The 14th annual Wake Forest Purple Heart Dinner will be held Saturday evening, August 5, 2023 at Richland Creek Community Church, 3229 Burlington Mills Road, beginning at 5:30 p.m. This year’s guest speaker will be Jessica Dawn Lynch, a teacher and a private in the United States Army who was seriously injured and later captured by Iraqi soldiers during the battle for Nasiriyah on March 23, 2003. She was rescued by United States special operations forces on April 1, the first successful rescue of an American prisoner of war since World War II and the first of a woman soldier. Since the banquet was first held in 2009 in the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary gymnasium, formerly Gore Gym, the Purple Heart Foundation has honored all the area Purple Heart recipients it can find. Tickets for the banquet are $30 and are available from the Purple Heart board members or at

Spend a couple Sunday evenings in September with family and friends at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road, while enjoying some foot-tapping, finger-snapping good times during the 2023 Concerts in the Park. “SNAP” will headline the first concert on Sunday, Sept. 3, followed by “The Soul Psychedlique Orchestra” on Sunday, Sept. 10. As full-time musicians, SNAP can transition seamlessly from crooning classic R&B, to banging out bombastic pop-punk, and throw in some house-thumping hip-hop and classic rock to top it off. They are masters of mash-up, rulers of remix, and monarchs of medleys. The Soul Psychedelique Orchestra has an extensive music library than spans style from the 1940’s Big Band sounds to Beach Music, R&B, to Rock, Reggae, Latin and the best of today’s music. Free and open to everyone, these performances are scheduled from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Joyner Park amphitheater. Attendees are invited to bring

The Human Relations Council is soliciting youth and adult nominations for the 14th Annual Good Neighbor of the Year Award. The award recognizes Wake Forest residents who work to improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods without seeking recognition for their efforts. Nominees are sought in two divisions: adult (ages 19 and older) and youth (ages 10-18). To qualify, a nominee must be a Wake Forest resident who has made a significant contribution to the community between September 1, 2022, and August 31, 2023. Employees of the Town of Wake Forest are not eligible. The online nomination form is available at http://bit.ly/WFGoodNeighborAward. Completed nomination forms must be submitted by 5 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 31. Nominations forms must include the names of both the nominator and the nominee, along with a narrative of 400 words or less describing why the nominee is deserving of the Good Neighbor of the Year

Good Neighbor Day, which the Town of Wake Forest has celebrated for 17 years, will be held at E. Carroll Joyner Park, 701 Harris Road, on Saturday, Sept. 16, from 1 to 4 p.m. Hosted by the Human Relations Council, Good Neighbor Day is an annual celebration that brings together Wake Forest residents from all walks of life for an afternoon of free food, fun, and family entertainment. By bringing together a mix of cultures, music, ages and ethnicities, the event celebrates diversity and promotes goodwill among all Wake Forest citizens. Volunteers are critical to the success of the event and needed at various times between noon and 5 p.m. Volunteer duties will be general in nature and may include setting up, cleaning up, answering questions, and assisting attendees. Local civic groups and community organizations are especially encouraged to participate, along with local students interested in earning community service hours.

You can make a difference in our community by applying to fill one of two vacancies on the Human Relations Council (HRC). The online advisory board application is available through Monday, July 31, at http://bit.ly/TOWFAdvBoardApplication. Anyone without computer access is invited to complete the application by using a computer kiosk in the lobby of Town Hall, 301 S. Brooks St. Hard copies are available upon request by contacting Deputy Town Clerk Ella Dowtin at 919-435-9436 or edowtin@wakeforestnc.gov. The purpose of the HRC is to encourage understanding and goodwill between all Wake Forest citizens regardless of race, sex, religion, creed, nationality, or economic status, and thus promote the general welfare of the Town. The HRC meets at 6 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of each month. Candidates will be expected to attend the August 24 HRC meeting to introduce themselves to current members and explain why they wish to serve. Following

The Hope House Back to School event will be held Saturday, August 12, 2023, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at 334 North Allen Road. Along with the Bookbag and School Supplies Giveaway, there will be a food giveaway, vision screening for children and adults and a giveaway of adult readers glasses and sunglasses. ###

In the midst of plenty . . . we all do not fare equally at all times. These are the places all, adults and children, can find one of the greatest gifts, a shared meal. **School-age children will find a free lunch on Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Northern Regional Center on East Holding Avenue from now through August 4. **Wake Forest Community Table serves nutritious and delicious meals at 5 p.m. on Monday nights at Hope House (334 North Allen Road) and at 6 p.m. on Wednesday nights at Olive Branch Baptist Church (326 East Juniper Avenue). All ages are welcome to stop by for dinner and for fresh produce from the Wake Forest Presbyterian Giving Garden. We are thankful to all of or volunteers and the donors who make this organization possible. To learn more about our program and mission and

The Wake Forest Optimist Club will present the third annual Kars for Kids Charity Car Show on Saturday, September 16, 2023, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at The Market of Wake Forest shopping center located at Business 98 and Capitol Boulevard. This is a fun family friendly event and admission is free to spectators. Cars displayed and judged must pay a $20 registration fee. Antique, Pony, Trucks, Muscle, Rods, and Custom cars and trucks will be on display. Everything from mild to wild – vintage to modern. The Grand Sponsor of Kars for Kids is Ted Wilder Agency State Farm Insurance. Mr. Wilder is also an avid antique car enthusiast and collector. Gold Sponsors are Zapolski Real Estate Property Management Company, Johnson Hyundai of Wake Forest, Charlie’s Kabobs, Wake Forest Dental Arts, Sam’s Xpress Car Wash, Carolina Comfort Air, McCorkle Sign & Awning, LPL Financial/Brooks Andrews, Wake Forest Chick-fil-A.

Below is a list of groups – and if your group is not included and should be – please send a note with the information to cwpelosi@aol.com. If the information about your group is wrong or out of date, please send a note with the corrections to that same email address. Aren’t we lucky to have so many groups that benefit our town and its resident! Last updated on July 1, 2023. *American Legion Post 187 meets the second Thursday at 7 p.m. in the American Legion Hall at 225 East Holding Avenue. The dinner begins at 6 p.m. and costs $5. For information and membership, call Commander Doug Doster at 1-603-660-6948. *American Heritage Girls (AHG) meets at 6:30 p.m. at Hope Lutheran Church on Rogers Road on the second and fourth Thursdays. Get in touch with Amy Minor at chrisnamy34@hotmail.com or see the website, www.hopelutheranwf.org. *The General James Moore

Based on the May, 2023 Monthly Development Report, WF Planning Updated July 5, 2023 The updated Wake Forest population as of July 2022 is 54,274. In 2021 the population was 50,244. How rezoning and development requests are now heard Planning Director Courtney Tanner gave this response to a query: All legislative cases (rezonings) have a public hearing at the Commissioner meeting and a public comment session at the Planning Board. A special use permit has a public hearing at the Commissioner meeting. Administrative (correct zoning and comply with the UDO) cases are approved at the staff level. What town board approval means now Senior Planner Patrick Reidy explained what the town board’s approval of new subdivisions means under the new state and town requirements. “They approved the conditional rezoning/master plan. Both projects will need to go through Construction Plan approval before they can start site work. I would expect a