Save the Date: The first program of the Evening Branch of the Women’s Alliance (EBWA) will be on “Sex, Birds, and Rock ‘n Roll: The Wild World of Bird Courtship”—September 24, 6:30-9pm, in the church dining room.

Our speaker will be Samantha Carouso Peck, PhD, Head Ornithologist and Educator at the Grassland Bird Trust.

Did you know birds can clap, backflip, tango, and inflate themselves? That some build 14 different nests so their mate can choose the one they like best? — Join us for a lively look at bird courtship as Dr. Samantha Carouso Peck describes the weird and wild behaviors of birds from around the world when trying to attract mates. Dr. Peck is an expert in bird communication and cognition, having lived on six different continents in search of interesting birds. After focusing on Animal Behavior and Communication as an undergraduate, for her doctoral dissertation she studied how young birds use feedback from their parents and peers, to guide their song learning. Dr. Peck’s work has been published in Current Biology, Philosophical Transactions, Animal Behaviour, and Scientific American. She is currently with the Grassland Bird Trust, a non-profit conservation organization in Fort Edward, New York. — All who identify as women are invited to join us for this fascinating presentation.

We will serve coffee, tea, and dessert before the program. We urge you to arrive by 6:30 pm for time to socialize before the program begins at 7 pm. Following the presentation, there will be time for questions. Networking (when each person may share something of interest with the group) will begin around 8:15, and the meeting will end no later than 9 pm.

While reservations are not required, in order to have some idea of how many people to expect, it would be helpful if you would email Gabrielle Reals by Tuesday, September 22, to let her know you are coming. (If you forget to do this, we urge you to come anyway!)

As a reminder, in order for us to be able to pay our speakers an honorarium, we need your help. Please consider subscribing by bringing a $30 check made out to EBWA to the upcoming meeting (or contact Carol Furman to learn where to send your check). Those who have subscribed may attend the in-person meetings for free. All others will be asked to contribute $5 toward our costs, at the door.

Looking ahead: The focus of our October 29th program will be “Artificial Intelligence: Pros and Cons,” and our speaker will be Haidy Brown, PhD, Professor of Management, The Sage Colleges.

To see the full calendar of EBWA programs for 2026-2027, click here.