LEWISTON — This month The Center for Wisdom’s Women continues its popular writing and poetry sessions. On Mondays at 10 a.m. there is a writers workshop. On Tuesdays, Bates College junior Amanda Solche leads a poetry lunch where the group talks about an empowering poem. A new diary writing workshop is scheduled noon on Tuesday, Oct. 13.

Oct. 4 is the Feast Day of St. Francis, the patron saint of animals and the poor. That morning at 10 a.m., attendees will learn about St. Francis and, with the help of Greater Androscoggin Humane Society, will talk about how to best care for cats and dogs and learn about resources to help with veterinary expenses.

October is Domestic Violence Prevention Monty. Victoria from Safe Voices (formerly AWAP) will be at the center at 10 a.m. Oct. 20 for a program called “Heart on a Sleeve.” Participants will decorate T-shirts and explore how  relationships shape who we are.

Other highlighted programs this month include a class on bed bugs, how they spread and how to get rid of them, led by student nurse interns from USM LA College on Oct. 13 and a SARK session on Oct. 15, designed to nurture creativity. Two local excursions are planned, one to Gallery 5 on the morning of Oct. 11 to visit the “Etchings and Fine Art Prints” exhibit, that includes work by center volunteer Sarah Shepley, and on the morning of Oct. 14 a stroll down Lisbon Street to visit African stores and a cafe.

Programs for personal nurture will be offered on Tuesdays afternoons and include a class on massage basics at 1 p.m. on Oct. 11 with Kim Jacques from Revelation Massage, and Wisdom Circle on Oct. 13 and 27 at 1 p.m. with Sarah Wood from the Sexual Assault Crisis Center. Student nurses are available every Thursday morning for blood pressure and weight checks and for one-on-one conversations about health concerns.

Throughout October, the center continues to operate from Trinity Church on the corner of Bates and Spruce streets while renovations take place at the Blake Street facility. During the week of Oct. 24, the center will be closed while moving back to its facility.

The center welcomes all women and programs are offered free of charge.

For a complete calendar of activities, see www.wisdomswomen.org. For information or to volunteer, contact the Executive Director, Klara Tammany at 513-3922.

As a summer project at The Center for Wisdom’s Women was making “Wisdom Boxes.”  Each handmade box is unique, as are the women who made them. The one-of-a-kind boxes contain words of wisdom inside: affirmations, prayers and/or blessings. The boxes are currently available at Revelation Massage in Auburn and the Lymphomation Center in Lewiston, as well as at the center for a donation of $3 a box or two boxes for $5. All donations support the center.

To participate in creating the boxes, come to the Center, currently located in Trinity Church, at 247 Bates St. The center is open weekday mornings beginning at 9.

Artist Sarah Shepley taught the women how to create the boxes. She also donates all the specially designed papers and many of the embellishments. Shepley joins the group every Wednesday morning.

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