The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department has a message for folks who enjoy harvesting pecans from the E. Carroll Joyner Park pecan grove: “Please leave it to Mother Nature to get the pecans on the ground.” In recent days the parks and rec department has learned about the lengths to which some Joyner Park visitors are going to “encourage” the pecans to come loose from the trees. Town staff members have heard tales of pecan lovers shaking and climbing the trees, breaking branches, and even throwing objects into the trees, all in an effort to get the pecans on the ground. The pecans will naturally fall to the ground when they are fully mature; climbing the trees can damage them. Out of concern for public safety, the officials are urging visitors – in a nutshell (no pun intended) – to please cut it out. “We don’t want

The Neck of the Woods variety performance series returns to the Wake Forest Renaissance Center Friday, Oct. 21, at 7:30 p.m. Neck features emerging local artists including actors, dancers, musicians, comedians, writers and spoken-word artists and is presented and sponsored by Wake Forest Arts. Friday’s Neck of the Woods will feature musicians Claire Williams and Robert Redfield; the Wake Forest Storytellers (Robin Kitson, Lenny Weismeier, and Drew Bridges); musicians Joe Woodson and Art Champagne; and the Happy Accidents Improvisation Troupe. Claire Williams and Robert Redfield have been performing alternative rock in and around Wake Forest for over six years. The duo met at Give to Live Guitar Studios and have performed together, and as part of other groups, at several area festivals and events. Wake Forest Storytellers is composed of members of the Northern Wake Senior Center group led by Drew and Lauren Bridges. The Storytellers, which meet twice each month at the

Wake Electric, the member-owned cooperative that furnishes power to a substantial portion of Wake Forest and six counties outside Wake County, will hold a workshop about electric vehicles the morning of Wednesday, Oct. 26, at its office in Wake Forest. Participants will learn how the vehicles work, what the benefits of driving one are, and the impacts of having electric vehicles in your community. They will also have the chance to test drive an electric car. The event from 9 to 11:45 a.m. Oct. 26 is a joint effort with Advanced Energy, a Raleigh-based company working with member utilities and co-ops on energy efficiency projects. Wake Electric has invited Wake Forest town officials and Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce staff. The event is open to the public who should register individually at https://www.advancedenergy.org/portal/registration/ev_workshop_oct2016/. To get to 100 South Franklin Street, the address for the utility’s customer service center, enter

The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department will sponsor the inaugural R.I.S.E. (Rise, Inspire, Succeed, Empower) Women’s Empowerment Workshop on Saturday, Nov. 5, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Alston-Massenburg Center at 416 North Taylor Street. Designed for young women from 12 to 22, the free workshop will be hosted by Wake Forest Commissioner Anne Reeve and PRCR Director Ruben Wall. A free lunch will be served. R.I.S.E. will feature five facilitators discussing topics of importance to young women: Rosemary Pimentel – Mirror, Mirror on the Wall Sheila Tolbert – Being a BOSS: Leadership Development Lorna Harris – Beauty: Inside and Out Valerie Frazier – Unconditional LOVE Lisa Hayes – Empowered to Overcome A limited number of seats are available. Pre-registration is required by emailing Event Coordinator Lisa Jacobs at ljacobs@wakeforestnc.gov. For more information, contact Lisa Jacobs at 919-556-7063 or ljacobs@wakeforestnc.gov.

The Wake Forest Renaissance Centre for the Arts will offer up two days’ worth of time-honored film favorites during theBig Screen Classics Movie Marathon Weekend Friday and Saturday, Nov. 4-5. Free and open to the public, the movie screenings will begin each day at 10 a.m. and continue at 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Concessions, including popcorn and soft drinks, will be available for purchase. Here’s your chance to experience an entire weekend of unique and universal works of cinema that have transcended time and trends, with indefinable quality. Due to the terms and conditions outlined in its agreement with the Motion Picture Licensing Corporation, the Renaissance Centre is not permitted to announce the film titles to the general public. However, the Renaissance Centre is publicizing the movie titles through its email subscription service and the Special Events Hotline. To obtain the film titles for the Movie Marathon