COMMUNITY EVENTS IN THE RIVER VALLEY & OZARK AREA

Aug. 20

Summer Concert Series

CONWAY — Wyatt Jones will perform at 2 p.m. as part of the Faulkner County Library’s annual Summer Concert Series, which takes place indoors to beat the heat. All are invited for music from local musicians and summer snacks. For more information, call (501) 327-7482 or email nancy@fcl.org.

Aug. 21

Conway AARP Meeting

CONWAY — The Conway AARP Chapter will meet at the Ola and John Hawks Senior Wellness and Activity Center, 705 E. Siebenmorgen Road. Lunch will be served at 11:30 a.m., and lunch tickets may be purchased at the entrance of the center. The meeting will be from 12:05-1 p.m. in the AARP meeting room. Speakers from the Conway Fire Department will give free fire alarms to members who want one. Anyone who is 50 or older is invited to attend the meeting. Yearly chapter membership dues are $5 and include a free AARP T-shirt. For more information, contact Ruby Johnson at (501) 327-0498 or mrsrubyj2@aol.com, or Ron Ross at (501) 327-6803 or rlr@conwaycorp.net.

Aug. 23

Paint Night Fundraiser

CONWAY — The Urban Farm Project Paint Night Fundraiser will take place from 6-8 p.m. at Branch Out Paint Bar, 1116 W. Oak St. All painting supplies will be provided, as well as drinks and snacks. Participants will create a painting to take home while raising money for the Urban Farm Project. Tickets are $30 each. Register online at www.branchoutconway.com. For more information, email faulknercountyurbanfarmproject@gmail.com.

Aug. 26

The Great Escape

CONWAY — The Women’s Shelter of Central Arkansas will sponsor its annual fundraiser, The Great Escape, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Conway Expo Center, 2505 E. Oak St. The event will include shopping, a silent auction, a fashion show and spa services for $10 each, including manicures, hair and makeup. Admission is $5 in advance at www.greatescape2017.eventbrite.com or $10 at the door.

EZ Bike Poker Rider

RUSSELLVILLE — The EZ Bike Poker Rider bike tour will take place Saturday, beginning at the Russellville Depot. The bike-tour fee is $35, and $20 for the running event. For more information, call (479) 567-6132.

Music Downtown at Sundown

RUSSELLVILLE — The Flat Five and Leah & the Mojo Doctors will perform at 7:30 p.m. at Depot Park, 320 W. C St. The Music Downtown at Sundown concerts are free to the public, but donations are welcome. For more information, call (479) 986-2530.

Ongoing

Call for Musicians

RUSSELLVILLE — The Arkansas Center for Music Education, 502 Tyler Road, is seeking singers and wind instrumentalists for A Musical Tribute to Our Local Heroes, set for 3 p.m. Sept. 10 at The Center for the Arts in Russellville. The event will honor all emergency responders and members of veterans organizations from Pope, Yell, Johnson and Conway counties. Musicians are needed for an adult community choir, a community youth choir and a community band. Rehearsals will begin Monday. For more information or to sign up to participate, email info@ac-me.org or call (479) 264-9107.

Community Choir Opportunity

RUSSELLVILLE— The Community Festival Chorale is accepting new and returning singers, ages 15 and older, for the fall 2017 semester. The musical selection will be Part I, plus “The Hallelujah Chorus,” from G.F. Handel’s Messiah. Auditions are held for part placement only. Rehearsals will be from 7-8:30 p.m. Mondays, beginning Aug. 28, at the Arkansas Center for Music Education, 502 Tyler Road. The dress rehearsal will be at 6 p.m. Dec. 16, and the performance will be at 3 p.m. Dec. 17. For more information or to sign up, email info@ac-me.org, or call or text (479) 264-9107.

Orange Art Exhibit

CLINTON — The North Central Arkansas Artist League’s Orange art exhibit is on display through Nov. 6 at Ozark Health Medical Center, 2500 U.S. 65 S. The nearly 50 paintings by 12 artists include watercolors, acrylics, oil paintings, pen and ink, and pointillism, all using the color orange somewhere in the art. The Outpatient Wing display downstairs can be viewed from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and the Cafeteria display, in the hallways upstairs near the cafeteria, is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week.

Photography, Poetry Exhibit

PETIT JEAN MOUNTAIN — The Winthrop Rockefeller Institute will host We’re Not Telling You Everything: Words and Images From the Wichita Mountains during August in the institute’s Flagstone Foyer and Show Barn Hall. The exhibition includes photographs by Don House and Sabine Schmidt and poetry by Sy Hoahwah. For more information, visit www.rockefellerinstitute.org/wichita.

Gene Hatfield Art Exhibit

CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas College of Fine Arts and Communication and the Division of Outreach and Community Engagement are hosting an art exhibit titled Gene Hatfield: A Lifetime of Distinction, Achievement and Emeritus through Friday at UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak St. Hatfield, who died Feb. 18, 2017, was a Conway native, a UCA alumnus and a UCA Department of Art professor emeritus. He created a collection of multimedia collages, paintings and sculptures. The exhibit is free and open to the public. UCA Downtown is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, contact Kristen Spickard at (501) 852-2598 or kspickard@uca.edu.

CASA Volunteer Interviews

RUSSELLVILLE — Court Appointed Special Advocates of the 5th Judicial District will have interviews for CASA volunteers in Pope County in August. Volunteers need to be at least 21 years old and interested in being an advocate for abused or neglected children in foster care in Pope County. Training sessions will be from 6-9 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Pope County Courthouse, 100 W. Main St. For more information, call (479) 880-1195.

Bluegrass Music Night

HEBER SPRINGS — Heber Springs Christian Church, 1101 N. Broadway St., offers a bluegrass music night from 6:30-8:30 every Tuesday. Musicians are invited to participate. Free coffee will be available.

