Nov. 30
Russellville Christmas Parade Entry Deadline
RUSSELLVILLE — The entry deadline for the 2015 Russellville Christmas Parade is noon Monday. Entries will not be accepted past this time. Parade entry forms are available at the Recreation and Parks Department office, 1000 E. Parkway, or at www.russellvillearkansas.org. The parade, with the theme “Christmas Movies,” will be at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 3, with a rainout date of Dec. 7. The entry fee is $25 for a float and $100 for a commercial entry. For more information, call Recreation and Parks at (479) 968-1272.
Dec. 1
Photographer Presentation
RUSSELLVILLE — Wilderness photographer Tim Ernst will present A Rare Quality of Light at 7 p.m. in the Doc Bryan Student Services Center Lecture Hall, 1605 Coliseum Drive, at Arkansas Tech University. The program will include 182 color photographs from Ernst’s 40 years of wilderness travel. Fifteen collections of his photographs have been published as coffee table books, including A Rare Quality of Light, which was published earlier this year. Refreshments will be served, and a book signing will be held during the event, which is free and open to the public.
AARP Smart Driver Course
RUSSELLVILLE — Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center will offer an AARP Smart Driver Course for people 55 and older from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Cafe 2 in the hospital, next to the cafeteria. The cost is $15 for AARP members and $20 for nonmembers, payable to AARP the day of the class. Complimentary pastries and coffee will be provided. Following the class, lunch will be available in the hospital cafeteria at a 25 percent discount for attendees. To register for the class, call (479) 968-2841, ext. 0.
Lupus Foundation #GivingTuesday
The Lupus Foundation of Arkansas Inc. will hold #GivingTuesday. This effort aims to harness the collective power of partners-charities, families, businesses and individuals to transform how people think about and participate in the giving season, and to improve the lives of lupus patients by giving them hope that there is still life after the diagnosis of this unpredictable disease. Go to www.firstgiving.com/28300 on Tuesday to make a tax-deductible donation to the Lupus Foundation of Arkansas Inc.
Dec. 2
First Wednesday Ladies’ Lunch Break
CONWAY — First Wednesday Ladies’ Lunch Break will be held from noon to 1 p.m. in the Second Baptist Church Fellowship Hall at Dave Ward Drive and Farris Road. Enter the church from Farris Road. Women of all ages are invited to attend. Lunch, for $5, includes a drink and dessert. Child care is available at no charge with advance registration by calling (501) 327-4066 or (501) 730-4106 by Monday.
Dec. 3
UACCM Night of Luminarias
MORRILTON — The University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton will hold its 13th annual Night of Luminarias, a free family-friendly event, at around 6 p.m., following the Morrilton Christmas parade. The Timberwolf Crossing Walking Trail will be lined with more than 1,300 luminary bags, decorated by Conway County children. UACCM faculty and staff will serve cookies and hot cocoa, and Santa will visit with children, hand out gifts and pose for photos between the Fine Arts Building and the Business Technology Center. Families are invited to bring cameras. For more information, contact Helen Lockhart at (501) 977-2084 or lockhart@uaccm.edu. For last-minute wintry-weather updates, check the UACCM Facebook page.
Countdown to Christmas Craft Session
CONWAY — A Countdown to Christmas craft session will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Faulkner County Library. Each participant will make an Advent garland out of shipping tags, twine, glue, colorful paper and other found objects, with the help of Jerusalem Jackson Greer, a craft
designer and minister to children, youth and families at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Conway. She will have copies of her book A Homemade Year: The Blessings of Cooking, Crafting and Coming Together for sale. Her blog is at jerusalemgreer.com. To preregister for the free event, call the library at (501) 327-7482 or email nancy@fcl.org.
UCA Band Extravaganza
CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas Bear Marching Band, Wind Ensemble and Jazz Ensemble I will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the annual Band Extravaganza concert at Reynolds Performance Hall, 201 Donaghey Ave. The flag line will be featured with the Bear Marching Band. The concert is free, but a suggested $10 donation will support the UCA bands. For more information, call the UCA Ticket Central Box Office at (501) 450-3265, or toll-free in Arkansas at (866) 810-0012, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday; visit www.uca.edu/reynolds; or contact Brantley Douglas at (501) 450-5022 or bdouglas@uca.edu.
Dec. 4
An Interview With Terrence McNally
LITTLE ROCK — Terrence McNally, a Tony- and Emmy-winning playwright, will wind up his residency with the University of Central Arkansas’ College of Fine Arts and Communication with a conversation about the power of opera to tell important stories at 5:30 p.m. at the Central High School National Historic Site and Visitor Center, 2120 W. Daisy L. Gatson Bates Drive in Little Rock. Contemporary Opera and Social Justice will be an interview-style presentation with McNally and Raymond Frontain, a McNally scholar and professor of English at UCA. The interview is free and open to the public.
