Friday, Feb. 1

COMMUNITY · The first Wash Me Pink Color Run to benefit Susan G. Komen will be held Saturday, March 9. The 5K color run course begins at 9 a.m. at 1104 Redwine Cove, in Dalton. Registration is from 7 a.m.-8:45 a.m. Color washers will douse participants with Komen color at the color stations strategically placed throughout the course. Parking passes cost $5 if pre-purchased and $10 at the venue, and are required for each car. Registration rates increase on Feb. 1. Visit washmepink.com.

COMMUNITY · Lyerly United Methodist Church is selling cookbooks for $10 each. They can be purchased from any church member, or at Pine Ridge Outdoor Supply in Lyerly, or by sending $10 (plus $2.00 shipping and handling) to Lyerly United Methodist Church, P. O. Box 152, Lyerly, GA 30730, and a church cookbook will be mailed to you. For more information, call Jo Ann Mitchell at 706-895-2636.

COMMUNITY · Entries in the annual DNR “Give Wildlife a Chance” poster contest must be postmarked by Wednesday, March 27. This year’s theme is “Everyone can be a citizen scientist.” The contest is open to kindergarten through fifth-grade students in public and private schools and homeschool groups. Participants enter at the local school level with drawings that depict their observations of Georgia’s native nongame animals and plants. Visit georgiawildlife.com/PosterContest or botgarden.uga.edu for more information.

COMMUNITY · An introduction to beekeeping class will be taught by Randy Rolen, Journeyman Beekeeper. To register, call Continuing Education at 706-295-6963, at Georgia Northwestern Technical College. The class will be held at the GNTC Gordon County Campus, 1151 Highway 53 Spur, in Calhoun, Saturday, Feb. 9, from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Cost is $49.

COMMUNITY · A 12-week class for those dealing with challenges related to hearing loss will be offered Fridays, Feb. 1-April 26, from 9:30-11:30 a.m., at The SUMMIT, 6400 Lee Highway, Suite 103, in Chattanooga, Tenn. (At the crossroads of Highway 153 and Lee Highway, next to the Murphy Express gas station. The Summit is accessible from the Carta transportation bus service – route #4/Eastgate/Hamilton Place – and a lighted sign “The SUMMIT” will face the highway.) Tuition normally costs $150, but is only $25 for this semester. To RSVP, call 423-624-1669 or email: letmypeoplehear@yahoo.com.

COMMUNITY · The Friends of the Catoosa County Library have used books for sale daily in the Friends’ Nook at the library. Hardbacks cost $1, paperbacks cost 50 cents. The library is at 108 Catoosa Circle (Benton Place campus off Battlefield Parkway) in Ringgold.

COMMUNITY · Registration is open for the sixth annual Berry Half Marathon, 10K, and 5K races to be run Saturday, March 23, at Berry College in Rome. The Berry Half Marathon raises funds for need-based scholarships to the local (Rome) elementary and middle school. Runners have given to Soles4Soles in past years, and organizers plan to continue to support this charity, as well as contribute $1 for each pair of shoes donated to help offset the cost of mailing the shoes to needed destinations. There will be collection boxes set up at race registration March 22 and 23. There will also continue to be a collection site for Medals4Mettle, a non-profit organization that facilitates the gifting of marathon, half marathon, and triathlon finishers’ medals to children and adults fighting debilitating diseases. To register for the 2013 Berry Half Marathon and further information on registration fees, visit: berryhalfmarathon.com.

Saturday, Feb. 2

COMMUNITY · The Ridgeland High School Cheerleaders will host a pancake breakfast fundraiser at Applebee’s in Fort Oglethorpe on Feb. 2, from 8-10 a.m. Tickets cost just $5. Tickets can be purchased from any of the cheerleaders or pay at the door.

COMMUNITY · The Cedar Grove Community Club will hold a Wild Game Supper at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, at 5395 West Cove Road in Chickamauga. Cost is $8 per person for dinner, a drink and dessert. To reserve tickets, call 423-762-2715.

COMMUNITY · The Lakeview Fort Oglethorpe Recreation Association has begun to take baseball and softball sign-ups for the 2013 season. Sign-ups for girls and boys ages 3 and older are from noon-3 p.m. Saturdays, and 6-8 p.m. Thursdays, at the red building on Barnhardt Circle in Fort Oglethorpe. For more information on baseball call Mark Cope (423) 227-5057, and for softball call Ronnie Davis at (706) 463-0277. All signed players will participate in a pre-season camp with Lakeveiw-Fort Oglethorpe High School coaches and players at the LFO Baseball Complex.

COMMUNITY · Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey has partnered with local libraries to host Reading with Ringling Brothers. All branches of the Cherokee Regional Library System will be participating. Children who read five books will be rewarded with a free ticket to the circus at Philips Arena in Atlanta for Feb. 13-18. Children must be aged 2-12 to participate. Stop by your Walker or Dade County public library today to register for the program.

ENTERTAINMENT · Chattanooga Chuck, the Tennesee Aquarium’s weather predicting marmot, will make his annual Groundhog Day forecast in Ranger Rick’s Backyard Safari at noon and 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Tennesse Aquarium in downtown Chattanooga.

