What’s Happening for Dec. 8, 2019 in Olympia

Sunday

Holiday Tour of Historic Homes: The Olympia Historical Society and Bigelow House Museum are sponsoring the 2019 tour from noon to 4 p.m., featuring nine historic properties, including the Bigelow House at 918 Glass Ave. NE. Tour tickets are $25 and available in advance at Artistry in Flowers at 300 Cleveland Ave. SE, Drees at 524 Washington St. SE and Thompson’s Furniture at 5407 Capitol Blvd. as well as online at www.olympiahistory.org. Net proceeds benefit the preservation and interpretation of Olympia’s historic Bigelow House and programming throughout the year by the Olympia Historical Society. Information: www.olympiahistory.org.

Tuesday

“Star Wars” model builder appears at Olympic Cards and Comics: Shake the hands that built the Death Star and see behind-the-scenes photos when Colin Cantwell visits the Lacey store from 1-3 p.m. Cantwell is the original concept artist and model builder for the Star Wars spaceships.The free event includes videos describing Cantwell’s work on Star Wars. Also featured will be an audience choice of videos showing his other iconic projects including “2001: A Space Odyssey” and “War Games.” Autographs will be on sale for $25 and include a free print of either his original 1974 Star Wars concept art or his 1975 photos of the first Star Wars models. Olympic Cards and Comics is at 4230 Pacific Ave. SE, Lacey. Information: http://colincantwell.com/

Christian Women’s Connection: The Christmas luncheon with the theme “Joy to the World” starts at noon at Panorama’s Seventeen51 Restaurant and Bistro’s Gallery Room at 1751 Circle Lane, Lacey. Enjoy lunch, coffee or tea and desert for $16. North Thurston High School’s Jazz Singers will perform, and the inspirational speaker is Joanne Sheehan from Mill Creek. Call in your reservations by the Thursday before the luncheon if possible to Sylvia at 360-943-0627.

Wednesday

Tax workshop for business owners: Business owners in Washington are responsible for knowing which taxes to report. To help them, the state Department of Revenue is hosting a free workshop from 9 a.m. to noon at the Department of Revenue, Room 114A, Bldg. 6400 Linderson Way SW, Tumwater. Participants will learn about Washington excise taxes, reporting classifications, deductions, tax incentives, sales tax collection and record-keeping requirements. Attendees receive a workbook and reference guide to Revenue’s rules and regulations. Information: Call 360-705-6705 or go to Revenue’s education page.

Madison Scenic Park Volunteer Work Party: From 9:30 a.m. to noon, volunteers will remove English ivy, which continues to choke out the native vegetation, as well as Himalayan blackberry and other non-native plants. Prepare to get muddy! Sturdy work boots/shoes are a must. The park is located at 1600 10th Ave SE. Limited parking available. Meet inside the park by the large walnut tree. Visit http://volunteer.olympiawa.gov/ for more information and to register for the work party.

Mason Health Type 1 Diabetes Support Group: The Type 1 Diabetes Support Group will take place from 1 to 2 p.m. in the Ellinor Room of Mason General Hospital, 901 Mountain View Drive, Shelton. This class is open to the public, but will focus on specific issues of people living with Type 1 diabetes every second Wednesday of the month. Call the Mason General Hospital Diabetes Wellness Center at 360-427-7332 for more information.

Cancer Wellness workshop: Mason Health, the Karen Hillburn Cancer Fund and Harmony Hill Retreat are partnering to offer this workshop for patients and caregivers impacted by cancer. This support group will meet from 4 to 6:30 p.m. in the Pershing Room of Mason General Hospital, 901 Mountain View Drive, Shelton. This workshop typically meets every second Wednesday of the month. Call 360-432-7706 to sign up.

Thursday

Shelton Diabetes Support Group: The topic for the monthly meeting is “Strategies to Prevent and Manage Hyperglycemia.” Learn strategies to avoid blood sugar hikes during the holidays season while you enjoy foods you love. The guest speaker will be Debbie McGinnis. Family and friends are welcome. The group will meet from 1 to 2 p.m. at the Pershing meeting room at Mason General Hospital, 901 Mountain View Drive, Shelton. Information: Contact the Mason General Hospital Diabetes Wellness Center at 360-427-7332.