Dec. 5
Conway Symphony Orchestra Holiday Concert
CONWAY — The Conway Symphony Orchestra will present its holiday performance, ’Tis the Season With the CSO, at 7:30 p.m. at the Donald W. Reynolds Performance Hall at the University of Central Arkansas.The concert will feature musical favorites, plus special performances by the Voices of Central Arkansas and Hornaments, and parts of The Nutcracker with the Arkansas Festival Ballet. Santa will be present for family-photo opportunities. Tickets are $18 to $38 for adults, $6 for children and students, and $10 for UCA faculty and staff. There is also a discount rate of $15 for groups of 10 or more. To purchase tickets, visit the Reynolds box office, call (501) 450-3265, or go to www.uca.edu/tickets.
Nutcracker Sweets
CONWAY — Families are invited to attend Nutcracker Sweets, a children’s activity featuring the stories of The Nutcracker, crafts, and cookies and punch, plus a chance to meet The Nutcracker’s ballerinas and conductor. The event is hosted by the volunteers of the CSO Guild and will be held next to the performance hall in the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center from 6:15-7:15 p.m., prior to the Conway Symphony Orchestra’s holiday performance, ’Tis the Season with the CSO. Tickets to Nutcracker Sweets are $5 for children; there is no charge for accompanying adults. For tickets or more information, call (501) 269-1066 or visit www.ConwaySymphony.org.
Pancake Breakfast, Auction and Bake Sale
CONWAY — The 35th annual Pancake Breakfast, Silent Auction and Bake Sale will be held from 7 a.m. to noon at the Ola and John Hawks Senior Wellness and Activity Center, 705 E. Siebenmorgen Road. All-you-can-eat pancakes, sausage, coffee, juice and milk will be served. The cost is $7 for adults and $3 for children 12 and younger. Tickets may be purchased at the center, from the center’s board members, from participating seniors or at the door. Carry-out meals will be available. Proceeds from the event will benefit the county’s six senior centers. For more information, call (501) 327-2895.
Trout Day 2015
RUSSELLVILLE — The Caddis Fly Fishing Club, the Russellville Recreation and Parks Department and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission will present Trout Day 2015 from 9 a.m. to noon at the Pleasant View Park pond, which the AGFC will stock with 1,200 rainbow trout. Both bait fishing and fly-fishing will be available, and bait will be provided. A fishing license and trout permit (stamp) are required for fishermen 16 or older. The limit of five rainbow trout will apply. In conjunction with Trout Day, a free Basic Trout Fishing Clinic will be held from 6-7 p.m. Tuesday at the Hughes Center. The first 50 kids 15 or younger who attend will receive a certificate for a free rod and reel, to be redeemed at Trout Day. For more information, call the Hughes Center at (479) 968-1272.
ONGOING
Toys for Tots Registration
CONWAY — The Marines of the Conway Dale W. Langford Detachment are taking applications for the 2015 Toys for Tots program for residents of Faulkner, Conway and White counties. To register, go to www.toysfortots.org, click on “Request Toys,” select the correct county, fill out the toy form, and submit it online. Instructions for picking up the toys will be provided by the local Marines after they receive the request. Toys will be given out from noon to 5 p.m. Dec. 14 at 740 Salem Road in the Saddletop Center. For more information, contact Frank A. Lambert at (501) 428-1606.
Coat Drive
CONWAY — The Boys and Girls Club of Faulkner County is sponsoring a coat drive for kids through Dec. 11. The coats may be dropped off from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at Harrington & Co., 819 Parkway St.; Tipton Equipment & Commercial Kitchen Store, 828 N. Creek Drive; and the Boys and Girls Club, 1405 Robins St. The coats will be distributed Dec. 14-18. For more information, contact Phillip Moore, program director for the Boys and Girls Club of Faulkner County, at phillip@bgc faulkner.org or (501) 329-8849.
Student Art Show
CONWAY — Senior art majors in the Hendrix College Department of Art will host the 2015 Student Competitive Art Show through Friday in Gallery A of the college’s Art Building on Front Street downtown. Gallery hours are 4-6 p.m. Monday through Friday. The show features work in a diverse range of media, including photography, painting, drawing, ceramics, sculpture and digital art. For more information, contact Anna Sheals at ShealsAJ@ hendrix.edu or call (573) 673-4991.
Friendship Clothes Closet Ministry
GREENBRIER — The Friendship Clothes Closet Ministry offers free, gently used clothing for the entire family from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. the third Saturday of every month. The ministry is accepting donations of coats for children and teens. The clothes closet is at Friendship Baptist Church, 170 Cash Springs Road, on the corner of West Republican Road, 4 miles north of Greenbrier. For more information, call (501) 679-1672.
