Annual book drive at Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble Bookseller in the Kitsap Mall has announced that this year’s beneficiaries of their annual Holiday Book Drive will be Kitsap kids from pre-school through age 18 who are homeless, disadvantaged or ailing.
The bookstore’s main distribution channels to reach these kids will be the Salvation Army, Oasis Teen Shelters, St. Vincent de Paul Shelter, Georgia’s House and the Harrison Medical Center Foundation Pediatric Rehabilitation Fund.
The book drive is an annual event each year from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31 at Barnes & Noble stores. Last year company-wide it generated more than 1.5 million new books donated to local organizations, according to the Silverdale store’s Community Relations Manager Ruthanne Devlin.
Devlin said the Silverdale store’s individual goal this year is to encourage customers to purchase and donate 2,800 books. The store will begin distributing books almost immediately, as the Salvation Army needs them for Thanksgiving dinners for the homeless.
Harrison’s pediatric ward hosts a parents’ night out for special needs kids on Dec. 5. More books will be needed for holiday events at the homeless teen and family shelters, Christmas Eve gifting at Harrison’s pediatric ward, and other child-focused events by local non-profits.
“We can’t reach everyone, but our booksellers hope to make this a happier time of year for lots of children who might otherwise be overlooked,” Devlin said.
Popular authors are donating time to meet fans and sign books to help raise community awareness of the book drive including Ann Rule, on Nov. 30 from 3 to 5 p.m.
Her new book is “Practice to Deceive.” Also appearing is Leslie Rule, author of “Where Angels Tread.”
The store will be putting up book displays and information about the non-profits in November.
Customers who want to participate need only purchase any book in the store suitable for a child pre-school thru age 18 and leave it with the store.
Gift giving underway at the Kitsap Mall
This holiday season, you can make twice the impact with your gift. Just grab a tag off the Giving Tree located in JC Penney Court at the Kitsap Mall, return it with your gift on Nov. 30 and watch gifts grow!
Is it holiday magic? No – it’s Kitsap Mall’s way to help celebrate the season by matching the number of gifts collected under The Giving Tree.
Donations will help Toys for Tots, Salvation Army and Bay Vista Commons give gifts to more kids, teens and seniors in the community. Find recommend gifts for tots, teens and seniors at Facebook.com/ShopKitsapMall.
The Giving Tree tags will be available beginning Friday, Nov. 15 in the JC Penney Court.
Holiday Hours at Kitsap Mall are:
Nov. 28-Thanksgiving – Individual stores are opening at 8 p.m. Visit www.shopkitsapmall.com for a list.
Friday, Nov. 29, 12 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 24, Christmas Eve – 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 25, Christmas Day – the mall is closed.
Thursday, Dec. 26, Day after Christmas – 9 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec.31, New Year’s Eve – 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Wednesday, Jan. 1 New Years Day – 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Silverdale tree lighting set for November 30
The Silverdale community Christmas tree lighting ceremony will be Sat. Nov. 30.
This is the 59th year of the tree lighting and the marking of the beginning of the holiday season. Santa is expected to arrive and light the “world’s largest living (a 131 foot Douglas Grand fir.)
Festivities will include tractor hay rides sponsored by Oxford Suites, from 2 to 4 p.m. traveling between Oxford Suites and the Silverdale Library.
The library will have materials on hand for kids to make holiday cards or they can enjoy a puppet show at 2:30 p.m.
Kids can head to Lisa Stirrett House of Glass studio to decorate sugar cookies with icing and sprinkles or get some fresh hot kettle corn to benefit the Salvation Army.
At 4:30 p.m. activities start in front of the Silverdale Antique store, 9490 Silverdale Way, with a musical performance by “The Caroliers”.
The Silverdale Kiwanis will be serving hot cider, hot chocolate and cookies and the Silverdale Lowe’s hardware store will have its annual “Santa’s workshop for Children”.
New this year will be face painting from 4:30 to 6 p.m.
At 5 p.m., elementary students from Brownsville and Emerald Heights choirs will perform, followed by the scheduled arrive of Santa Clause at 5:45 p.m. on a Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue fire truck with the Kitsap County Sheriff’s department giving Santa a safe escort thru town.
Santa will ask for everyone’s help as he does a count down to light the tree.
Afterward, the Kiwanis club will be hosting Santa to meet the children and Gary Bowlby Photography will be on hand to take pictures.
Finishing off the evening will be a performance by the “The Kitsap Carolers.”
Nutcracker Ballet set for Bremerton
Dance Arts Theatre of Silverdale will present its 26th annual production of the Nutcracker Ballet beginning Nov. 30. Performances will be at the Bremerton High School Performing Arts Center at 7 p.m. Nov. 30 and 2 p.m. Dec. 1. Reserved seats are $18 and general admission is $15. Seniors, students and children under 18 can see the production for $10 each. Tickets are the door are $20.
Tickets are available at Brown Paper Tickets.com, CJ’s Evergreen General Store, Bremerton, and the Silverdale Chamber of Commerce. Reserved and general tickets also available at Irene’s School of Dance in Silverdale. Guest dancers include former principal dancers with the Pacific Northwest Ballet. Artistic director is Irene Miller, owner and director of Irene’s School of Dance in Silverdale. Dancers in the company range in age from 10 to 24 years old. Approximately 125 dancers and extras are in the production.
The ballet is based on the children’s story of “Nutcracker and the King of Mice” written in 1816 by E.T.A. Hoffman.