Olympia Genealogical Society meeting: The topic will be “DNA Redux.” Using DNA for genealogy is no longer the “new thing” and this meeting will provide a crash refresher course about DNA — what it is, how to test it and what it can, and can’t, tell us about our ancestors. The presenter is longtime member Carol Ballard, who also leads the genealogy and DNA efforts at Panorama. The meeting is at 7 p.m. at the Thurston County Courthouse, Building 1, Room 152. Information: 360-349-2493 or www.OlyGenSoc.org.

Olympia World Affairs Council Lecture Series: Tom Rainey, Faculty Emeritus at The Evergreen State College, will address “What Is Volodya Up to Now? A Putin Update,” focusing on Putin’s expansive foreign policy, and on his problems at home. Lecture begins at 7:30 p.m. at the South Puget Sound Community College Lacey Campus, 4220 Sixth Ave SE. Free and open to the public. Information: www.olympiawac.org

History Talks at Schmidt House: “Harry’s Historic Holiday: President Truman’s 1945 Visit to Olympia” will be the topic for Steve Jones, retired attorney for the Washington State Senate, who will offer a lighthearted look at Truman’s historic vacation here, a story complete with Russian spies, late-night poker games, and presidential shenanigans illustrated with photos from the Truman archives. The talk is at noon at the Schmidt House, 330 Schmidt Place SW, Tumwater. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. for the talk and close at capacity. Admission is free, but donations are appreciated. Information: Contact Don Trosper at 360-786-8117 or history@olytumfoundation.org.

Friday

Pianist Scott Cossu performs a free concert: Cossu, a pianist, composer and former Windham Hill recording artist, will be joined by cellist Holly Reeves for the third in the 2019 “Fridays at the First” series of free noontime concerts at First Christian Church of Olympia, 701 Franklin St. SE. The church library opens at 11:30 for complimentary coffee and cookies. The concert begins at noon and lasts about an hour. Admission is free, but donations are welcomed by the musicians. Information: http://www.firstchristian.org or 360-943-8025

Friday and Saturday

Evergreen Longhouse Holiday Native Art Fair: The 23rd annual fair will be from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Longhouse, carving studio and fiber arts studio at The Evergreen State College, 2800 Dogtooth Lane NW, Olympia. Santa will be in the carving studio from 1-3 p.m. both days, and on Saturday a special art activity for children will be offered in the carving studio at the same time. Native foods will be offered by the Hazel Pete Institute of Chehalis Basketry, with proceeds supporting the annual Generations Rising Native Youth Art Day held the first Saturday in March. Information: contact Laura VerMeulen at vermeuLL@evergreen.edu or 360-867-6413.

Friday through Sunday

Capital City Chorus holiday concert: The second annual “Christmas with the Chorus” concerts will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, 1515 Harrison Ave. NW, Olympia. Admission is free, but donations are gratefully accepted. All are welcome. Information: http://cccolympia.org

Saturday

Tumwater Christmas Tree Lighting Festival: The free event is from 2-5 p.m. at the Tumwater City Hall and Headquarters Fire Station on Israel Road. It includes games, holiday crafts, performances by local and school choirs, and the lighting of the tree. Santa will arrive on an antique fire truck after the ceremonial tree lighting. Event parking is available in the adjacent Attorney General’s Office parking lot, 7141 Cleanwater Drive SW.

Santa Claus is coming – by train: Santa is due to arrive at the Olympia/Lacey Centennial Train Station at 6600 Yelm Highway SE, Lacey, at 10:11 a.m. on Cascade train 502. He will meet with children of all ages until noon. Centennial Station volunteers will serve coffee, punch, and cookies. Free.

Kaiser Woods Volunteer Work Party: From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., volunteers will be removing Himalayan blackberry and Scotch broom from the trails in this wooded area near Ken Lake. The park is located at the end of Park Drive Southwest, off of Black Lake Blvd. Parking is located just inside the park on the gravel road. Meet just inside the park. Directional signs will be posted. Visit http://volunteer.olympiawa.gov/ for more information and to register for work parties.

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