*The Wake Forest Farmers Market will be open from 10 a.m. to noon (winter hours) Saturday, March 31, in Renaissance Plaza on Brooks Street. Local farmers and artisans will offer meats, seasonal vegetables, bread and baked goods and other local wares. See the market’s Facebook page for information about the vendors.
*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.
*The Memorial Flag-Raising Ceremonies honoring deceased Wake Forest area veterans will resume on Monday, April 2, at 11 a.m.
*The Old Campus Trek, when current Wake Forest University students and alumni return to the Wake Forest College campus, will occur Saturday, April 7, beginning with a program by Mary Tribble, WFU ’82 and a direct descendant to the first president. She will discuss the courtship of her great-, great-, great-, great-grandparents, Samuel and Sally Wait. There will be guided tours of the campus and a picnic lunch. In the afternoon Dr. Ed Wilson will reflect on Wake Forest’s past and discuss its future with two current students. All activities except the tours are at the Wake Forest Historical Museum on North Main Street.
*Dirt Day, a family-friendly event on South White Street, will feature demonstrations and activities about gardening, landscaping, camping and exercise on Saturday, April 7, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. More details will be added closer to the event.
*Friday Night on White begins Friday, April 13, and continues every second Friday each month through Sept. 14. From 6 to 9 p.m. bands will entertain while the party-goers dance, chat with their neighbors or meet new friends. Beer and wine will be available for purchase. The opening band is the Magic Pipers.
*The Taylor Street Park Sprayground will be officially opened at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 14, with a dedication and ribbon cutting. There will be light refreshments. See article in this issue for more information.
*The Trentini Foundation Banquet will be held Saturday, April 14. The highlight of the event is the announcement of the scholarships for Wake Forest and Heritage graduating seniors.
*Wake Forest will celebrate Arbor Day on Saturday, April 21, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in E. Carroll Joyner Park with a give-away of free tree seedlings.
*Shred-It, the town-sponsored paper-shredding event will be held for the third year on Monday, April 23, in the Renaissance Plaza parking lot from noon to 6:30 p.m. or until the four Shred-it trucks are full.
*The Dementia Awareness Education Program begins its series of meetings about aspects of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease on Thursday, April 26, at 9:30 a.m. at the Renaissance Centre. See article in this issue to learn how to register for the free program.
*Wake Forest will host the 2018 National Public Power Lineworkers Rodeo on Saturday, April 28, beginning at 8 a.m. on land just north of Holding Village on South Franklin Street. This should be one of the really fun events of the year. Spectators should turn onto South Franklin Street from Rogers to get to the site at the dead end of Franklin.
*Six Sundays in Spring will return on Sunday, April 29, with the free outdoor concerts through June 3 in the amphitheater at E. Carroll Joyner Park. The music begins at 5 p.m. and ends at 7.
*Dairies? Cows? On Sunday, April 29, the Wake Forest Historical Association will present a program about the local dairy farms that surrounded the town and dotted the landscape for miles around. The program will begin at 3 p.m. and is free to everyone.
*The 38th Meet in the Street sponsored by the Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce will be held on Saturday, May 5, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The chamber is now accepting applications for the booths in four categories: handmade arts and crafts, non-profit, food vendor and downtown Wake Forest merchant. Call Corey Hutcherson at 919-556-1519, option 2, or send him an email, corey@wakeforestchamber.org.
*The Mad Hatter’s Tea and Garden Party, the annual event that is the Wake Forest Garden Club’s only fundraiser, will be held on Saturday, May 12. Please see article in this issue for all information.
*The Historic Wake Forest Cemetery Walking Tour will take place Saturday, May 12, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. It is free, open to everyone and a great way to learn about Wake Forest’s history from the docents stationed at important graves. See article in this issue for more information.
*Get your tickets now for the Saturday, June 2, Beach Music & BBQ with the Band of Oz at the grand re-opening of the renovated Renaissance Centre on Brooks Street. Tickets are $25 and include the barbecue by Papa Jack’s Catering.
*The Sixth Annual Charity Car Show will be held Saturday, June 16, in Wake Forest’s historic downtown. See article in this issue for more details.
*The Wall that Heals, one of the two half-size replicas of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., will be displayed in Wake Forest for four days in October, Oct. 18 through 21, on the lawn in front of the Calvin Jones House and the Wake Forest Historical Museum. The Wake Forest Purple Heart Foundation is the sponsor. The wall and the museum will be open for 24 hours each day for the four days. A lot of volunteers will be needed.
