McCrory Gardens will host a free Maple Syrup Workshop from 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday, March 16. Come see a close-up of the process and equipment used at the gardens, as well as a home-made evaporator built by Brookings Area Master Gardener Perry Johnson. Get inspired and discover the tools needed to try it out yourself, or just enjoy learning about the process to make this tasty treat. If weather allows, the group can venture out to the maple trees and see the collection process. Registration is requested at http://www.123formbuilder.com/form-4656283/education-program-registration-form-2.
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A Lions Club benefit spaghetti supper will be held from 5-7 p.m. Saturday, March 16, at the First United Methodist Church Community Life Center, Sixth Avenue and Sixth Street, Brookings. A pie sale also starts at 6 p.m. Tickets are $7 in advance from Lions Club members and $8 at the door for adults and $3 for children ages 5-12 years old. Proceeds will go toward Lions projects and the Lions KidSight Program.
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An update of the 2019 legislative session will highlight the Brookings County Democrats’ annual St. Patrick’s Day party starting at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, March 16, at the VFW, 500 Main Ave., in downtown Brookings. Updates from the Brookings City Council and Brookings County Commission will also be featured as well as information on the upcoming council election. The party will feature a traditional Irish meal, a cash bar, as well as a live auction at the end of the evening. Tickets are $15, $10 for students, and are available from Lawrence Novotny, 692-6026 or 691-9129. The party is open to the public.
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The Spring Dance Concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 16, at SDSU’s Doner Auditorium. For more information, call 688-5187.
The Brookings VFW Auxiliary invites the community to brunch from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, March 17, at the post home at 520 Main Ave. The menu includes scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausage, toast, coffee and juice for $7. The Works includes the above breakfast with a separate plate of biscuits and gravy for $9. Children ages 3 to 7 years eat for $4, and 2 and under are free. Proceeds from the breakfast this month will go to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. For more information, call 692-8771.
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The Spring Dance Concert starts at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 17, at SDSU’s Doner Auditorium. For more information, call 688-5187.
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The Brookings Chamber Music Society presents organist Gregory Hand in concert at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, March 17, at the SDSU Performing Arts Center’s recital hall. For more information, call 688-5187.
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A junior voice recital with students Kayla Holtquist and Emily Kallem will be held at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 17, at Founders Recital Hall in the SDSU Performing Arts Center. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 688-5187.
Feeding South Dakota will provide free food for families in need at its next mobile food distribution from 12:15-1:15 p.m. Monday, March 18, at the Elkton Community Center. Food distributions provide an assortment of food that may include frozen and fresh produce, frozen meats, assorted breads and/or canned and boxed items. Please bring something to carry your food in, such as coolers, bags or totes.
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Brookings Area United Way will hold its annual meeting at 4 p.m. Monday, March 18, in the board room of the main branch of First Bank & Trust. The agenda includes acknowledgment of board members who have finished their terms and voting in new board members.
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UCLA Geography Professor Laurence C. Smith will discuss his book, “The World in 2050: Four Forces Shaping Civilization’s Northern Future,” at 6 p.m. Monday, March 18, in the McCrory Gardens Education and Visitor Center. The event, which is part of the Virginia and J. Edward Holtry Distinguished Lecture series, is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the SDSU Department of Geography and the Geospatial Sciences Center of Excellence.
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The Spring 2019 Live Music Series at the Pheasant Restaurant and Lounge continues from about 6:30-9:30 p.m. Monday, March 18, with vocal tunes and classic pop from Elisabeth Hunstad. Check www.pheasantrestaurant.com/events for up-to-date information on added performances and changes. No cover.
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Bingo at the Brookings VFW, 520 Main Ave., is from 6:30-10 p.m. Monday, March 18. Cards are handed out at 6:30, and bingo starts at 7. Lunch will be available. For more information, call 692-6771.
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The next Brookings Activity Center dance will be held from 7-10:30 p.m. Monday, March 18, at 320 Fifth Ave. For more information, call 692-4492.
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The South Dakota World Affairs Council will host a program from 7-8:30 p.m. Monday, March 18, at Wooden Legs Brewing Co. The event features Marius Tarita, visiting Fulbright Scholar from the Moldova Institute of History affiliated with the Moldova Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, and Will Prigge, associate professor and head of the SDSU Department of History, Political Science, Philosophy and Religion. The two scholars will discuss the political and economic evolution of the former Soviet Republics since 1991. Pizza will be served.
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Democracy Under the Microscope, a series of talks about major recent books on the subject of democracy, continues at 7 p.m. Monday, March 18, at the Brookings Public Library. Larry Rogers will speak about the book “How Democracies Die: What History Reveals About Our Future” by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt. The event is free and open to the public.
