Email your submissions to khoskins@gadsdenmessenger.com. Please include the name, date, time, location and cost of the event, as well as contact information for event coordinators.
March 9
The Northeast Alabama Genealogical Society will hold its monthly meeting at 10 a.m. at Nichols Memorial Library located at the corner of Cabot and Dwight Avenues in Gadsden. Robert Debter will present the program on Arthur St. Clair. Mr. Debter is the archivist at the Ashville Archives and Museum in Ashville. Refreshments to follow. For additional information, email neagslib@comcast.net.
March 10
The City of Southside will host Taste of the Town Food Truck Festival at Southside City Hall located at 2255 Ala. Highway 77. Food trucks will offer a variety of cuisine.
March 20
Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Etowah County will host the 2024 Bowl for Kids’ Sake Transforming Lives Community Tournament on Wednesday, March 20 and Saturday, March 23 at The Alley at the Gadsden Mall. Registration for the March 20 session will be at 5 p.m. with bowling from 6-to 9 p.m. Registration for the march 23 session will be at 10 a.m. with bowling from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Proceeds will go to 38 Littles in Waiting in the City of Gadsden, Etowah County Schools and Cherokee County Schools and 17 Littles in Waiting in Calhoun County and surrounding areas. Most of the Littles are in immediate need of a mentor trauma informed services, mental health support and 21st Century Youth Leadership/workforce development. For registration and sponsorship information, visit Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Etowah County on Facebook, email kandi@bbbsneal.org or text Katrina Lawless Graben at 256-490-0811.
March 21
United Way of Etowah County is hosting its annual Girlfriend Gala at 210 at the Tracks from 6 to 9 p.m. March 21. This year’s theme is “Party Like Parton.” The event is a night out for the girls and a fundraiser all in one. The funds raised go toward the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in Etowah County. For more information, email Raeven at successby6@uwoec.org.
March 23
Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Etowah County will host the 2024 Bowl for Kids’ Sake Transforming Lives Community Tournament on Wednesday, March 20 and Saturday, March 23 at The Alley at the Gadsden Mall. Registration for the March 20 session will be at 5 p.m. with bowling from 6-to 9 p.m. Registration for the march 23 session will be at 10 a.m. with bowling from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Proceeds will go to 38 Littles in Waiting in the City of Gadsden, Etowah County Schools and Cherokee County Schools and 17 Littles in Waiting in Calhoun County and surrounding areas. Most of the Littles are in immediate need of a mentor trauma informed services, mental health support and 21st Century Youth Leadership/workforce development. For registration and sponsorship information, visit Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Etowah County on Facebook, email kandi@bbbsneal.org or text Katrina Lawless Graben at 256-490-0811.
April 20, 21
Art on the Lake, an annual two-day arts and crafts festival in Guntersville, is currently accepting applications from artists and vendors wishing to exhibit in the event, which will be held Saturday, April 20 and Sunday, April 21. For more information, contact e-mail guntersvilleartonthelake@gmail.com or visit www.artonthelake-guntersville.com.
March 23
The City of Southside will present the Easter Egg Hunt and Spring Festival at the Southside Sports Complex located at 1450 Parker Anderson Lane from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The egg hunt will begin at 1 p.m. Arts and crafts vendors and food vendors will be on site, as will the Easter Bunny. There will also be an Etowah County Sheriff’s helicopter, Southside Fire Truck and inflatables.
April 20
The Northeast Alabama Genealogical Society’s 2024 Ancestor Swap Meet will be held Saturday, April 20 at the Downtown Civic Center in Gadsden. The event began in 1999 as a fundraiser for the society, in which researchers were asked to donate copies of their family history for the society’s family files at the Howard Gardner Nichols Memorial Library, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places as the first free standing library building in Alabama. Those files have grown over the years and are now contained in 11 four drawer file cabinets. The society is once again asking local researchers to submit updated copies. All profit from the swap meet are used to maintain Nichols Library, which has been owned and operated by the Northeast Alabama Genealogical Society’s as a genealogical library since 1973. The library is maintained and staffed by volunteers.
April 26
St. James Catholic School will host a benefit Blingo Night on Friday, April 26 at 5:30 p.m. at 210 on the Tracks located at 210 Locust Street in downtown Gadsden. A $40 ticket includes dinner, live entertainment and a bingo card. The event is open to ages 10 and up. Raffle and Bingo prizes are valued at $200 to $400 each. Mystery Boxes will also be available for purchase. To purchase tickets, please call 256-546-0132.
Ongoing
Zumba classes will be held Monday nights at 6 p.m. at the Southside Community Center. The cost is $5 a class, but those buying five classes get the sixth class free.
The Northeast Alabama Genealogical Society recently announced the completion of the Clayton Cemetery book, which contains over 350 pages of information on those buried at Clayton Cemetery. Every effort was made to identify those resting in the cemetery. Some buried there may not be included since no official records were kept. For addition information or to pre-order the book, e-mail juliadyoung@comcast.net or hyattrosemary@bellsouth.net.
Northeast Alabama Genealogical Society recently announced the completion of the Clayton Cemetery book, which contains over 350 pages of as much information as possible on those buried at Clayton Cemetery. Every effort was made to identify those resting in the cemetery. Some buried there may not be included since no official records were kept. For addition information or to pre-order, contact juliadyoung@comcast.net or hyattrosemary@bellsouth.net.
Nichols Memorial Library, home of the Northeast Alabama Genealogical Society, is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursdays for anyone interested in family history research. A history and research group meets on Thursdays at 9 a.m. Everyone is welcome to attend and participate. The library contains genealogical information and family files from all areas of Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and other states. The library contains a large collection of military records and Native American research records. For more information, email neagslib@comcast.net.