*The Wake Forest Farmers Market will be open from 10 a.m. to noon this Saturday, Nov. 23, in the employee parking lot along South Taylor Street behind Wake Forest Town Hall.
Local farmers and artisans will have meats, seasonal vegetables, bread, baked good and other local wares for sale. See the market’s Facebook page for information about the vendors and sign up for a weekly notice about the offerings that Saturday. Remember the Wake Forest Farmers Market is unusual in that it is owned by the farmers who sell their wares there.
*Monday Night Bingo at The Factory is hosted by the Wake Forest Kiwanis Club in the Mill Room from 7 to 9:30 p.m. every Monday night. All profits support the club’s projects for children. Visit www.wakeforestbingo.com for more information.
*Tri-Area Ministry Food Pantry at 149 East Holding Avenue is now open from 9 to 11 a.m. every third Saturday along with its regular hours on Mondays and Wednesdays from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for food distribution. It serves about 700 families in Wake Forest, Youngsville, Rolesville and their surrounding areas. Call 919-556-7144 for information about receiving food, volunteering and donations. You can send donations to Tri-Area at PO Box 1394, Wake Forest NC 27588.
*Hope House Weekly Food Pantry distributes food at 1 p.m. every Thursday. Hope House volunteers pick up the food from the Food Bank of Eastern and Central North Carolina and the house typically has vegetables, fruits, salad packages and breads but sometimes does have meat, eggs, fruit juice and milk. Hope House is at 334 North Allen Road. For more information, call Norma Bennekin at 919-263-1007.
*Hope House serves a free nutritious filling dinner to everyone who needs one at 6:30 p.m. every day except Saturday. Hope House is at 334 North Allen Road.
*Joshua Lozoff’s Life is Magic will be onstage at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre for two performances on Friday, Nov. 22, at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. See all the details in this week’s issue.
*The 14th annual Gobbler’s Run 5K will take place Thanksgiving morning, Nov. 28, at the Wake Forest Boys and Girls Club at 325 South Wingate Street. Be advised that it is capped at 2,300 runners this year so register early. Register online at https://gobblersrun.itsyourrace.com.
*The Letters for Santa will be placed at the Jones Plaza, the intersection of South White Street and East Jones Avenue, on Friday, Nov. 29. Children of all ages are urged to bring their letters there between Nov. 29 and Dec. 24 for immediate delivery to the North Pole. Letters received by Sunday, Dec. 15, will receive a personal response from Santa Claus. No postage is required but the letters should include a return address.
*The Wake Forest Community Christmas Dinner will be held at 6 p.m. Monday, Dec. 2, at The Forks Cafeteria. Tickets are $15 each.
*Calls from Santa will be made Thursday, Dec. 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. Children 3 through 9 can receive a personal telephone call from Santa if parents register on line – available at wakeforestnc.gov by searching “calls from Santa” – between Dec. 1 and Dec. 5. There is no charge but all calls must be local.
*The Lighting of Wake Forest on Friday, Dec. 6, in the Centennial Courtyard in from of the Wake Forest Town Hall is the official start of the local holiday season. From 6 to 8:30 p.m. there will be the lighting of the town’s Christmas tree, the arrival of Santa in a fire truck, performances by local choirs and maybe even hot cocoa if the weather is right. It is free and open for everyone. Pictures with Santa will be offered from 6:45 to 8:30 p.m. but there are a limited number of tickets available for that night. Guests must pick up a ticket in the town hall lobby and line up for the pictures at the indicated time.
*The Holiday Artisans Market will be held Saturday, Dec. 7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. both inside and outside the Wake Forest Renaissance Center at 405 South Brooks Street. There will be over 50 vendors for this juried showcase for area craftspeople and artisans.
*The Downtown Holiday Open House for businesses along and near South White Street will take place Saturday, Dec. 7. Merchants will have special offers and complimentary refreshments all day. There will be pictures with Santa from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the second floor event gallery at The Cotton Company, 306 South White Street.
*The Wake Forest Christmas Parade will step out at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 14, before streets filled with happy families. There will be information later about parking for the event that always brings thousands of people to South White Street. Pictures with Santa will be available before the parade from 10 a.m. to noon at Fidelity Bank, 231 South White Street.
*Live from Nashville – Merry Country Christmas will be at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre for the Arts for three performances Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 14 and 15. See article in this issue for times and tickets.
*A Light in the Forest, the second annual Wake Forest Film Festival, will be held Friday and Saturday on March 13 and 14, and tickets will go on sale Nov. 1.
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