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South Dakota State University professor Aaron Ragsdale will perform a faculty percussion recital at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 18, in the Performing Arts Center’s Founders Recital Hall on campus. The concert is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the SDSU School of Performing Arts at 688-5187.
Brookings AARP Foundation TaxAide provides free tax return preparation and electronic filing for taxpayers with low to middle incomes, with special attention to those aged 60 or older. Trained volunteers are available from 1-4 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday through April 11 at the lower level of First Bank and Trust, 520 Sixth St., Brookings. Bring social security cards, photo ID, last year’s tax return and tax records for 2018. No appointment is necessary. Brookings residents unable to come to the site may call LaVonne Tufty at 692-4766 to make arrangements for tax assistance at their place of residence.
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The Brookings Public Library’s next Adult Craft Class is set for 2 p.m. Tuesday, March 19. Participants will make Sakura flower eggs. Registration is required; stop by the library or call 692-9407 to sign up.
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The Brookings County Pheasants Forever Banquet is Tuesday, March 19, at the Swiftel Center. Doors open at 5 p.m., and dinner starts at 7 p.m. with a live auction to follow. Tickets are $60 for a single or $80 per couple, and $10 for youth 16 and younger. For more information, contact Terry Nemitz at 692-9857.
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The Research Park at SDSU will host an entrepreneurial speaker series from 5-6 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, at the Brookings Innovation Center to educate, engage and connect area entrepreneurs. SDSU student businesses will be presenting and the public is invited to join the presentation. This event is free and open to the public. Light appetizers and refreshments will be provided.
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Your Money, Your Goals will be held from 6-7: 30 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, at the Brookings Public Library. Lorna Wounded Head, SDSU Extension family resource management field specialist, will present the free program. Registration is requested at http://extension.sdstate.edu/events; search for “Your Money, Your Goals.” The program will focus on the topics of Getting through the Month, Paying Bills and Other Expenses, Dealing with Debt, and Tracking and Managing Income.
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The Brookings Public Library will host a free screening of the movie “Kong: Skull Island” at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 19. Rated PG-13, 118 minutes.
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The next Hillcrest Elementary PTA meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, in the school lunchroom.
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The Dakota Prairie Elementary second-grade concert starts at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 19, at the school.
1 Million Cups, a way for creators, artists, entrepreneurs and business owners to gather and share ideas on upcoming projects or new products, will be held at 9 a.m. Wednesday, March 20, at the Children’s Museum of South Dakota. Free coffee will be served.
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A Spring Job Fair will be held from 1:30-5:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 20, at the Days Inn Convention Center in Brookings.
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The SDSU’s Family Resource Network is again offering free parenting classes, “Understanding Me Up to Age 3,” in March and April. The classes will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesdays at the Brookings Public Library. The March 20 session is about “Why I Do What I Do.” This class explains your child’s behaviors as they think, learn and feel with strategies to encourage your child’s development. While there are four sessions, participants are not required to attend all four. However, participants are required to register by contacting the Family Resource Network at 688-5730 or sdsu.frn@sdstate.edu.
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Bingo at the Brookings VFW, 520 Main Ave., is from 6:30-10 p.m. Wednesday, March 20. Cards are handed out at 6:30, and bingo starts at 7. Lunch will be available. For more information, call 692-6771.
If you love to paint, join the painting group that meets from noon-5 p.m. every Thursday at the Brookings Arts Council, 524 Fourth St. Come work on individual projects and collaborate on art talk and ideas. No pre-registration is needed.
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The Brookings Interfaith Council will meet at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 21, at the Brookings Public Library, Cooper Room. The topic for discussion will be “Religion Renewed for a Changing World: An Introduction to the Baha’i Faith.” Come celebrate the Baha’i New Year and learn about this most recent world religion. Baha’is believe it’s time for humanity to come together as one family, to create a world where everyone can thrive. The meeting will begin with a potluck. Please bring a passing dish, if able, and remember that many in the interfaith community do not eat pork or may be vegetarian.
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Indiana University School of Nursing professor and dean Janet Carpenter uses artwork to explain the science behind menopause and hot flashes. The South Dakota premiere of her exhibit will be when speaks at the Helen K. Grace and Nursing Deans’ Distinguished Lecture at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 21, in the University Student Union’s Volstorff Ballroom at South Dakota State University. Admission is free. The event is open to men and women.
Bingo at the Brookings VFW, 520 Main Ave., is from 6:30-10 p.m. Friday, March 22. Cards are handed out at 6:30, and bingo starts at 7. Lunch will be available. For more information, call 692-6771.
