When WCCA’s Bargain Hunt Thrift Shop opens for business on Tuesday,
December 1st, it will also mark the start of a new holiday tradition – Countdown to Christmas. In
addition to providing a source for inexpensive clothing and household goods, Bargain Hunt will
help fund WCCA’s programs including: Children’s Services, Housing, Transportation, and Older
Adult Services throughout four Western NC Counties.
Standing out in Hendersonville’s active resale marketplace requires thinking outside the box. Or,
in this case, thinking outside 24 boxes. Store manager Belinda Sawyer exclaimed, “That little
surprise each morning just adds to the fun and anticipation of the holidays. So the new tradition
at Bargain Hunt is to celebrate the season with a Countdown Calendar of Discounts.” Each day
in December, Bargain Hunt will reveal a new discount for customers to enjoy.

10AM to 2PM on Saturday

Give the greatest gift of all this season and help others by donating blood at an American Red Cross blood drive at Asheville Outlets this December. Donors are asked to register in advance by visiting RedCrossBlood.org/give and entering the sponsor code Ashevilleoutlets. The blood drives will take place on the following dates:

Thursday, December 24: 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, December 26: 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wednesday, December 30: 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Thursday, December 31: 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Organizers will practice social distancing procedures and advanced safety protocols. All donations will be screened for COVID-19 antibodies. Donors who test positive for COVID-19 antibodies may have the unique opportunity to help patients fighting the disease. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has stated that the coronavirus (COVID-19) does not pose any known risk to blood donors during the donation process or from attending blood drives. For more information, visit ShopAshevilleOutlets.com.

Join us for a relaxing ride through quiet countryside on your way to small town life in western North Carolina on the Tuckasegee River Excursion. Departing from Bryson City, this 4 hour excursion travels 32 miles round-trip to Dillsboro and back to the Bryson City Depot. Pass by the famous movie set of The Fugitive starring Harrison Ford!

The Tuckasegee (tuck-uh-SEE-jee) River Excursion includes an 1½ hour layover in the historic town of Dillsboro, where you’ll find more than 50 shops, restaurants, bed and breakfasts and country inns. There is time to shop, snack, and visit the many unique shops before returning to Bryson City.

Beginning October 7, the three-hour documentary-styled art installation Question Bridge: Black Males will be on view at the Asheville Art Museum. This innovative transmedia project facilitates a dialogue between Black men from diverse and contending backgrounds, and creates a platform for them to represent and redefine Black male identity in America. The work will be on view during regular public hours from October 7, 2020 through March 15, 2021.

Question Bridge: Black Males is a project that explores critically challenging issues within the African American male community by instigating a transmedia conversation among Black men across geographic, economic, generational, educational, and social strata of American society. Question Bridge provides a safe setting for necessary, honest expression and healing dialogue on themes that divide, unite, and puzzle Black males today in the United States.

The Asheville Art Museum presents Fantastical Forms: Ceramics as Sculpture on view at the Museum November 4, 2020 through April 5, 2021. The 25 works in this exhibition—curated by associate curator Whitney Richardson—highlight the Museum’s Collection of sculptural ceramics from the last two decades of the 20th century to the present. Each work illustrates the artist’s ability to push beyond the utilitarian and transition ceramics into the world of sculpture.

North and South Carolina artists featured include Elma McBride Johnson, Neil Noland, Norm Schulman, Virginia Scotchie, Cynthia Bringle, Jane Palmer, Michael Sherrill, and Akira Satake. Works by American artists Don Reitz, Robert Chapman Turner, Karen Karnes, Toshiko Takaezu, Bill Griffith, and Xavier Toubes are also featured in the exhibition.

Incredible Business Networking is on Zoom until we can meet for lunch meetings again. Well be meeting every Wednesday at 11:00. Join us!

Register in advance for this meeting:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMvduutqj0qGNXFx7OEw7zNLw4WDwfjLv6B

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Thanks to our Sponsor: The Super Signguy!

MANNA FoodBank and their partner agencies have served an average of 101,000 people each month since March. This is a 70% increase over pre-pandemic levels. The need is deep and persistent across Western North Carolina. MANNA is dedicated to our neighbors in need and is working to end hunger across the mountains of North Carolina. When you round up to support MANNA, they are able to do amazing things. No amount is too small because $1 provides 3.5 meals!

Asheville Gallery of Art’s December show, “#ArtSquared,” is amulti-artist show featuring a variety of original square paintings by gallery members. The show runs December 3-29 during gallery hours, 12-5 p.m. Thursday thru Sunday. You can also make arrangements for a private tour by emailing a request to [email protected].

Let art turn your child’s holiday into an adventure to remember! Students in grades 1–4 are invited to join our educators for one or all three afternoons of art-filled fun. Students spend their time in the Museum’s John & Robyn Horn Education Center creating art of all kinds. All supplies are provided. Space is limited to small groups of up to eight students; face coverings and social distancing are required.

Holiday Arts Extravaganza

Each year between Christmas and New Year, we invite you to join us for afternoons of art-filled fun! Students in grades 1–4 will spend their time creating art of all kinds. All supplies are provided. Students are encouraged to wear clothes that can get messy. Pre-registration is required.

