</i>Melrose: Today at 3 p.m. the Melrose Masonic Trust presents the annual Organ Concert of classical and seasonal music by Richard DeMone at the Masonic Building, at Main and West Wyoming streets. Also a sing-along. Donations accepted to benefit the MHS Scholarship Fund. Call 781-665-4747.

DANCESMC

Peabody: The Carmel Club for widows and widowers will hold a dance on Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the K of C Hall, Main Street. Music by the Entertainers. Singles and guests welcome. For information write to Carmel Club, P.O. Box 367, Salem, MA 01970.

Wakefield: A contra dance will be held today from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Wakefield, 326 Main St. For all levels and ages. Admission $5, children $4, family $12. Call 781-646-2321.

FILMSMC

Haverhill: ''The Legend of Chad,'' first-place winner in the short film category at the Woods Hole Film Festival, and coproduced by two NECC faculty members, will be shown Dec. 5 at noon in Room E-155 at Northern Essex Community College, Elliott Way. Free. Call 978-556-3862.

LECTURES

& FORUMSMC

Beverly: Sherwin H. Ritter of The New England Osteoporosis Center will present ''Osteoporosis'' on Dec. 3 for the Monday morning lecture series at Beverly Public Library, 32 Essex St., Coffee and tea served at 9:30 a.m. Program begins at 9:45 a.m. Free. Call 978-921-6062.

Haverhill: On Dec. 7, the 60th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, a special program ''December 7/September 11: Two Dates that will not be Forgotten'' will feature four WWII veterans who will share their wartime experiences and talk about the two attacks on America. Program begins at 1 p.m. in the Library Conference Area at Northern Essex Community College, Elliott Way (exit 52 off Interstate 495). Call 978-556-3862.

Salem: Louis Menand of The New Yorker and The New York Review of Books will speak on ''Pragmatism and War: American Thought After the Civil War, During the Cold War, and at the Beginning of the War Against Terrorism,'' today at 4 p.m. at Hamilton Hall, 9 Chestnut St. Admission $12, seniors and students $10. Sponsored by The Salem Athenaeum and The First Church (Unitarian) in Salem. For tickets call 978-744-2540.

Topsfield: The Massachusetts Audubon Society's Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary will host its 5th annual Natural History Conference on Dec. 8 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the barn at the sanctuary, 87 Perkins Row. Free. Preregistration required. Call 978-887-9264.

LITERARY EVENTSMC

Newburyport: Imagine Studios presents the Spoken Word Night Series at Middle Street Foods in downtown Newburyport featuring poetry, prose, song, and open mike, on first Thursdays, 7-9 p.m. Featured reader on Dec. 6 is Christopher Michaels, official poet laureate of Newburyport. Sign up for open mike at 6:30 p.m. Admission by donation. Food and beverages available. Call 978-834-0367 or visit www.imaginestudios.org.

Wenham: John Canady and Daniel Bosch will give a poetry reading in Gregory Auditorium in the Barrington Center for the Arts at Gordon College, 255 Grapevine Road, on Dec. 7 at 8 p.m. Free. Call 978-927-2300, ext. 4753.

MUSEUMS

& HISTORIC SITESMC

Essex: Essex Historical Society and Shipbuilding Museum, 66 Main St. (Route 133). Julie Towne will give a lecture on ''Essex County Greenbelt Association,'' Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. Admission $6. The museum offers a course on how to build a Greenland-style kayak paddle, Dec. 11 and 12 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Course fee $70. Hours: Thursday-Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. Call for appointment for research or group tours. Partial handicap accessibility. Admission $4; seniors, $3; children 6-12, $2.50; Essex residents and children under 6, free; families $10. Call 978-768-7541 or visit www.essexshipbuildingmuseum.com.

Gloucester: Cape Ann Historical Association, 27 Pleasant St. Susan Erony and Erika Marquardt, the two women who created the exhibition ''Have We Gone Too Far?,'' will read from journals they kept during the project, Dec. 8 at 3 p.m. A reception follows the readings. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Admission $5, retirees $4.50, students $3.50, children under 6 free. Call 978-283-0455.

Salem: Peabody Essex Museum, at Liberty and Essex streets. Origami master Michael LaFosse will teach the ''Holiday Origami Ornaments Workshop,'' a free family activity, today from 1 to 4 p.m. in Phillips Library. A Jazz Soiree featuring The Rico Barr Trio will be held Dec. 8 at 7:30 p.m. in Phillips Library. Tickets $16. Slide talk and gallery tour ''Indian Market: New Directions in Southwestern Native American Pottery,'' Dec. 6 at 1 p.m. Tickets $13; under age 16, $6. Reservations required. Museum admission, $10; students age 17 and older and seniors, $8; 16 and under, free. Salem residents free. House tours only, $6. The Phillips Library is at 132 Essex St. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m. For information and reservations call 978-745-9500, ext. 3011. Visit www.pem.org.

MUSICMC

Danvers: An evening of song and prayer features vocalist/guitarist John Polce, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. at St. Mary's Church, 24 Conant St. Free. Call 978-774-0340. *