Yoga Class at the Library

CONWAY — Danny Mize, registered yoga instructor, teaches a yoga class at 6 p.m. Thursdays at the Faulkner County Library. Mize’s class focuses on feeling good in one’s body and letting go of life’s stress while listening to music. Yoga practitioners of all skill levels, especially beginners, are welcome in the class. All library programs are free and open to the public. For more information, call the library at (501) 327-7482 or email nancy@fcl.org.

Faulkner County Coin Club Meetings

CONWAY — The Faulkner County Coin Club meets the second Tuesday of each month at the Ola and John Hawks Senior Wellness and Activity Center, 705 E. Siebenmorgen Road. The 5 p.m. dinner is optional, and a $6 donation is suggested for those 60 and younger. A fellowship time will take place from 5:30-7 p.m. with educational speakers, show-and-tell, news and door prizes. For more information, call (501) 514-0785.

Friday Night Bingo

HEBER SPRINGS — Friday Night Bingo takes place each week at the American Legion Hall, 49 Park Road. Doors open at 5:30 for bonanzas, and regular play starts at 6:30 p.m. Food is available.

Faulkner County Tea Party Luncheon

CONWAY — The Faulkner County Tea Party has a luncheon at noon every Thursday at Larry’s Pizza, 1068 Markham St. Guest speakers and the members’ “soap box” are featured each week. All who are interested in governmental and business affairs on the county, state or national level are invited to attend.

Upcoming

Audubon Society Meeting

RUSSELLVILLE — The Arkansas River Valley Audubon Society will meet at 7 p.m. Aug. 28 in the Lakeview Room of the Dardanelle State Park Visitor Center. The program will be presented by Marcus Asher, quail program coordinator with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. His talk will cover the biology, habitat requirements and management practices needed to create habitat for quail, plus a new initiative to increase Northern bobwhite quail populations in Arkansas. Refreshments will be served, and the public is invited to attend. Call (501) 977-3899 for directions.

Conway Conversations: Teaching Civility

CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas will present Conway Conversations: Teaching Civility from 6-8 p.m. Aug. 29 at UCA Downtown, 1105 W. Oak St. The event, designed to integrate civility into academic and community programming, is geared toward educators, parents and youth-organization leaders. Conway Conversations is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call Lesley Graybeal at (501) 852-7416. To reserve a spot at the event, call (501) 450-3118.

Maumelle Newcomers Club Coffee

MAUMELLE — The Maumelle Newcomers Club will have its monthly coffee at 10 a.m. Sept. 1 at the Maumelle Community Center. The club is a social, charitable and educational organization designed to provide a way for women in Maumelle to meet others and gather for various activities of their choice. The chairwomen of each activity will be available at this coffee to describe their activities and answer questions. For more information, call Barb Spahr at (501) 766-4664.

Relay for Life Luminaria Ceremony

RUSSELLVILLE — The traditional luminaria ceremony for the Relay for Life of Pope, Yell and Conway counties will take place from 9-9:30 p.m. Sept. 1 at Russellville Depot Park downtown. The ceremony will follow the quarterly Downtown Art Walk, scheduled to end at 9 p.m. For more information, visit the local Relay for Life web page at relayforlife.org/popear or the organization’s Facebook page.

Small Business Loans Class

CONWAY — A free class, Small Business Loans, will be offered from 6-7:30 p.m. Sept. 5 and 12 at the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center at the University of Central Arkansas. Josh Dunlap from Arvest Bank will teach participants about various types of loans, documentation associated with loans and the steps required to complete the loan process. For more information, call (501) 450-3118.

Edible Gardening Class

CONWAY — The class Edible Gardening will meet from 6-7:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Sept. 5 through Oct. 10, in the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center at the University of Central Arkansas. Sean Ott will cover everything from basic information to soil amendments and fertilizers. To register or for more information, call (501) 450-3118.

Arkansas Coding Academy Open House

CONWAY — The Arkansas Coding Academy will have an open house from 5-7 p.m. ​Sept. 6 at UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak St. Participants will learn about the opportunities offered by the Coding Academy.​

Photography: Learn the Basics

CONWAY — Photography: Learn the Basics will meet from 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, Sept. 6 through Oct. 11, in the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center at the University of Central Arkansas. Participants will learn the basics of operating film and digital cameras and learn to take better pictures. To register or for more information, call (501) 450-3118.

All Re’ved Up 4 Kidz Benefit Car Show

RUSSELLVILLE — The All Re’ved Up 4 Kidz Benefit Car show will be from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 9 at 1509 E. Main St. (the parking lot of Brangus). The entry fee is $20 per vehicle. The event is a benefit for Court Appointed Special Advocates of the 5th Judicial District. For more information, call (479) 264-6677.

Cleburne County Retired Teachers Meeting

HEBER SPRINGS — The Cleburne County Retired Teachers Association will meet at noon Sept. 12 at the Rustic Inn. The guest speaker will be Donna Morey, executive director of the Arkansas Retired Teachers Association. Susan Eckhart will also present a program on scamming. All retired school personnel are invited to attend. For more information, call Lavern Penn at (501) 206-0357.

Paws at the Beach 5K Run/Walk

HEBER SPRINGS — The annual Humane Society’s Paws at the Beach 5K Run/Walk will take place Oct. 7 at Sandy Beach. Race time is 8 a.m., and the course is certified. Register at racesonline.com/events/paws-at-the-beach-5k-1k or at the race from 6:30-7:30 a.m. The entry fee is $25 if registered by Sept. 15 and $30 after that and on race day. For more information, contact Eileen Wilroy at hshumanesociety5k@gmail.com or (501) 250-4428.

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.

Upcoming Events