Lindsey Chester edits the CaryCitizen Calendar of Events.

Cary, NC – It’s Memorial Day weekend, with relatively few (30-40) events on the CaryCitizen Calendar . But it’s quality, not quantity that counts. And quality starts with the NC Symphony, kicking off it’s summer residence in Cary this weekend.

Friday, May 25, 2012 – Ballet or a Movie?

You can choose for yourself on the Calendar, but we’d like to highlight two particular events on Friday night.

The first is Sleeping Beauty by the International Ballet Company at Cary Arts Center. IBA’s productions are always beautiful. For more info, visit the Calendar.

Also Friday is the kickoff of the Movies By Moonlight series at Booth Amphitheatre. Friday’s flick is Crazy Stupid Love.

Movies are free for kids 12 and under, $3 for adults. Movies begin around dusk. Picnics welcome.

Saturday, May 26, 2012 – NC Symphony

We’re hanging around town this weekend. Probably take a trip to the Farmers Market in the morning on Saturday. The big pool opens at the YMCA in the afternoon.

In the evening, we’ll likely be relaxing under the stars as the NC Symphony takes up it’s summer residence at Booth Amphitheatre. You didn’t know that the symphony makes its home in Cary during the summer? They do, and it’s always a magical night of incredible music under the stars.

For their Summerfest kickoff, the symphony will plays works including Rimsky-Korsakov’s Night on Bald Mountain as well as pieces by Grieg and Schubert.

As an added bonus, Saturday night’s performance will feature Playing with the Pros – talented area musicians joining the symphony. These Citizen Musicians bring a lot of passion and a big sound to the performance.

For ticket info, visit BoothAmpthiteatre.com

Sunday – Monday

Lots of other great stuff on the Calendar for Memorial Day weekend including an NCAA Baseball Tournament, a Taiwanese Dance Festival, a performance by the Triangle Wind Ensemble and two or three dozen other fun things. Then again, we might just make guacamole.

Happy Memorial Day!

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Photo by dleboeuf.

Cary, NC – Did you grow up swimming at the Cary Swim Club? Generations of town residents have enjoyed that quintessential summertime pleasure, dating back to 1963. This Saturday, Cary Swim Club is holding their 50th Anniversary Celebration and you’re invited.

Cary Swim Club Celebrates 50 Years

From Cary Swim Club:

Join us at Cary Swim Club on May 19th from 1-3 PM and help us celebrate 50 years of swimming, family recreation and fun in the Cary community!

There will be lots of fun games and activities for the kids, music from the Cary High band, a ceremony to honor the founding club and swim team members, as well as a visit from Cary’s Mayor.

All guest fees will be waived for the day and members are encouraged to bring their neighbors, families and friends, so please help us spread the word!

Calling All Volunteers

Lots of volunteers will be needed to help run the games and set up the facilities. Please send an email to 50thanniversary@Caryswimclub.org to volunteer or for more information on how you can help.

Event Details

Cary Swim Club – 5oth Anniversary
Saturday, May 19, 2012
1-3 PM

536 Walnut Street
Cary, NC 27511
Cost: Free

Cary, NC – White Plains Children’s Center is celebrating 30 years of service to the children of Western Wake this Saturday, May 19, and you’re invited.

White Plains Children’s Center Celebrates 30 Years

The 30th anniversary celebration, hosted by the Board of Directors, is scheduled for Saturday, May 19^th at 10am on the campus of White Plains UMC.

White Plains Children’s Center in Cary offers unique programs, serving children with and without disabilities. It is a non-profit, state-rated, 5-Star program.

Mayor Harold Weinbrecht will greet former parents, students, board members, employees and current families.  Town Council representative Don Frantz and Chair of the Cary Chamber, Tom Huff, will be among those to honor the school’s Founders.

Returning students, college age through elementary school, will conduct the honor ceremony.  Nearly 200 guests are expected.

Event Details

White Plains Children’s Center 30th Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, May 19, 2012
10 AM

White Plains UMC
313 SE Maynard Road
Cary, 27511
Cost: free

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Photo from White Plains Children’s Center.

Photo by Erik van Roekel.

