Mason jar cookie class at EaT Kitchen

LIBERTY, NY — An intergenerational opportunity to craft an easy and tasty gift of Mason jar cookies is offered on Friday, December 11. Cornell Cooperative Extension Sullivan County (CCESC) will host this class from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Entrepreneurial and Teaching (EaT) Kitchen at its Gerald J. Skoda Extension Education Center on 64 Ferndale-Loomis Rd.

Chef and entrepreneur Mary Magnetico of Chestnut Creek Baked Goods in Grahamsville will lead this hands-on workshop on making cookie mixes in Mason jars that participants can give as unique gifts or enjoy as a holiday treat. Each attendee will take home two jars: one oatmeal raisin cookie mix and one chocolate chip cookie mix.

The cost is $15 per adult or $10 per child. Space is limited and pre-registration with non-refundable payment is required. Registration and more information can be obtained by calling CCESC at 845/292-6180, emailing sullivan@cornell.edu, or visiting www.sullivancce.org. Payment can be made in advance by check, cash, or credit. Additional donations for CCESC programs are appreciated.

Zen retreat in Honesdale

HONESDALE, PA — Two Rivers Zen Community (TRZC) will hold a Rohatsu Sesshin, or “Morning Star Retreat,” from Friday, December 11 through Sunday, December 13 in celebration of Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment.

This year’s Rohatsu will conclude with a special event: Seiso Paul Cooper, director and head teacher of TRZC, will receive Dharma Transmission, the culmination of many years of study and practice of the Buddha way. Roshi Diane Martin, head teacher and founder of Udumbara National Sangha, will officiate at this ceremony, which will be followed by an informal celebratory luncheon.

In the dharma transmission ceremony, Cooper will take his place as a successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples traced back over 2,500 years ago to Shakyamuni Buddha, and as such marks an auspicious and historic occasion for Soto Zen Buddhism in the Upper Delaware Region.

Cooper is an associate member of the Soto Zen Buddhist Association. He has studied and practiced in both the Soto and Rinzai Zen traditions and received precepts in 2000. He is a practicing psychoanalyst and an award-winning author and poet. Visit tworiverszen.org.