Calendar of Events
Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.
Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.
You might have heard about the need to recruit more foster parents in Buncombe County. “We currently have 300 kids in foster care in Buncombe County,” says Heather Hill-Pavone, Buncombe County Licensing Social Worker. “Only some of those kids get to stay in Buncombe County as we only have 100 licensed foster homes with BCHHS.” We need your help to let people in our community know about the upcoming Foster Parent Training Classes happening in 2020!
These courses begin the licensure process for becoming a foster parent. They are offered quarterly, for anyone in Buncombe County, who is interested in becoming a foster parent. While the next round of Foster Parent Training Classes starts on September 11, the classes for 2020 are NOW on the calendar! You can sign up by clicking this link.
2020 Schedule:
- Winter Classes: Jan 16, 2020 through Feb 20, 2020 (Thursdays) at Buncombe County Health and Human Services in Downtown Asheville
- Spring Classes: March 25, 2020 through April 29, 2020 (Wednesdays) at Biltmore Church in Arden, NC
- Summer Classes: June 2, 2020 through July 7, 2020 (Tuesdays) at Biltmore Church in Arden
- Fall Classes: September 14, 2020 through October 19, 2020 (Mondays) at Buncombe County Health and Human Services in Downtown Asheville

Benefits OURVOICE.
Race starts 9 am
Registration 7am
Starts at Carolina Day School
You adult child won’t speak to you? Find support through our weekly meetings, every Saturday, Sept. 7 – Nov. 9, 2019, 8:30 am to 9:45 am, at First Congregational Church Library, 1735 Fifth Avenue West. It’s not about who’s right or wrong. It’s about getting on with life.
– ANTIQUE & COLLECTIBLE BOOKS, CDs, DVDs, SIGNED BOOKS – Priced as marked. (Special 1/2 price sale on Sat.)
– BOOKENDS USED BOOK STORE – 1/2 off our usual low prices.
– COFFEE TABLE and CHILDREN’S BETTER BOOKS – Priced as marked. (Special 1/2 price sale on Sat.)
Notes:
– Credit Cards will be accepted.
– Parking: The Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands will be at the U.S. Cellular Center; special parking rates will be in effect.
– Safety & Fairness Rules will be observed in Bookends. (No personal rolling carts or baskets.)
We’re celebrating and learning about human-wildlife coexistence and conservation from trusted organizations, while enjoying lively, family-friendly entertainment, sweet+savory bites, and tasty brews, all in one place.
Join our guest list and spread the word.
We’ll see you there! ???

Guests will hear a narration of Schulz’s “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” as the train travels to the Pumpkin Patch. Upon arrival, passengers will be greeted and have a photo opportunity with Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Snoopy. During your 1 hour and 30 minute layover, your activities to enjoy at The Great Pumpkin Patch will include:
- campfire marshmallows
- coloring station
- temporary tattoos
- trick or treating
- bouncy house (weather permitting)
- wagon rides
And kids, don’t forget to wear your Halloween costumes! There will be plenty of PEANUTS™ merchandise at the GSMR Gift Store and Train Museum! Each child will also select their own pumpkin from The Great Pumpkin Patch to take home.