Cary, NC – Adults and children ages 12+ are invited to make a move for those who can’t on Thursday, May 17. Life Time Fitness Cary is partnering with the Booth Amphitheatre in Cary to lead a two-hour, heart-pumping ZUMBA® Jam fundraising event. Guests will be treated to a live DJ and an after-party. Concessions will also be available.

Zumba Jam at Booth Amphitheatre

The event is free to the public and participants are encouraged to make a suggested donation of $10, with all proceeds benefiting Augie’s Quest and Life Time Foundation.

Augie’s Quest is a non-profit research initiative dedicated to finding treatments and cures for ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, a progressive motor neurone disease that robs people of the ability to move their muscles.

Life Time Foundation is about inspiring healthy people and a healthy planet one mission at a time. The current mission is improving children’s nutrition – One School Lunch Program to ensure every child has a healthy start in life, beginning with proper nutrition and exercise.

Event Details

Zumba Jam
Thursday, May 17, 2012
6:30 – 8:30 PM

Booth Amphitheatre
8003 Regency Parkway
Cary, NC 27518

Suggested donation: $10

Lindsey Chester edits the CaryCitizen Calendar of Events.

Cary, NC – This week, it’s a music explosion on the CaryCitizen Calendar with the Craig Wollard Band, Cary Concert Singers, Red June at Sertoma and the B-52′s at Booth Amphitheatre. Plus National Train Day. Just another ho-hum weekend in Cary, NC.

May Music-palooza in Cary

We can’t remember a weekend with so many different musical events on the Calendar.

The Craig Wollard Band will bring their beach music sound to the Promenade at Waverly Place on Friday night from 7-10 PM.

Also Friday night, the Concert Singers of Cary and the Cary Children’s Choir will perform in two separate shows in Cary.

The Cary Town Band is playing a free show at Sertoma on Friday night and the Town of Cary has organized polka music downtown for Yankovic Day.

And that’s just Friday.

Saturday, Red June kicks off the summer Pinecone Music Series at Sertoma Amphitheatre. Expect bluegrass and Carolina roots music from this Asheville ensemble.

But it’s safe to say the big party of the weekend will be at Booth Amphitheatre for the Band Together NC Benefit Show headlined by the B-52′s. As they say in Love Shack, “folks lining up outside just to get down.” Tickets are still available.

More details about all these events on the Calendar.

National Train Day

Don’t forget: National Train Day is Saturday morning, 10 AM at the Amtrak Station downtown. Giveaways, entertainment, history and more.

More on the Calendar

29 events this weekend in Cary on the Calendar. Check it out for yourself.

Video: Love Shack

You can also see this video on YouTube.

Cary, NC – On Saturday, May 12th, one lucky family-of-4 will be able to win a trip anywhere Amtrak travels on the East Coast. It’s all part of Downtown Cary’s first ever National Train Day celebration.

National Train Day in Cary

The Heart of Cary Association in partnership with Amtrak and the Town of Cary will host National Train Day at the Downtown Cary Railroad Station. This is the first time the event has ever been held in Cary, and Downtown advocates as well as Town of Cary officials are hoping it’s the start of something big.

Festivities begin a little before 10AM with the Cary Town Band playing selections from their Planes, Trains & Automobiles repertoire as the Amtrak Carolinian train #80 arrives just after 10.02 AM, bringing guests and visitors to Downtown. Then, following a brief ‘welcome’ by Council members and other dignitaries, the Amtrak station will come alive with displays, videos, food vendors and giveaways throughout the four hour event.

Train Whistles & Conductor Hats

The North Carolina Railroad Company is bringing Train Whistles for the first 200-children who attend, while Amtrak will be handing out Conductor Hats to everyone.

History & Popcorn

Nearby at the Page-Walker Arts & History Center, free tours will be offered of the 1868 building, a former railroad hotel. Learn all about Cary’s railroad history from a guide dressed in 19th century period costumes.

Ashworth’s Drug Store will be giving away free popcorn. Food vendors including Chick-fil-A, Boogie Bean Coffee, Toreros Mexican and Dorry’s Downtown Deli will be available offering a selection of lunchtime fare. The ‘Chick-fil-A cow’ and Cary Invasion’s mascot ‘Cosmo’ will also be there to delight children and other guests.

Stuff for Kids

There will be a children’s Face Painting Princess and ‘Balloon Pirate’, along with CaryCitizen photographer Brooke Meyer to take children’s and family photos for Moms and Dads. Amtrak will also have railroad coloring books and crayons for visitors as well as videos of their history, rolling stock and other day trip destinations up-and-down the line.

The Carolina Piedmont Division of the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) will set-up a display inside the station and will be available to answer questions about railroading, while WildatArtKids will provide a ‘hands-on’ train play table. Children can also make their own train-related items courtesy of Cary Creative Center.

Family Train Getaway

And finally, Amtrak is sponsoring a drawing for a free family-of-four train getaway to anywhere on the East Coast Amtrak travels. A trip to Maine, perhaps? Or maybe a vacation in Florida. One lucky family will win this fabulous prize. Check out Amtrak’s Interactive Route Atlas.

The Golden Spike

National Train Day is a holiday started by Amtrak in 2008 as a method to spread information to the general public about the advantages of rail travel and the history of trains in the United States. It is held each year on the Saturday closest to May 10th, the anniversary of the pounding of the Golden Spike in Promontory Summit, Utah (1869) which marked the completion of the first transcontinental railroad.

Events are held at Amtrak stations as well as railroad museums across the country and often have passenger cars and model railroad layouts on display. The largest events usually take place in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, PA, Chicago, IL, and Los Angeles, CA.

Event Details

National Train Day
Saturday, May 12, 2012
10 AM – 2 PM (rain or shine)

Cary Amtrak Station
211 North Academy Street
Cary, NC 27513

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Downtown Community coverage on CaryCitizen is sponsored in part by Studio 180 Salon in Chocolate Smiles Village on W. Chatham Street.

Lindsey Chester edits the CaryCitizen Calendar of Events. Photo by Hal Goodtree.

Cary, NC – Get ready for another surprising and entertaining weekend in Cary with a visit from Joe and Terry Graedon of the People’s Pharmacy, Herbfest, two road races, Triangle Lemonade Day, a Punjabi festival, JamFest and two theater productions. All this weekend on the CaryCitizen Calendar of Events.

Friday: Joe & Terry Graedon

Joe and Terry Graedon of The People Pharmacy on NPR will lead a lively discussion on herbal remedies to kick off this weekend’s HerbFest at Page-Walker.

Tickets to hear the Graedon’s are limited, so visit Friends of Page Walker online.

Saturday: Two Road Races

Saturday at 8 AM in Bond Park, it’s the Purple Cloth 5K (and kid’s 100 yard dash). The event is sponsored by Genesis United Methodist Church and supports our good friends at Dorcas Ministries. Visit PurpleCloth5K for more information.

Also Saturday, WakeMed Cary is sponsoring the Cary Distance Festival – a 5K / 10k event that starts and finishes at Waverly Place. Visit RunWalkFestival.org.

Saturday: The Perfect Piece Grand Opening

The Perfect Piece, a deliciously eclectic furniture, consignment and home decor store, opens in downtown Cary in the old Cary News space next to BBT Bank.

(Yep, The Cary News used to have an office in downtown Cary. Been closed for several years. That’s why you’re reading CaryCitizen.)

In any event, stop by The Perfect Piece for their Grand Opening anytime Saturday.

Just think: the downtown farmers market, Herbfest and The Perfect Piece – it could be the perfect Saturday morning in Cary.

Saturday: Two Farmers Markets

Start Saturday right with a trip to the farmers market.

In downtown Cary, visit the Downtown Cary Farmers Market on Academy Street.

On the western side of town, take a trip to the Western Wake Farmers Market in Carpenter Village.

Over toward the border with Apex, stop in at DJ’s Berry Patch for u-pick strawberries and other farm-fresh goodies. Located off Davis Drive at Salem Church Road.

Triangle Lemonade Day

Lemonade Day is a FREE, fun, experiential learning program that teaches youth how to start, own and operate their own business using a lemonade stand as well as fundamental lessons about life, success and themselves. The Cary Family YMCA in conjunction with YMCA of the Triangle is proud to sponsor Triangle Lemonade Day.

Visit TriangleLemonadeDay to register for this free event.

Friday, Saturday & Sunday: Two Plays

The Rainmaker finishes its run this weekend at Cary Arts Center (CAC) with shows on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

On Sunday, enjoy a special free show at CAC by Applause Youth Theatre.

More details about both shows on the Calendar.

Saturday: Herbfest!

If you’re interested in gardening, herbs, nutrition or just the great outdoors, you won’t want to miss the 3rd annual Herbfest this Saturday at Page-Walker.

This free event goes on from 9 AM until 3 PM.  More info on the Calendar.

Saturday: Baisahki Mela Punjabi Festival

Baisakhi Mela 2012 : A festival celebrating spring,  lunar New Year and the joy of living, with musical and cultural festivities! A day full of entertainment,  performances from local artists, food stalls, handicraft vendors, henna and lots more. It will be a day to remember with fun, frolic and masti for everyone!

All at Booth Amphitheatre in Cary. Get tickets.

Saturday: JamFest

Middle school and high school musicians can jam all day under the trees at Sertoma Amphitheatre in Cary. More info on the Calendar.

Saturday: Super Mario Brawl Tournament

Gamers will want to take part in the Super Mario Brawl Tournament, this Saturday from 10 AM – 2 PM on the Game Truck at Waverly Place.

Gifts and prizes for contestants. Proceeds benefit the Cary Children’s Museum. See the Calendar for more details.

Sunday: Vocal Motion Free Spring Concert

On Sunday from 3 PM – 5 PM, check out the musical stylings of Vocal Motion, the SAS concert choir.

Free event at Sertoma Amphitheatre in Bond Park.

More on the Calendar

For all your entertainment needs, visit the CaryCitizen Calendar of Events.

Lindsey Chester edits the CaryCitizen Calendar of Events. Photo by Hal Goodtree.

Cary, NC – This weekend is Cary Spring Daze. But the calendar has a bunch of other interesting events this weekend including pro soccer, a wine anniversary, a new production from Cary Players, a benefit for the Carying Place and an open house for skaters, boarders and bikers.

Spring Daze

It’s been called “one of the premier arts festivals in the Southeast.” Dozens of vendors, scores of artists, demonstrations and entertainment (including CaryCitizen’s favorite band, A Fifth of Blues) highlight the day-long festival on Saturday at Bond Park.

Read all about Spring Daze 2012 in our story from earlier this week.

Friday: Carying Place Benefit

The Carying Place helps families with children in Wake County who are homeless, inadequately housed or lacking resources to get housing.

Their annual benefit is Friday April 27, 2012 at The Matthews House in Cary. Heavy H ‘Oeuvres, complimentary Wine and Beer donated by local merchants. Silent Auction and Live Auction items include: a new iPad, Kindle Fire, jewelry, original art, getaway in the mountains, beach vacation, Washington DC experience and 95 more wonderful items.

Tickets available at the door: $50 per person.

Friday-Sunday: The Rainmaker

A classic American romantic-comedy goes up this weekend at Cary Arts Center. It’s The Rainmaker by Richard Nash, in a new production by Cary Players.

You may be familiar with The Rainmaker from the 1956 movie starring Burt Lancaster and Katherine Hepburn. It’s about a con man named Starbuck arrives in a small Midwestern town and promises to bring rain in exchange for $100.

Visit Cary Players for more information and tickets.

Friday & Saturday: Sip’s Second Anniversary

Don’t know Sip? It’s a store in Preston Walk that specializes in organic wine and beer.

On Friday and Saturday, they’re having their second anniversary event. More than a dozen wines and beer, food, music and fun are on tap Friday and Saturday night. CaryCitizen will be out in force both nights, so drop by and say hi.

More info on the calendar.

Saturday: RailHawks vs. San Antonio

The weather looks to be mild for Saturday night as the Carolina RailHawks square off against the San Antonio Scorpions at Wake Med Soccer Park in Cary.

Admission price starts at $10, just $5 for kids. Get tickets.

Saturday & Sunday: Sk-8 Park Open House

Finally, a shout to our good friends at Sk8 Park in Cary. We love that place.

From the Calendar:

Join us this spring for our open house with plenty of prizes and fun for everyone! We’ll be skating and biking all day, having contests, giving away door prizes, special membership sales, and much more! Pay one fee and you’re in for the whole day! No pre-registration required.

$10 for members; $20 for non-members. More info on the calendar.

Story and photo by Barbara Shepherd of The Sister Cities Association

Cary, NC – Where do culinary students from Le Touquet, France come to work and study their craft?  If you answered “Cary and the Triangle,” you would be right.  Yes, culinary students from France, right here in Cary! You can sample their work on April 26 at Page-Walker in Cary.

The Exchange Program

Ten students from the Lycée d’État Hôtelier du Touquet in Cary’s sister city of Le Touquet, France, are spending the month of April sharpening their culinary skills at leading restaurants such as Herons in The Umstead.  The visit is part of a long-standing Cary Sister Cities exchange program between Wake Tech Culinary Arts’ program and the Le Touquet culinary school.  Every year, students from the Wake Tech program travel to France in March while a group of French students come to the Cary area in April.

Jeff Hadley, department head for the Wake Tech Culinary Arts department has led the trips to France for a number of years.

“The French exchange program has so many benefits for our students from a professional and cultural perspective. Even though a different language is spoken there, the students learn our industry has a universal language all its own.”

Students from both countries also gain a greater awareness of how our two cultures view food and dining.

Public Sampling

This year, for the first time, the public will have a chance to meet these budding culinary stars at a Culinary Exchange Networking Reception on April 26 from 5:30 – 7:30 at the Page Walker Art and History Center, sponsored by Sister Cities Association of Cary, the Cary Chamber of Commerce and the Heart of Cary.

Guests can sample a variety of French wines from TotalWine and hors d’ouevres provided by local Cary restaurants including The Matthews House, Klaras and Unwine’d Wine Bar.  The event is free for Sister Cities and Cary Chamber members and $5.00 for everyone else.

Event Details

• April 26, 2012   5:30 – 7:30
• Page Walker Arts and History Center, 199 Ambassador Loop, Downtown Cary
• Space is limited, and tickets are required.
• Cost: Free for Chamber members and Sister Cities members. General Public: $5.00
• Get Tickets.

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Community coverage on CaryCitizen is sponsored in part by Studio 180 Salon in Downtown Cary.

Story by Hal Goodtree. Special thanks to Mary DeMilia. Photo by Lost-In-Maylene.

Cary, NC – For 25 years, Swim Across America (SAA) has been raising money for fight cancer. Now, with the support of Triangle Aquatic Center, this iconic event is coming to Cary on May 20, 2012. Show your support by signing up or sponsoring a swimmer.

The One-Legged Man Who Ran Across America

From SAA:

Swim Across America is the inspired sequel to a triumphant Run Across America completed by the two founders of SAA in 1985. This eight-month journey, which spanned the country from Boston to Los Angeles, raised over $1 million for cancer research.

What makes this trek all the more remarkable is that one of the determined runners, a 22-year-old from Fairfield, CT, had lost his right leg to cancer a decade before. Following college graduation, these two childhood buddies embarked on their mission, making history in the process. Together, they instilled hope in all who fight this disease and heightened consciousness about overcoming this frightening diagnosis.

It was in 1987 that Jeff Keith and Matt Vossler decided to bring their cause back home and transitioned from running to swimming for a cure. With a focus on raising money and awareness for cancer research, prevention and treatment, Swim Across America was chartered as a 501c3 nonprofit organization.

25 Years and $41 Million Later

Twenty five years later, SAA has raised over $41 million dollars. SAA funds almost two dozen prestigious organizations across the country including Sloan-Kettering in New York, San Francisco Children’s Hospital,  Johns Hopkins, Rush University Medical Center in Chicago and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

Swim Across America in Cary

SAA has dozens of events across the country, each with its own flavor. In San Francisco, they swim under the Golden Gate Bridge.

In Cary, Triangle Aquatic Center has donated the 50m competition pool for the event on Sunday, May 20, 2012.

SAA/Cary is more than just swimming:

• Silent auction (includes signed basketballs, birthday packages, and Disney Tickets)
• Fun relays (including kids relays, parent-child, and grandparent-child)
• Swim clinic by 3 former Olympians

Sign-Up, Donate or Volunteer

You can sign up as an individual or as a team. If you don’t want to swim, you can make a donation to SAA or sponsor a swimmer.

Lots of volunteers are needed as well – lifeguards, timers and organizational help.

Visit SAA/Cary for more info.

Event Details

Swim Across America
Sunday, May 20, 2012
1 – 6 PM

Triangle Aquatic Center
275 Convention Drive
Cary, NC 27511

More info