Author to offer lessons from pets

A scene from the Fairy House Tour, held this weekend in Portsmouth., N.H.

Cheryl Richardson (inset) talks about how adopting a cat affected her life, and the lessons pets can teach us, at the annual meeting of the Merrimack River Feline Rescue Society in Newburyport on Wednesday.

Richardson, of West Newbury, is a frequent guest on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and author of "Take Time for Your Life," "Life Makeovers," "Stand Up for Your Life," and "The Unmistakable Touch of Grace."

She also is one of the many people who have adopted a cat from the Merrimack Valley Feline Rescue Society in Salisbury, a nonprofit volunteer organization that aids feral and domestic cats and kittens by supporting no-kill programs and pet adoptions.

The event is from 6 to 9 p.m., at The Phoenix Room of Newburyport. Tickets are $50 and include a buffet dinner and cash bar. Tickets for a private reception with Richardson, from 5 to 6 p.m., as well as dinner, are $100.

People attending the event also will have the opportunity to tour the society's new mobile spay and neuter clinic.

Call 978-462-0760.

FAIRY TRAILS: The fourth annual Fairy House Tour, to benefit local nonprofits, is this weekend in Portsmouth, N.H.

The tour is the inspiration of Tracy Kane, children's book author and illustrator of the award-winning Fairy Houses Series. First introduced on islands off the coast of Maine, fairy houses are a New England tradition. They must be built using only natural materials, while doing no harm to anything that is growing.

Kane, who conducts workshops on building fairy houses, will be on hand at the tour.

This year's theme is Houses in Fairy Tales and Literature. The self-guided tour takes visitors to historic locations, including Strawbery Banke Museum, the Wentworth-Gardner and Tobias Lear houses, the Governor Langdon House, and Prescott Park.

Visitors also are invited to build their own houses in a fairy house village on Peirce Island. Local artisans exhibit their creations at the Sheafe Warehouse in Prescott Park. Dancers from the Southern New Hampshire Dance Theater perform a ballet at Prescott Park at 1 and 3 p.m. each day.

Advance tickets are $10; $8 for senior citizens; $4 for children, and available at prescottpark.org. Tickets purchased the day of the tour are $15, $10, and $5. Proceeds benefit local nonprofit organizations, including those featured on the tour.

The event runs Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. each day, and is held rain or shine. Visit fairyhouses.com.

MARINE SCIENCE TOUR: The Marine Science Center in Nahant, a research and educational facility of Northeastern University, holds its annual open house from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.

The event features guided tide pool and geology walks; tours of the center for vertebrae studies, World War II bunker, and the solar observatory; marine research and marine life exhibits; beach cleanup; and activities for all ages.

The goal of the center's outreach programs is to enhance the public's awareness and knowledge of the role of oceans in scientific discovery and medical advances. Call 781-581-7370.

WHO'S WHAT WHERE: Cynthia Merkle of Swampscott and Shirley Singleton of Essex are cochairwomen of the American Red Cross of Massachusetts Bay's annual Women Who Care: A Leadership Breakfast Tuesday at the Westin Copley Place in Boston.

The event brings together more than 600 of the region's female leaders. Merkle is executive vice president and chief operational risk officer at Eastern Bank. She's a graduate of Endicott College in Beverly and Bryant College in Rhode Island. Singleton cofounded Edgewater Technology of Delaware in 1992. She has served as president and chief executive officer of the company, and is currently chairwoman. . . . Kara Flynn of Melrose recently received a $1,000 check from the Beverly LeBlanc Memorial Scholarship Fund of Saugus for her strong academic record, and commitment to protecting the environment by organizing community-based cleanups. The scholarship is funded and administered by the family of the late Beverly LeBlanc and the Saugus River Watershed Council. Flynn is a freshman at Providence College.

Items can be sent to wdkilleen@gmail.com. Photos can be sent, as jpeg attachments, to globenorth@globe.com.