Join local astronomer and author Stephan Martin on a tour of the stars and constellations of the fall night sky above the farm. We’ll discuss some of the myths of the constellations along with the seasonal changes in the sky at this time as well as some of the latest discoveries in astronomy and theories of the universe. All ages are welcome and no background in astronomy or science is required.
Jono Zalay began his standup career in Boston, while simultaneously earning his Doctorate in Neuroscience (he gave cocaine to rats). Since dropping his science hobby to pursue comedy full time, Jono has been named one of Comedy Central’s ‘Comics to Watch,’ and earned international press for his pranks on the DMV. Jono now lives in Los Angeles where he has written comedy for Fox, Amazon, and Comedy Central. He has been featured in over 30 comedy festivals around the country including Bridgetown, Big Sky, Limestone, and New York Comedy Festival.
Tickets $10 advance, $12 day of
FRIDAY: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lazoom-comedy-jono-zalay-friday-tickets-70462791105
SATURDAY: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lazoom-comedy-jono-zalay-saturday-tickets-70463025807
The 1st LEAF Festival premiered Fall 1996, and has become a tradition twice a year, May and October. The name Lake Eden Arts Festival (LEAF) was chosen to honor the lake and the former Lake Eden Inn & Resort. “Arts” embraces a broad creative palate and of course it was to be a “festival”. In envisioning LEAF, we sought to embrace world cultures, reflect the creativity of the Asheville area, and to complement the stunning landscape. The location and size, attendance is limited to 6,000 people on site per day, makes LEAF Festival one of the best small festivals in the world. The right place, the right size.
Join Aloft and Charlie’s Angels for a howling good time at our Howl-O-Ween Dog Costume Party on Sunday, October 20! From 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., party with your pooches and compete in our costume contests to win fun prizes. Lounge around w xyz Bar for drink specials and tasty treats for humans and dogs alike.
Does your pup have what it takes to strut their stuff? Check-in for the dog parade and costume contest begins at 4:30 p.m. followed by the parade and costume contest at 5:00 p.m. Furry friends can be registered based on small, medium or large breeds and the top three winners will receive a prize! All dogs who enter the contest will receive a treat and owners will receive a $5 voucher to w xyz Bar.
Are you and your pup a package deal? Enter in our dog and family costume contest for the change to take home the first-place prize! Check-in begins at 5:30 p.m. and the contest will begin at 6:00 p.m.
A minimum $5 donation is required for entry. Call 828-232-2838 for more details and be sure to RSVP on Facebook. We’ll see you there!
The cemetery is of historic significance, with graves of men and women whose names are
written in the history books of South Carolina and the United States. First Families of the early
years of our country, descendants of signers of the Declaration of Independence, influential
politicians of the 19th century, military leaders and others of note are buried in the churchyard.
The tour will last about an hour, Please wear comfortable shoes.

Guests will hear a narration of Schulz’s “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” as the train travels to the Pumpkin Patch. Upon arrival, passengers will be greeted and have a photo opportunity with Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Snoopy. During your 1 hour and 30 minute layover, your activities to enjoy at The Great Pumpkin Patch will include:
- campfire marshmallows
- coloring station
- temporary tattoos
- trick or treating
- bouncy house (weather permitting)
- wagon rides
And kids, don’t forget to wear your Halloween costumes! There will be plenty of PEANUTS™ merchandise at the GSMR Gift Store and Train Museum! Each child will also select their own pumpkin from The Great Pumpkin Patch to take home.
Join us for the evening for this practical training organized by Co-operate WNC
(a regional mutual aid network), Transition Asheville, and Lenoir Rhyne University.
A community savings pool is a resource-sharing technique whereby a trusted group of 15-25 people
pool their individual savings and then collectively loan money to each other for personal needs and
goals, community projects, business startups and expansions and so on.
Co-operate WNC has identified savings pools as one of the most powerful strategies to
pursue its mission: empowering a regional society of local organizers to grow a mutual aid
network of physical community centers that meet human needs and act as organizing hubs
for climate resilience.
We’ll play a savings pool game, and briefly discuss other cooperative financial tools and mutual aid
practices to improve your community’s life, respond to climate chaos, and grow a regenerative culture
and economy in our region. This discussion will include considerations around the bigger picture of
equity and access in our region and how our community organizing activities can either reinforce or
transform oppressive historical patterns.
You’ll leave with a tangible sense of how to organize and run a savings pool, the benefits
and risks of participation, tools for doing it successfully, and next steps in your own life for
starting or participating in one.
Please consider attending this event with some friends/family/colleagues, as the hope is that you can
go home and start a savings circle with people you trust.
Help us celebrate the Fairview Public Library’s 20th anniversary with three films from 1999. When a computer programmer and hacker (Keanu Reeves) begins to question his reality, a chain of events is unlocked that could save the human race. To find the answers he seeks, he must trust a mysterious group of strangers who promise to show him the hidden secrets of an unusual entity known as “The Matrix.” With groundbreaking special effects techniques that are still in wide use today, The Matrix was a runaway hit that changed how the industry, and the public viewed action films. Also starring Laurence Fishburne, CarrieAnne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantoliano. All screenings will be hosted by North Carolina Film Critics Association member James Rosario (THEDAILYORCA.COM), who will introduce each film and lead a discussion after. Free popcorn provided by Grail Moviehouse. Rated R. 136 minutes.

