The Town of Wake Forest and several local veterans’ organizations will resume their monthly flag-raising ceremonies in Town Hall’s Centennial Plaza on Monday, April 1, at 11 a.m. The 52nd Wake Forest Memorial Flag-Raising Ceremony will honor David Cooke, who served our nation in the US Marine Corps. Members of Cooke’s family have been invited to participate in the ceremony, which will include patriotic songs, special remarks, a memorial wreath laying, and the ceremonial flag-raising. During the service, the Wake Forest Fire Department Honor Guard will raise the American flag and the U.S. Marine Corps service flag in recognition of the military branch in which Cooke served. Both flags will fly in Centennial Plaza throughout April. Photographs and other remembrances of Cooke will also be displayed in Centennial Plaza during the ceremony, then in the Town Hall lobby through the end of the month. Presented by the Town of Wake Forest and

The Wake Forest Police Department (WFPD) and Torchy’s Tacos, 505 Dr. Calvin Jones Hwy., are again joining forces to raise awareness and money for Special Olympics North Carolina (SONC). Area residents are invited to support the cause by visiting Torchy’s Tacos on Monday, March 25, between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. For everyone who either mentions the fundraiser or presents the fundraiser flyer, Torchy’s will donate 15 percent of their food and beverage sales to support Special Olympics. To download the fundraiser flyer, visit https://bit.ly/WFPDSpecialOlympics. The WFPD also accepts SONC donations year-round at https://bit.ly/WFPDSpecialOlympics. All funds raised go to SONC as part of The Law Enforcement Torch Run. For more information, contact Sgt. J. McArthur at 919-554-6150 or jmcarthur@wakeforestnc.gov. SONC is one of the largest Special Olympics programs in the world with nearly 40,000 registered athletes who train and compete in year-round programs in 20 different sports. The mission of Special Olympics is to

The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department is pleased to introduce an honorary/memorial bench donation opportunity at the new Holding Park Inclusive Playground, 133 W. Owen Ave. The playground opened on March 2. Now, the PRCR Department has designated eight benches within the playground as available for honorary or memorial donor funding. The cost of each bench is $1,000, including installation (by the PRCR Department) and donor inscription. The Honorary/Memorial Bench Donation program offers a unique and meaningful way for residents to honor and remember friends and loved ones, promote their company, recognize a civic group, or commemorate a special event. For more information, visit https://bit.ly/PRCRBenchDonationProgram or email PRCR Maintenance Manager Randy Hoyle at rhoyle@wakeforestnc.gov. # The Wake Forest Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Department is pleased to introduce an honorary/memorial bench donation opportunity at the new Holding Park Inclusive Playground, 133 W. Owen Ave. The playground opened on March 2.

Save the date! Join us on Sunday, May 5, for the Second Annual Preserve the Connections event. This is an event that aims to bring together vendors, artisans, neighbors, and charities. The idea behind this event is to strengthen the connections within our communities. Regina Jones and Kimberly Wieberg, both residents of Preserve at Smith Creek and small business entrepreneurs, have teamed up to organize an event that you just can’t miss. Regina, from OnWire Real Estate, says that she is “excited to connect with community members, entrepreneurs, and the two amazing charities that will benefit from this wonderful event.” This year we have added a three level sponsorship opportunity.  Hearth Counseling & Consulting ( hearthcc.com ) is the first to agree to support the event by being a vendor sponsor.  Vendor Sponsorship is set up into three levels to fit any size of company/vendor/organization: Bronze Level: $100 or more  donation receives social

Well, my friends, the local numbers are in for February 2024, and I am sure that you have been hearing the news about the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) settlement of a class action lawsuit. As far as the NAR settlement goes, how this will impact our local market is yet to be determined. I will clarify a couple of things that have been highlighted by the media and are misleading. Now for some local Real Estate news: Here is an update for the end of February: A year ago, the average sale price of a single-family home in the Triangle was $461,271 and increased $28,562 to $489,833 by the end of February. That is a 6.2% increase. To be accurate, it has not been a steady increase. In fact, sale prices peaked in July at $528,051 for a 14.5% increase over February of last year. Over the last 6