Community Calendar Dec. 10-23

All listings in the Monticello Express Community Calendar are subject to change and print as space allows. If you know of changes to any listing or would like to add one, please contact us at treuter@monticelloexpress.net. 

Dec. 10  

Central Park Nature Center Holiday Open House is from 1-4 p.m. Join Jones County Conservation for cookies and hot chocolate, some fun come-and-go activities and crafts. Families can make pinecone bird feeders, join a digital scavenger hunt and visit the Nature Center exhibits. If the snow allows, take part in snowshoeing adventures on the trails. If no snow, take a hike along the Jones County Wild for Reading Story Walk Trail featuring the book “When Winter Comes-Discovering Wildlife in Our Snowy Woods” by Aimee Bissonette or drive around the park to look for wild-life.   

Dec. 12  

Camp Courageous Holiday Concert Extravaganza 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. in Durgin Pavilion. The Cedar Rapids New Horizons Band will fill camp with joyful holiday music to sing along with. Games and dancing to follow after the band plays. RSVP on the Camp Courageous website. This free event is for campers and their families as well as staff and other members of the public.  

Whiffle Tree Mercantile’s Meet The Grinch from 5-7 p.m. 116 S. Cedar St. Bring a camera for a picture with the Grinch and enjoy some Grinch popcorn. 

Starlighters Theater presents Arsenic and Old Lace 7:30 pm. Get tickets at www.Starlighters.org.  

Monticello Public Library’s The Usual Suspects Book Club features The Keeper of Lost Causes from 1-2 p.m. This is a monthly book club that focuses on mystery, crime and suspense. 

Dec. 13  

Starlighters II Theater presents Arsenic and Old Lace 7:30 p.m. Get tickets at www.Starlighters.org. 

Monticello’s Holiday on First celebration will feature Christmas-themed events throughout downtown from 4-7 p.m.

Dec 14

Starlighters II Theater presents Arsenic and Old Lace 2 p.m. Get tickets at www.Starlighters.org. 

The Tri-County Historical Society will host An Old-Fashioned Christmas from 1-3 p.m. at 608 Second Ave. SW in Cascade. The event will feature Christmas carols with Sarah Boyle at 1:30-2:30 p.m., Christmas trees from throughout the decades, a vintage toy scavenger hunt in the museum, door prizes, hot chocolate and cookies. 

Dec. 16

The Jones County Supervisors meet each Tuesday at 9 a.m. in the second-floor board room of the Jones County Court-house, 500 W. Main St. in Anamosa. Meeting agendas can be found at jonescountyiowa.gov/board_of_supervisors.  

Monticello Public Library Yarning Circle 1-3 p.m. in the library meeting room. Bring your knitting needles or crochet hook, some yarn and a project to work on! 

Dec. 17  

Camp Courageous Holiday Pool Party from 6:30-8 p.m. at Camp Courageous Indoor pool. End the season with splashes and smiles at our festive pool night! RSVP on the Camp Courageous website. This free event is for campers and their families as well as staff and other members of the public.  

Central Park Nature Center Holiday Open House is from 1-4 p.m. Join Jones County Conservation for cookies and hot chocolate, some fun come-and-go activities and crafts. Families can make pinecone bird feeders, join a digital scavenger hunt and visit the Nature Center exhibits. If the snow allows, take part in snowshoeing adventures on the trails. If no snow, take a hike along the Jones County Wild for Reading Story Walk Trail featuring the book “When Winter Comes-Discovering Wildlife in Our Snowy Woods” by Aimee Bissonette or drive around the park to look for wild-life.

Dec. 18  

HACAP Mobile Food Pantry is at Anamosa’s St Paul’s Lutheran Church 9201 N. Ford St. from 3-4 p.m. No identification required. May pick up for multiple households. www.hacap.org/mfp 

Whiffle Tree Mercantile’s Meet & Greet Santa from 5-7 p.m. at 116 S. Cedar St., Monticello.

Chamber Business After Hours, Ohnward Bank & Trust 5-7 p.m. 

Monticello Public Library Evaluating the Evidence Series: The Sodder Disappearances. 5:30-6:30 p.m. Event intended for adults (Ages 19+). Delve into cold cases, robberies, disappearances and the unsolved mysteries that left us needing answers. 

Dec. 20

B&W Racing Services, LLC hosts the annual Polar Run 5K, 800-meter Candy Cane 10-and-under kids run and the Reindeer Plunge at Central Park. Events are staggered from 12:45 p.m. - 2 p.m. Runner early registration link found on B&W Racing Service’s Facebook page -- registration also begins at noon on the day-of. At the same time, have a holiday treat and cup of hot chocolate courtesy of the Friends of Jones County Conservation and Central Park Nature Center.  

Monticello Public Library’s Lattes & Literature from 10-11 a.m. Gather at the library every third Saturday of the month to discuss what you have been reading, while enjoying a cup of free coffee.

Dec. 22

HACAP Mobile Food Pantry is at the Jones County Fairgrounds, 700 Maple St., from 3:30-4:30 p.m. No identification required. May pick up for multiple households. www.hacap.org/mfp 

Dec. 23

The Jones County Supervisors meet each Tuesday at 9 a.m. in the second-floor board room of the Jones County Court-house, 500 W. Main St. in Anamosa. Meeting agendas can be found at jonescountyiowa.gov/board_of_supervisors.