Join us for three hours “off the eaten path” as we find and gather over a dozen wild edibles. We’ll whip up a little tasting right on the trail. Take home the rest of your finds and/or get ready for some find dining when one of our award-winning restaurant partners prepares your “catch of the day,” with lunch, brunch or dinner, for free. Wild mushroom pizza, daylily tamales, sassafras root beer, wisteria ice cream… it all depends on what we find!

Pricing

• Adult (Ages 12+): $75
• Child (Ages 5-11): $35
• Child (Ages 4 & Under): Free

The Rec n Roll mobile recreation unit is headed to your neighborhood! This free program offers all sorts of games and activities the whole family can enjoy. Come out and Play! *Weather Permitting.

The Rec n Roll mobile recreation unit is headed to your neighborhood! This free program offers all sorts of games and activities the whole family can enjoy. Come out and Play! *Weather Permitting.

Visit our now open downtown Tap Lounge + Venue! With new service hours available, staying true to our pledge: “doing our best for you, ourselves & our community”.

The Broadway location is now open to share a lounge experience with a COVID conscious environment promoting social distancing and cozy spaces. Locals night is a night to stop by and meet your downtown Asheville crowd in a relaxed environment.

25% off growler fills and we’ll choose a special beer each week for $3/pint!

HICKORY NUT GAP WILL DONATE A POUND OF OUR PASTURE RAISED MEATS TO FAMILIES IN NEED FOR EVERY SAMPLER BOX PURCHASED BEFORE DECEMBER 31, 2020.

Hey, it’s not quite January yet, so there’s still time to indulge.  ⠀
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Come join us for a bourbon tasting on December 30th (5pm-6pm) with local bourbon aficionado Mark Henry. He’ll be walking us through some of the lesser-known bourbons from @drinkhighwest, @ngbdistillery and @a.smithbowmanIf. PLUS: We’ll be giving away a bottle from one of the distilleries. Bourbon not quite your pace, we’ll also have champagne on hand. Tap the link below to reserve your seat.

Candlelight, firelight and live music bring holiday warmth to Biltmore House’s extravagant holiday décor during these nighttime tours. Candlelight Christmas Evenings include a self-guided candlelight tour of Biltmore House, next-day visit to the gardens, Antler Hill Village and Biltmore Winery. Evening guests can also take advantage of Antler Hill Village & Winery to enjoy free wine tastings.

Tickets may be purchased at www.biltmore.com or by phone (800-411-3812).

Join us EVERY Wednesday night for Kid’s Night! Children receive a free four-count kid’s meal with the purchase of an adult meal. See you on Wednesdays!

Winter Lights at The N.C. Arboretum

November 20, 2020 – January 10, 2021

5:30 – 10:30 p.m. Nightly

Experience Asheville’s BRIGHTEST holiday tradition at Winter Lights at The North Carolina Arboretum. This year, guests are invited to take a dreamy ride through the Arboretum’s enchanted forest and attend Winter Lights safely within their own vehicles. In light of COVID-19, the Arboretum has converted its popular event into a drive-thru show, allowing guests to navigate through a one-mile stretch of the Arboretum’s campus and see unique exhibits covered in thousands of holiday lights. As the Arboretum’s largest fundraising event of the year, proceeds generated from Winter Lights will directly support the Arboretum’s mission-driven programming.

ADULT SUPPORT GROUP
Attending a support group prior to additional therapy or treatment may help an individual begin the recovery process.  Participating in groups may be an important supplement to any type of outpatient eating disorder treatment.  Continuing with support after treatment may help reinforce skills, provide accountability, and increase motivation and commitment to recovery.

Adult Support Group (ASG)
Pro-recovery, gender-inclusive, 18+
Every Wednesday
6:00-7:00 pm
See ADULT SUPPORT GROUP SCHEDULE to reserve your spot and receive the group link!

A Wednesday tradition at Oklawaha Brewing Company

The French Broad Valley Music Association: FBVMA jam session is focused on regional fiddle tunes and songs. Carol Rifkin and John Mitchell cohost weekly, bring an instrument to play or just enjoy the music, its free, kid friendly, donations encouraged.

Key Players are intermediate to advanced but beginners are most welcome and encouraged to attend to listen, learn/quietly play along. More experienced players sit in the inner circle and take turns choosing fiddle tunes or songs. Guests, families and kids are invited to listen and often sing along. This style of community play has been used to entertain and pass down music to kids for generations.

The French Broad Valley Music Association is a 501c3 non-profit organization formed to celebrate local musical heritage. “Our community. Our music. Our sense of place.”

The light show is also synchronized to music that plays on the radio station indicated at the entrance to the show.

The drive-thru light show is about 30 minutes long, and there are two ticket options for purchase which covers vehicles of up to eight people

• Dec. 10-13: Rudolph
• Dec. 17-20: The Grinch
• Dec. 21-24: The Nativity

Over 90,000 guests rode THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad in 2019 and we hope to see you in 2020! The 1¼ hour round-trip excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ begins November 13, 2020, and operates through December 31, 2020.