| Tuesday, October 22, 2019, 7 – 8pm | |
| Location | Leicester Library – 1561 Alexander Rd. – Leicester |
| Phone | (828) 250-6480 |
| [email protected] | |
| Event Type | Book Club |
| Age Group | Adult |
| Library | Leicester |
| Details |
Build relationships and build your understanding of social justice in this new reading group sponsored by the Leicester Library! Monthly meetings will alternate between the Leicester Library and Firestorm. On October 22, we’ll discuss I’m Still Here by Austin Channing Brown at the Leicester Library. On November 26, we’ll discuss The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater at Firestorm. On December 17, we’ll discuss How To Be Less Stupid About Race by Crystal Fleming at the Leicester Library. You may check out the book from any BCPL branch, or purchase a copy at a discount from Firestorm. Meetings will alternate monthly between the Leicester Library and Firestorm. Future titles will be selected with guidance from the host librarian and book club participants. |
| Link | www.firestorm.coop… |

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The City of Asheville is moving forward with the creation of a master concept plan for City-owned properties on Haywood Street and Page Avenue. With the help of the award-winning consultant team Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects, residents can anticipate up to three conceptual designs for Council consideration for the acre of land at the intersection of Haywood and Page in downtown Asheville.
The two public sessions will take place on October 24 at the , 87 Haywood St., and on site around the property.
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Meeting #1:
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Noon — Food truck lunch at 68 Haywood Street and site walk-throughs
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1:15 p.m. — Presentation at U.S. Cellular Center Banquet Hall
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Meeting #2:
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5:30 p.m. — Food truck dinner at 68 Haywood Street and site walk-throughs
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6:45 p.m. — Presentation at U.S. Cellular Center Banquet Hall
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During the meetings the consultant team will walk residents through a mapping exercise, followed by a site walk with community dossiers at key points of interest in and around the site.
During this phase, the primary objective will focus on creating bold and vibrant designs for the Haywood/Page property. Based on the meetings, the City and the consultant team will bring back designs to the community in winter.
Lunch and dinner will be provided. Parking in the Civic Center Garage is free of charge, attendees should see staff for a validation sticker. RSVP is appreciated, but not required. Register here. For more information, please visit ashevillenc.gov.

Jill Criswell, young adult fantasy author and writing instructor at USC Upstate, will lead a writing workshop for aspiring writers and hobbyists. Focusing on world-building, this workshop will help writers better understand how to add details to their story’s settings and use this as a foundation for their characters and plot. All attendees will be entered in a drawing to win a signed hardcover copy of Criswell’s novel, Beasts of the Frozen Sun.
Bio: Jill Criswell is a writer of young adult fantasy. Born and raised in the swamps of northeastern Florida, she earned degrees in English and Psychology and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Central Florida. Her greatest passion, besides reading and writing, is traveling the world; she’s visited fifty countries across six continents, falling in love with places like Iceland, Namibia, and Cambodia. She works as a university English teacher and lives in South Carolina, near the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, with her husband and daughter (who is named after a volcano in Iceland). Beasts of the Frozen Sun, the first book in the Frozen Sun trilogy, is her debut novel.
Registration is required for this event!
Mountain Xpress’ end-of-year giving project to benefit 45 local nonprofits.
KICK OFF Celebration!
Please enjoy an evening with the marvelous co-author of the
best-selling book, The Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Irin Carmon at the Diana Wortham Theatre. This event will support the quality health care and education programs that Planned Parenthood South Atlantic provides in the Asheville community.
For Sponsorship Opportunities, visit standingstrongAVL.ppsat.org or contact [email protected].