ENTERTAINMENT · The Tennesse Aquarium will hold a Cub/Boy Scout Day from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2. Admission is $10 for Scouts in uniform and leaders. Additional adults will be charged $20, and additional children age 3-12 will be charged $10 admission. For more information, email events@tnaqua.org.

COMMUNITY · Rock Spring Athletic Association will hold Baseball and Softball sign ups every Tuesday from 6-8 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. through Feb. 16, at Rock Spring Elementary School. For ages are 3-12.

RELIGIOUS · Lyerly United Methodist will have its first Karaoke Night on Feb. 2, from 6-8. Some CD's will be available. Or, bring your own Christian CD, and friends and family. Refreshments will be served. All are invited to attend. Call Judy Motes at 706-506-1334 for more information.

COMMUNITY · Ringgold author Janie Dempsey Watts will sign copies of her new novel “Moon Over Taylor’s Ridge” (Little Creek Books, 256 pages, $ 12.95) on Saturday, Feb. 2, from 2-4 p.m. at Jane's Place, 9990 Commerce Street, in Summerville. To learn more about the novel, and upcoming events, visit the author’s website, janiewatts.com.

COMMUNITY · Heart Smart Saturday will be held from 8 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, at Erlanger at Volkswagen Drive (Chattanooga). Local heart specialists will be on hand to discuss risk factors, signs and symptoms and lifestyle changes you need to know to prevent heart disease. Free cholesterol screening by appointment from 7 until 8:30 a.m. only. Participants will also be treated to a heart healthy lunch. The event is free and registration is required. Call (423) 778-LINK (5465) for more information and to register.

COMMUNITY · Childbirth Education will be offered from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 2, at Erlanger at Hutcheson (Women’s Center) in Fort Oglethorpe. This childbirth education class/series is designed for expectant parents and taught by experienced OB nurses. These classes include stages of labor, relaxation and labor support techniques, hospital procedures, pain management options, after birth and home care for moms and in-hospital care for newborns. There will also be time for questions and answers. Registration is free to mother’s delivering at Hutcheson or $75 if delivering at another location. Call Erlanger’s HealthLink at (423) 778-LINK (5465) to register.

ENTERTAINMENT · Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga (ETC) will hold its second annual “Le Chatt Noir” fundraiser, a cabaret, with a mixer at 7:30 p.m. and show starting at 8 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 2, at Eastgate Town Center, 5600 Brainerd Road, inChattanooga,. There will be a cash bar. Tickets cost $20 for singles, $35 for couples. Price includes one drink ticket and one raffle ticket.

COMMUNITY · Parkridge East Hospital in East Ridge, Tenn., will offer free tours of the birthplace on Saturday, Feb. 2, from 5-6 p.m. Participants can tour the labor and delivery area and the mother/baby area (based on availability). Prenatal services and classes will be discussed with a time for questions and answers. This tour begins in the Rowe Conference Room. For more information and to register for classes, call MedLine at 800-242-5662 or visit ParkridgeEastHospital.com.

COMMUNITY · Pivotal events of the year 1863 will be scrutinized and analyzed in The 2013 Civil War in the Western Theater Colloquium to be held Saturday, Feb. 2, at the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center in Dalton. The free program begins at 1 p.m., with Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park historian Jim Ogden. Ogden’s lecture is titled, “Gateway to the Deep South: The Battles around Atlanta.” Historian and author Dr. Richard McMurry’s lecture at 2 p.m. is titled, “Ole Joe 1863: Joseph E. Johnston and the Defense of the West.” For more information, call 706-272-4452.

COMMUNITY · Zumba - A fun and effective workout to the beat of Latin and International music, meets every Saturday morning at 9 a.m. at Boynton United Methodist Church. Females only. Cost is $5 per class to pay the certified instructor. For more information, go to BoyntonUMC.org or call 706-866-2626. Boynton United Methodist is located at 4246 Boynton Drive in Ringgold, two miles west of I-75, south of Battlefield Parkway at Pine Grove and Boynton.

Sunday, Feb. 3

COMMUNITY · The Friends of the LaFayette-Walker County Public Library will hold their annual Super Sunday fundraiser open house and membership drive from 2-4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 3, at the library’s temporary location in the old Food Lion building on Main Street. There will be both a live and silent auction held, and refreshments will be served.

RELIGIOUS · Ugandan Thunder will appear at Second Baptist Church on Sunday, Feb. 3, at 6 p.m. This is a nationally acclaimed choir consisting of 22 multi-talented children ranging in age from 10 to 13. They are from the Royal School and Orphanage located in Uganda, East Africa which is one of the top 10 schools in Uganda. They will sing songs both in African and American styles. The concert includes high energy music, dancing, and interaction with the audience. The concert is sponsored by Pennies for Posho, a non-profit Christian ministry that provides clothing, food, shelter, and clean water to orphanages in Uganda. For more information, visit penniesforposho.org. There is no charge for the concert. Call 706-638-2732 for directions.

COMMUNITY · The Veterans of All Wars Museum, at 71 Red Belt Road in Chickamauga, will be closed through Thursday, Feb. 28, and will reopen Friday, March 1. The museum has a collection of guns and other memorabilia on display. The museum was founded by Robert H. Honeycutt, a WWII veteran, POW, and survivor of the 800 mile German death march. Call Randy Culbreth at 423-488-4789 for more information.