The Wake Forest Potato Drop which was to be held Saturday, Feb. 23, has been rescheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, March 9, with hopes for better weather. The Northern Community Food Security Team and several other Wake County organizations committed to a sustainable food future will host the Wake Forest Potato Drop in the parking lot of St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church, 520 West Holding Avenue. Organizers say they need 500 area volunteers to bag 60,000 pounds of white potatoes that will be distributed to dozens of food pantries across our region and state. Volunteers of all ages are needed to bag the potatoes and work alongside the Wake Forest Waste Minimization & Compost Team to remove the potato scraps. Local civic groups and community organizations are especially encouraged to participate. The event will also offer a great opportunity for local students to earn community service hours. Anyone planning

On Mondays at 6 p.m. from March 25 through April 29 local people are invited to the Alston-Massenburg Center at 416 North Taylor Street for a program called Beyond Bites, six weeks of free cooking classes to help them make better nutritional decisions, save money on groceries and improve your overall well-being and that of your family. The classes are limited to 25 adults who are encouraged to bring their children 5 and older. Preference will be given to residents in Wake Forest’s East End community. The classes are sponsored by Wake County, the Northeast Community Coalition, the Northern Community Food Security Team, the Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Program (EFNEP). To register, either see Garrett at the center or call, email or text Paula Norris, ppnorris@ncsu.edu or 919-914-4115.

The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department is partnering with Premier World Discovery to host public information meetings on Thursday, Feb. 28, and Thursday March 7, to share details about upcoming trips to Cape Cod and the Islands and San Antonio. Both sessions are scheduled for 6 p.m. in the Ground Floor Meeting Room at Town Hall, 301 S. Brooks St. The room is most easily accessed via the facility’s Taylor Street entrance. A Premier World Discovery (PWD) representative will be on hand at the meetings to present a slide show and answer questions about these trips. Open to area residents ages 21 and older, both trips will be led by PWD staff. Scheduled from Sunday-Saturday, Aug. 4-10, the excursion to Cape Cod and the Islands will include tours of Nantucket Island, Boston, Plymouth Plantation, Plymouth Rock, Martha’s Vineyard, Heritage Plantation, Sandwich and more. The cost of the

Wake County’s Soil and Water Conservation District wants to help local high school students learn about the importance of conserving natural resources, so it is offering full scholarships for qualifying teens to attend the 2019 Resource Conservation Workshop. “The workshop is an outstanding opportunity for students to get their hands dirty and learn about conservation,” said Wake District Director Dale Threatt-Taylor. “They can even lay the groundwork for a career in conservation by meeting local professors and professionals and earning scholarship money for college.” Rising sophomores, juniors and seniors are invited to apply for a $525 scholarship to cover the full cost of attending the workshop, which takes place from Sunday, June 23, to Friday, June 28, at N.C. State University. Applications are due by 5 p.m. on Friday, March 8. The week-long workshop introduces teens to various fields of natural resources management, such as soil and water conservation, forestry, water quality and

When someone you love gets a diagnosis of any kind of dementia, you have a choice.  What kind of journey do you want your loved one and yourself to take?  This talk is about your experience of the disease and how to make that much better. It will take place Thursday, March 21, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., one of several future events the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre is hosting to educate area residents about Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. Each event is designed to offer local families the opportunity to learn about dozens of dementia-related programs, services, products, and resources – all in one location. The Renaissance Centre is presenting these sessions in collaboration with the Alzheimer’s Association Eastern NC Chapter and Wake Forest SING as part of our commitment towards being a dementia-friendly community. A future evening caregiver workshop will be offered on “Identifying the Enemy” on May 23.