Friends of the Library Book Shop
HEBER SPRINGS — The Friends of the Library Book Shop, 2255 Arkansas 25B N., is open from 3:30-7 p.m. Mondays, and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays. The shop offers a large selection of books at bargain prices. All proceeds from book sales benefit the libraries in Cleburne County.
Cherokee Bingo
CONWAY — Cherokee Bingo begins at 6:15 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday at Helton’s Wrecker Service/U-Haul, 710 S. Harkrider St. All proceeds go to the Helton-Osburn-Spencer Scholarship Fund at the University of Central Arkansas.
Morning Movers Class
MAUMELLE — The Morning Movers class is offered from 8:15-9 a.m. Monday through Thursday at the Maumelle Senior Wellness Center, 550 Edgewood Drive, Suite 400. For more information, call (501) 851-4344.
TeamKID
MAUMELLE — Southern Hills Baptist Fellowship and JumpZone have teamed up to offer a free children’s program, TeamKID, for first- through sixth-graders. The program is held at 6:30 p.m. each Wednesday at the JumpZone building. For more information, call (501) 851-7729 or visit www.southernhillsbaptist.tv.
Midday Manna
CONWAY — A Bible lecture and luncheon led by Wanda Landers takes place from 11:45 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month at Woodland Heights Baptist Church, 4215 Prince St. Lunch, including a drink and dessert, is served for $5. For child care by reservation, call (501) 329-0001.
Tea Party Meeting
HEBER SPRINGS — Arkansas’ We the People Tea Party of Cleburne County meets at 6:30 p.m. the first and third Thursdays of every month at St. Barnabas Anglican Church, 1101C W. Main St. Various issues are discussed. For more information, call Marlin Schwartz at (847) 977-5261.
Upcoming
Holiday Tour of Homes
RUSSELLVILLE — The Russellville United Methodist Women will present their annual Holiday Tour of Homes from 2-4 p.m. Dec. 6. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at Russellville United Methodist Church, 304 S. Commerce, or from any UMW member. The tour of homes is the UMW’s mission fundraiser. For more information, call (479) 968-1232.
Freud’s Last Session Auditions
CONWAY — The Lantern Theatre and the Conway Community Arts Association will hold open auditions for its upcoming production of Freud’s Last Session, by Mark St. Germain, at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 7 at the Lantern Theatre, 1021 Van Ronkle St. The play, directed by Eric Binnie, concerns a fictional meeting between Sigmund Freud and C.S. Lewis, presumably taking place in 1939. The cast calls for two men, ages 40 to 80. Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. Production dates will be Jan. 7-9. For more information, call Binnie at (501) 358-4081, visit www.conwayarts.org, or email ConwayLanternTheatre@gmail.com.
Voices of Central Arkansas Christmas Concert
CONWAY — The Voices of Central Arkansas, part of the University of Central Arkansas Community School of Music, will perform a Christmas concert — Sing Alleluia! — at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 8 in Ida Waldran Auditorium at UCA. Three VOCA choirs will perform, including the youngest choir, The Choristers, directed by Carrie Martens; the Concert Choir; and the High School Choir. The concert is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Sheri Cook-Cunningham, assistant professor of music education at UCA and director of VOCA, at (501) 450-5756 or scookcunningham@uca.edu.
A Starry, Starry Night at the Library
CONWAY — Kaye R. Clanton, a retired teacher of sciences from the Conway School District, will present the last installment in a series of star-gazing events from 7-8 p.m. Dec. 14 at the Faulkner County Library. The session will include Geminid Meteor Shower; Winter Solstice; and Comets, Andromeda Galaxy and Milky Way Galaxy. For more information, call the library at (501) 327-7482 or email nancy@fcl.org.
A Conversation Piece Book Signing
RUSSELLVILLE — There will be a book signing from 5-7 p.m. Dec. 17 at A Conversation Piece, 312 W. Second St. Jeannie Stone will sign copies of the illustrated The Holy Spirit in the New Testament, which features 12 pieces of Stone’s artwork. Copies of the book will be available for purchase for $60 each. Other local handmade items will be available, and refreshments will be served.
Faulkner County Library Book Signing
CONWAY — Jermario Q. Tate will hold a book signing at 2 p.m. Dec. 19 at the Faulkner County Library. Tate, the author of GPS: God’s Purpose for Salvation, is a librarian at the Twin Groves branch library. He said it is his commitment to the Kingdom of God that led him to ask the questions, “Where is your GPS destined to take you on your earthly journey, and what exit will you take for eternity?” All library events are free and open to the public. For more information, call the library at (501) 327-7482 or email nancy@fcl.org.
To submit an item for the Calendar of Events, mail information to Calendar of Events, River Valley & Ozark Edition, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, AR 72203; fax to (501) 378-3500; or email to rvonews@arkansasonline.com. Deadlines for calendar-item submissions are noon Friday for Thursday editions and noon Tuesday for Sunday editions.