The Wake Forest Human Relations Council is celebrating Black History Month in 2022 by once again offering residents the chance to recognize local African Americans who have made a difference enhancing and improving the quality of life in their community, family, church, business, organization or other group. From now through Saturday, Jan. 15, the HRC will accept nominations for Wake Forest residents to be recognized for their contributions. The online nomination form is available at http://bit.ly/WFBHMHonorRoll. Wake Forest residents, former residents, and business and community stakeholders that identify as African American are eligible. Nominees should demonstrate leadership and integrity and be respected by their peers. In addition, potential nominees may be recognized for one or more of the following actions: Helping neighbors and fellow Wake Forest citizens; Demonstrating hospitality and/or concern for others; Supporting local businesses and charities; Promoting a sense of community in their neighborhood and beyond; Serving the community

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada recently named the Town of Wake Forest as the recipient of the GFOA’s Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for its fiscal year 2021-22 annual budget. This marks the eighth consecutive year Wake Forest has earned the GFOA honor. The award represents a significant achievement by the Town and reflects the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting. To receive the budget award, Wake Forest was required to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effective budget presentation. These guidelines are designed to assess how well an entity’s budget serves as a policy document, financial plan, operations guide and communications device. Budget documents must be rated “proficient” in all four categories and the 14 mandatory criteria within those categories to receive the award. When a Distinguished Budget Presentation Award is granted, a Certificate of Recognition

The Wake Forest Film Festival (WFFF) has announced its 2022 program lineup scheduled for Friday and Saturday, March 4-5, at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre. Entitled “A Light in the Forest,” the two-day festival will engage film enthusiasts with more than 30 films of all lengths and genres, including short and full-length, documentary, horror, animation, and student. Intended for both the general public and film professionals, the film festival is an opportunity for filmmakers to showcase their films in a unique location to a discerning audience.  To view the complete two-day schedule, including movie titles and times, visit http://bit.ly/WFFilmFestival. All-access screening passes are on sale for $15 each and will allow unlimited access to the schedule of films throughout the two-day festival, along with question-and-answer sessions with industry professionals on Friday, March 4, at 9:30 p.m. and Saturday, March 5, at 3:30 p.m.  Tickets may be purchased online in advance at http://bit.ly/WFFilmFestival.

You’re invited to join Mayor Vivian Jones for the 2022 State of the Town Address & Dinner on Monday, Feb. 21, at 6 p.m. Presented by the Wake Forest Rotary Club, the event will take place at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, 405 S. Brooks St. During her remarks, Mayor Jones will reflect on the successes and challenges of the Wake Forest community over the past year. She will also outline the goals the town will strive towards in 2022. Advance tickets are $15 per person and include a catered meal and dinner music by the Heritage High School Jazz Ensemble. Tickets can be purchased online with a Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover credit card at https://bit.ly/WFStateofTown. Tickets may also be purchased at the Renaissance Centre Box Office with cash, check or credit card. A processing fee will be added to the cost of any ticket purchased with a credit

The Town of Wake Forest is encouraging residents to make recycling a holiday tradition by recycling their live Christmas trees. Beginning Monday, Dec. 27, the Town will collect and recycle live Christmas trees from residential homes according to its normal yard waste collection schedule. The trees will be ground into mulch and made available for free to residents upon request. All Wake Forest residents whose yard waste is collected by the Town may participate in the “Treecycling” program. To recycle your Christmas tree, please remove all decorations, tinsel, nails, stands and bags from the tree and set it behind the curb for collection. Residents are reminded that artificial trees cannot be recycled. By recycling Christmas trees, Wake Forest saves valuable space at the landfill. For more information, email the Public Works Department at publicworksdept@wakeforestnc.gov. #

Auditions for “The Diary of Anne Frank” The play will be presented by Forest Moon Theater, and the auditions are set for Jan. 18 and 19 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at the Renaissance Centre. Roles are available for actors ages 14 and older, regardless of race or gender. Details are available at https://forestmoontheater.org/auditions/ Shades of Gospel, Saturday, Feb. 5, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m Join us for a celebration of Gospel music that connects community members of all cultures, ages, and backgrounds! Gospel singer and pastor John P. Kee will bring his soulful husky voice, a six-piece band and back-up singers to the Renaissance Centre stage as a part of the Shades of Gospel series. Kee is the pastor of New Life Fellowship Center in Charlotte. He grew up in church music, playing both jazz and gospel on piano in his early teens in Durham. After high school at the North

Started in 2010, Youth Leadership Wake Forest is a year-long program for 10th-12th grade students who have demonstrated leadership abilities and have interest in learning about our community. Our mission is for participants to assume leadership roles in our schools and to become more involved in our civic, cultural, economic development, and philanthropic organizations. There are two schedule options for interested students: the summer Youth Leadership Academy and the year-long Youth Leadership Wake Forest program. Both programs require an application, but only the year-long program requires community references and interviews conducted by a selection committee. Please note that class sizes are limited. The tuition cost for this program is $500, and scholarships are available. To find out more and apply online, click here! We are always looking for young leaders for this program. To nominate a student, email us!   * *  * * The Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce is