Parades, concerts and pumpkin fests
By AUBRIE GEORGE | The Moorestown Sun
School is in full swing, the weather is getting cooler and the leaves will soon change color. Summer is almost a memory, but there will be no fall frowns for area residents this season with plenty of fun events lined up for the coming weeks.
Business association events
The Moorestown Business Association is hosting several township-wide events this fall beginning with the annual Autumn in Moorestown festival on Saturday, Oct. 10 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Join over 20,000 people as downtown Moorestown welcomes the fall season with fine arts and crafts, antiques, classic cars, scarecrows and pumpkin painting. The Main Street business district will be alive with activities for all ages and interests.
Children are invited to march in their Halloween costumes on Oct. 24 for the fifth annual Halloween parade. The line-up is at PNC Bank at 3:45 p.m. and the parade will begin at 4 p.m. This year’s event will feature prizes for five different costume categories. There will also be prizes given out for the best-carved and painted pumpkins that are prepared at home prior to the parade and bought to the event. This year there will also be a bonfire at the bottom of Stokes Hill following the parade.
In November, the MBA will sponsor the annual Candlelight Night on Nov. 6 from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Main Street business district. Stores will be lit up with candles and sounds of the holiday season will play throughout. There will be food, entertainment and live music for residents getting a head start on holiday shopping. For more information, go to www.moorestown.com/mba.
Great Pumpkin Festival
The Moorestown Arts Advocacy Council will be holding the Great Pumpkin Festival at the Community House on Friday, Oct. 2 from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. and on Saturday, Oct 3 from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. This free event will feature live entertainment, a pumpkin pie and chili cook-off, artist demos, original artwork priced less than $100 and a carved pumpkin contest. Those who participate can purchase a pumpkin Friday night and bring a carved pumpkin back on Saturday by 10 a.m. to be part of a grand pumpkin illumination at dusk.
For more information, contact MoorArts by email at moorarts@mtps.com or by phone at (856) 778–6600. Ext. 28033
Sign culture social
All members of the sign language community, children of all ages as well as their friends, family and teachers are invited to take part in an evening of games, movies, conversation and refreshments during the 2009 sign culture social on Friday, Oct. 23 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Activities will include the availability of table games such as ping pong, pool, and foosball, as well as board games, videos and movies. Families are invited to sign up to bring a snack, dessert, food item or caffeine-free drinks. The social will be held on the third floor of the church street recreation center. To register, download a form at www.moorestown.nj.us or call Barri Schlitz at 722–5463 prior to Oct. 16.
Perkins Center concerts
In addition to a selection of art classes this fall, The Perkins Center for the Arts will be holding several concerts for the family to enjoy. On Sept. 25, catch Mick Moloney: a singer, instrumentalist, band leader and educator with more than 40 albums to his credit. Moloney, a figure in Irish music in America, combines the careers of folklorist, arts presenter and advocate, professional musician and radio and television personality. Doors for this event open at 7:30 and the music will begin at 8:15 p.m. Tickets cost $15 each.
On Friday, Oct. 16, come to the Perkins Center to see Wissahickon Chicken Shack. The seven-piece band blends folk, funk, honky-tonk and bluegrass with their instruments to create a country sound. Doors for this concert open at 7:30 p.m., music begins at 8:15 p.m. Tickets cost $15.
On Friday, Nov. 20, the Perkins Center will feature a concert with American folk singer and songwriter Vance Gilbert. Gilbert’s performances often feature extended guitar and vocal techniques and his compositions exhibit sophisticated melodies and harmonies that come from to his roots in jazz music. Doors for this event open at 7:30 p.m. and the music will begin at 8:15 p.m. Tickets cost $15. For more information on the programs and events offered at the Perkins Center for the Arts, visit its Web site at www perkinscenter.org or call them at 235–6488 or toll free at (800) 387–5226.
