PRESENTS YOUR COMMUNITY CALENDAR BRT hosts Craft Fair and Holiday Festival
Blackstone River Theatre will hold its 14th annual Holiday Craft Fair and Festival on Saturday, December 3, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Blackstone River Theatre, 549 Broad St., Cumberland, R.I. Admission is free. Visit www.riverfolk.org or call 401-725-9272 for more information.
Saturday morning will see BRT’s 14th annual Craft Fair and Holiday Festival. This free annual event allows the community to support future Blackstone
River Theatre programming and area craft vendors and artisans while they do their holiday shopping locally. There will be 25 crafters, artists and home-based businesses on site and shoppers will be also be able to listen to continuous live music by Bob Drouin, Ed Sweeney, Josh Kane, Cathy Clasper-Torch, the The Broad Street Fiddlers, The Vox Hunters, and Atwater~Donnelly throughout the day. There will also be raffle prizes and a bake sale table with all proceeds benefitting future programming.
This year’s vendors include: L&N Toasty Totes (handmade pocketbooks, sling bags), Scentsy Wickless Candles, Ducharme Creations in Wood (handmade wooden plaques, ornaments and more), Wooden Buttons (creative and fun crochet children’s wear), Run of the Mill (picturesque Rhode Island landmarks from above), Bells on My Toes (Christmas stockings and decorations).
In Woonsocket, Main Street was the commercial center of this industrial city. If you ever wondered where your parents or grandparents went when they “did their stores,” and what kind of shops they did their purchasing at, then the Woonsocket Historical Society invites you to take a “stroll” up Main Street, Saturday, December 3 at 10:00 am. Local historian Bob Bellerose will lead the approximately 90 minute tour from the front of the Museum of Work and Culture at 42 South Main Street, Market Square. Besides looking at where retailers were located, sample prices for select items will be discussed. So if you ever wondered what all the “hubbub” was about on Main Street during that decade, put on a pair of comfortable walking shoes, maybe your “poodle skirt,” slick up your “doo,” and join us for a look at a memorable time in the city. This is a free tour. Please call 595-3062 with inquiries.
On Sunday, December 4, 2022, at 2:30 PM, Music at the Meeting House will present “An American Christmas,” an inspiring concert featuring American-composed Christmas songs, carols, and hymns, with the reading of the Christmas Story by Pastor Ethel Corbin. The program will take place at the Baptist Church in Chepachet, RI (1213 Putnam Pike, Chepachet, on Route 44, just west of the rotary). The concert is open to the public for free, but a free will offering will be taken. Refreshments will follow. This concert is part of a long-standing four-year sequence of Christmas concerts consisting of Old English, American, Northern European, and Southern European Yuletide celebrations, and will be the first in this series post-covid. Featured will be Grace Norton, soprano; Amanda
Santo, soprano; Arielle Rogers-Wilkey, mezzo-soprano; and Jason Shealy, baritone, accompanied by Marie Kane, piano. Also featured will be a Brass Quartet, with Elizabeth Gates, French horn; Holly Dion, trumpet; Joel Gates, trombone; and Tom Kane, Tuba. Marilyn Knight will play the church’s historic tracker pipe organ to accompany audience hymn-singing. For more information, please visit the church’s website at chepachetbaptist.org
On Saturday, December 10 from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m., the Blackstone Library will be hosting its 8th Annual In-Person Cookie Walk fundraiser. For $9 per pound, choose from a wide variety of homemade cookies. A selection of specialty treats will also be available for purchase. Come early for the best selection. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Cash and checks preferred, but credit cards will be accepted. The library cannot guarantee an allergen-free environment. Persons with food allergies are responsible for self-monitoring food served/used at the library. Ingredient lists for each item will be available upon request. All proceeds from the cookie walk will help fund library events, programs and purchases not covered by the library’s operating budget. If you would like further information about this event, please contact Ellen Goudreau at egoudreau@cwmars.org or call 508883-1931.
The Blackstone Valley Polar Express Train Ride trips run on weekend evenings from November 11th – December 23rd with shows at 3:30 PM and 6:30 PM from the historic Blackstone Valley Train Depot in downtown Woonsocket. Put on your pajamas for this trip which includes a 90-minute excursion on a real-life train filled with a reading of the classic children’s story, sing-a-longs, hot chocolate, a delicious Polar Express cookie, games, and a special visit from Santa to deliver the first gift of Christmas to every child! During the journey passengers will view the North Pole that includes a giant 35’ Christmas tree, gorgeous decorations, and “elves” to welcome the train’s arrival, performed by children from The Dance Step. After returning from the trip, families can stay for a photo with Santa in the historic Blackstone Valley Train Depot. For more information and tickets visit www.blackstonevalleypolarexpress.com or call 401-495-1213
The Bellingham Women of Today will welcome Santa for their 30th year of Muffins with Santa on Saturday, December 17th from 9:00 – 11:30 at St. Blaise Church Hall, 1158 S. Main St., Bellingham. Admission fee is $5 per child with a maximum charge of $15 per family. Children can meet Santa, give him their Christmas wish list while you are welcome to take your phone or camera photos. We will offer muffins, bagels, juice, milk and coffee. Food and beverage items are 1.00 – $2.00 each. There will be free crafts and coloring pages for kids as well as raffle baskets and holiday items for sale. All proceeds will benefit local BWOT charities.
Santa and his elves are so busy preparing for Christmas the Bellingham Women of Today will be helping him send personalized letters to anyone on your list. They are a great gift for children, seniors, college students and anyone young at heart. The cost is $2 for each letter or three for $5. We will be taking requests at Muffins with Santa, December 17th, 9:00 to 11:30 at St. Blaise Church Hall in Bellingham or send the name and address of child/children along with your name and phone number, payment, and any information you would like added to the letter, to BWOT, PO Box 405, Bellingham, MA 02019 before December 15th.