Thursday

Flathead Valley IONS (Institute of Noetic Sciences) Community Group will meet Thursday, May 14, 7 p.m. at the Bohemian Grange, directly west of Montana Coffee Traders on U.S. 93. Kate O’Brien will explain the basic ethics and principles of permaculture and show examples of how it is being used around the world today. For further information, call 862-7711.

Local author John Fraley will lead the discussion of his book “Wild River Pioneers: Adventures in the Middle Fork of the Flathead, Great Bear Wilderness and Glacier National Park” for The Museum at Central School's History Book Club on Thursday, May 14, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Fraley brings alive the history of Montana’s wildest river drainage with stories about shoot-outs, murders, a hanging, a train robbery, marauding grizzly bears, lost graves, gold prospecting, and an ice cream-eating pet bear. For more information, call 756-8381.

Friday

Ani Tsering Wangmo, a Tibetan nun who has released six international albums of singing, will perform at the O’Shaughnessy on Friday, May 15. A silent auction of local crafts and gifts from Nepal will begin at 6:30 p.m. CDs of Tsering’s music will also be available. Admission is a $10 donation. Proceeds will benefit the Garden of 1,000 Buddhas project at the Ewam Center in Arlee, directed by Gochen Tulku Rinpoche.

Whitefish First Presbyterian Church, Third Street and Central Avenue, will hold its annual flower sale to benefit mission work on Friday, May 15, from 9-5, Saturday, May 16, from 8-4, and Sunday, May 17, from 10-1. Along with the pre-orders, an enormous selection of blooming annuals, herbs, grasses, vegetables, perennials, pre-planted 14-inch bowls and hanging baskets will be available. For more information, call Shelle Kuntz at 250-4645.

The VFW Ladies Auxiliary, Whitefish Post 276, will hold a rummage sale at Stacey’s Storage, on the west side of Baker Avenue, on May 15-16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Saturday

Whitefish United Methodist Church, 1150 Wisconsin Avenue, will offer an all-you-can-eat, old-fashioned barbecue chicken dinner on Saturday, May 16, from 5-7 p.m. with potato salad, coleslaw, beans, dessert and beverages. Cost is $5 per person or $25 per family. Proceeds will benefit the church’s principal mortgage fund. For more information, call Merri Williamson at 730-2065.

The Glacier Institute will holding its annual volunteer work weekend on Saturday and Sunday, May 16 and 17, at its Glacier Park Field Camp, in Glacier National Park one mile north of West Glacier, and its Big Creek Outdoor Education Center, on the North Fork Road, about 21 miles north of Columbia Falls. Volunteers are needed for cleaning, painting, light carpentry and outdoor work, such as raking and sweeping. The Institute will provide lunch, dinner and breakfast for participants. Volunteers may stay over at the camps, but they need to call to reserve a spot. For more information, call 755-1211 or visit online at register@glacierinstitute.org.

The Montana Woman Foundation, a non-profit organization, will hold their fifth annual Garden Tea Party on Saturday, May 16, from 1-4 p.m. at the historic Izaak Walton Inn, on U.S. Highway 2 in Essex. The fundraising event will include music and entertainment and door prizes. Tickets are $45 non-members and $40 Foundation support members. A round-trip Amtrak ride from Whitefish to Essex is $65 non-members and $60 members. For more information, call 755-5753.

The fourth annual Nurturing Center benefit and bead show will take place at Hampton Inn in Kalispell on Saturday, May 16, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Sunday, May 17, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a full line of semi-precious stones, crystals, glass, sterling, copper, books and more.

Paddlefest, the largest paddling event in Montana, will take place at Wayfarer’s State Park in Bigfork on May 16 and 17 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Since 1993, Paddlefest has drawn experienced and “wanna-be” paddlers from throughout the state to demo sea kayaks, canoes and recreational kayaks. Top instructors will give tips for getting started and demonstrate the basics of paddling. For more information, call Anne Clark at 270-4221 or Bobbie Gilmore at 862-9010.

“Echoes of Ireland,” with stories by Pulitzer Prize-winner Frank McCourt and his brother Malachy McCourt and song, music and dance by The Magic Of Ireland, will come to the Whitefish Middle School auditorium on Saturday, May 16, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $45 per person or $30 per person in groups of 30 available at the Whitefish Theatre Company’s O’Shaughnessy box office from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The Montana Woman Foundation, a non-profit organization, will hold their fifth annual Garden Tea Party on Saturday, May 16, from 1-4 p.m. at the historic Izaak Walton Inn, on U.S. Highway 2 in Essex. The fundraising event will include music and entertainment and door prizes. Tickets are $45 non-members and $40 Foundation support members. A round-trip Amtrak ride from Whitefish to Essex is $65 non-members and $60 members. For more information, call 755-5753.

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

North Valley Music School students and faculty will present an evening of chamber music on Tuesday, May 19, at 7 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church, 301 Central Avenue. The concert is a joint effort by the studios of April Lane, Sam Taylor, Michael Sporre and Amy Ponich and will feature traditional folk songs as well as classical selections from composers such as Czerny, Vivaldi, Mozart and Beethoven performed by students and faculty. A $5 per person donation is suggested. Proceeds will benefit the school’s scholarship fund and help children attend summer camps. For more information, visit online at www.northvalleymusicschool.org or call 862-8074.

Wednesday

The Olduvai Forum will present the documentary “Ecovillage Pioneers,” a 50-minute trip into the contemporary ecovillage movement in the United Kingdom, at Clementine’s, in Bigfork, on Wednesday, May 20, at 7 p.m. The film will include visits to small, sustainable communities in Australia and Spain, but most of the film focuses on creating a new ecovillage from scratch in England. There is no admission charge, but donations are appreciated to cover rental of Clementine’s.

The Whitefish Housing Authority and Whitefish Area Land Trust will meet at the Mountain View Manor, 100 East Fourth Street, on Wednesday, May 20. WHA will meet at 4 p.m. and WALT will meet at 6 p.m. Agenda items include a $775,000 application to the Neighborhood Stabilization Program and $80,312 of federal stimulus funds granted to the Mountain View Manor. WHA has already started installing the new windows at the manor.