect and talk about their issues, I would be happy to share and learn from them as well.”

Anyone with any information that would be helpful to Osgood and others is invited to call her at 945-3439.

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