Beginning Monday, March 16, the Northern Wake Senior Center at 235 East Holding Avenue will offer a six-week introductory class in American Sign Language (ASL) on Mondays from 1 to 3 p.m. Open to all Wake County residents ages 55 and older, Sign Language for Seniors will teach the fundamentals of ASL and its cultural context, along with basic communication skills. The instructor, Julie Regan, has taught ASL in classroom settings and for families of deaf children at their homes for 10 years.  Anyone planning to participate is urged to register in advance by calling the Northern Wake Senior Center at 919-554-4111. A fee of $30 is due at the first class. The ASL class is a new offering at the senior center, which reopened in February following a 20-month renovation and expansion project. The center offers adults ages 55 and older a full schedule of recreational activities, including aerobics,

Beginning this Friday, March 13, the Joyner Park Community Center (JPCC) will be closed for several weeks while crews re-stripe and re-finish the gymnasium floor. The walking track and fitness room, along with JPCC administrative offices, are scheduled to reopen Monday, March 30, at 6 a.m., while the gym will reopen Saturday, April 4, at 8 a.m. While the JPCC is closed, RecCard holders are encouraged to visit Flaherty Park Community Center (FPCC), 1226 N. White St., to participate in open play pickleball, basketball and volleyball, and fitness walk in the gymnasium. FPCC is located less than three miles from the JPCC. For more information about FPCC, including a current open play schedule, visithttp://bit.ly/FlahertyParkCommunityCenter. Although work inside the JPCC will be restricted to the gym only, the closure of the entire facility from March 13-30 is necessary due to fumes that will be produced by the finish applied to the

The Town of Wake Forest and Wake Forest Downtown, Inc. invite area residents to Get Up, Get Out and Get Dirty during the Seventh Annual Dirt Day on Saturday, April 4. Promising something for the entire family, this popular springtime event is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. – rain or shine – along South White Street in downtown Wake Forest. Kids will have a blast planting seeds, painting rocks and exploring a variety of trucks from S. T. Wooten Corp., while adults will have the chance to learn about new techniques in gardening and composting, check out the latest in outdoor activity gear and visit with a variety of vendors offering an array of products and insight. But that’s not all. Dirt Day participants can also view owls and other rescued wildlife, rub elbows with Master Gardeners and witness our bubble artist create giant bubbles you’ll have to see to

The following is a list of how organizations and individuals are working to assure people in and near Wake Forest have food on their table or have a place to get a meal. ** The next event which needs volunteers is the Rise Against Hunger meal-packing event on Saturday, March 28, at the Wake Forest Boys & Girls Club at 325 South Wingate Street. They are expecting 300 volunteers to pack 55,000 meals that will go to emergency response or to feed school children overseas. Rise Against Hunger sends the meals to 70 developing countries. All volunteers have to register at http://events.riseagainsthunger.org/MissionQuake and are asked to bring three to five cans of food that will go to Tri-Area Ministry. Parking is limited at the club so volunteers are asked to park at the Wake Forest Elementary School, 136 West Sycamore Avenue. You can volunteer to help with the set-up at

The official grand opening for the newly renovated Northern Wake Senior Center will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, March 27, and everyone is invited to share the celebration. The grand opening will include a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony, brief remarks by Mayor Vivian Jones and other town officials, tours of the facility, class demonstrations and light refreshments. Jennie Griggs, the senior center director, wants to honor all the town             residents who helped to raise funds and made possible the construction             of that first building.             Allene Williams was one of those along with Rufus Forrest, E.G. Macon Jr.,             Tom Arrington, Inez Hall, Miriam Fonville, Anne Belle Bullock, Luna Marshall,             Nannie Brandon, Worth Jackson, Thelma Wright, Mabel Shearin, Hope             Newsom, David Hafer, Hattie Merritt, Ida Holding and Bertha Harris, the             retired school teacher who gave $250,000 in the spring of 1993, money             that