WFHB Community Calendar

Food Truck Friday is a beloved Bloomington event — experience the family-friendly community tradition yourself next time you visit B-Town.

Swing by to grab some delicious, locally-made food, enjoy the amenities at Switchyard Park, and experience live music & performances from local artists.

Limited seating is available, but bringing your own lawn chair(s) is advised to ensure you have a place to sit. You do not have to pay admission to attend Food Truck Friday — the only cost is the food and beverages you choose to purchase.

Bring the kiddos in their best costumes to downtown’s annual Trick or Treat Walk.
Many businesses will have treats for the little ones.

5-7 pm: Family Fall Fun Night- (Event) Join Naturalist at Canyon Inn for a family fun night. Snake fangs, skin of newt, vulture vomit, and spider web stew is brewing at our potion tent. Come learn about spooky animal defenses and create your own magic slime! Walk through our Fear Factor Tent of creepy, crawling, chomping animals. Enjoy fall fun yard games, crafts, and face painting.
7 pm: Spooky Movie Night- (Event) Come see the movie showing on a big screen in the Sycamore Room at Canyon. Enjoy free popcorn and cookies. This is movie is rated E for everyone.

“Murder Along the Monon” explores the 1923 murder of Mitchell policeman William Sutherlin through a historic walk with costumed reenactors and a presentation by Believe Paranormal of the results of their investigation into sites relevant to the murder. A light supper will also be served. Tickets will be on sale at the beginning of October at the Lawrence County Museum.

Refreshments will be provided and please bring some sort of art (music, paintings, poetry) to share!

So Much Fun, It’s Scary!

Families can trunk or treat, enter contests, and more! Vehicles will be set up in the parking lot near the soccer field. This event is free and open to the community!

A musical “tail” that will bring the house down

You start the Haunted Train in the Kids Train station it is just FUN for the kids with games & things to see nothing scary! Then the brave go to the Haunted Train station & on to the Haunted Train.

Synopsis: Eerie and unforgettable, MS. 45 is an essential snapshot of New York City in the early 1980s from Abel Ferrara (DRILLER KILLER, THE ADDICTION)—one of the greatest and most unique living filmmakers on the planet. Thana (Zoë Tamerlis) is a garment worker who’s had the ultimate bad day, as she’s assaulted twice in visceral fashion. Shocked to her core, Thana’s nights become consumed by vengeful prowls through the city, which result in men winding up on the wrong end of a bullet. Knocking the DEATH WISH rip-off subgenre into a new stratosphere, MS. 45 showcases a haunting performance from Tamerlis and Ferrara’s knack for transforming limited resources into genre revolutions.

*In partnership with The Orbit Room, The American Genre Film Archive and Vulture Video, our Cicada Underground series comes from the ethos that while as imperfect as the people who made them, genre films deserved to be screened to both enrich our lives and have a good time doing it!

Under a dark sky and a rising moon, nothing seems so scary as tales of ghosts, ghouls and terrifying situations. It is the annual Festival of Ghost Stories and we invite you to let your imagination run wild as tellers from the Bloomington Storytellers Guild weave stories that will keep you on the edge of your blanket! You can bring a lawn chair, and dress warmly to soothe your frayed nerves. Stories are best suited for adults, teens and older school-age children and may not be appropriate for younger children.

The program is presented by Bloomington Parks and Recreation and sponsored by the Monroe County Public Library.
For weather-related updates, call the Community Events Hotline at 349-3754. Rain location is the Monroe County Public Library Auditorium, 303 E. Kirkwood Ave.

Door Time: 6:00 PM
Punkie Johnson is a comedian and writer from New Orleans, Louisiana who joined the cast of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE in 2020. She also appeared on season 2 of HBO Max’s critically acclaimed series, LOVE LIFE, where her performance was hailed by Time Magazine as a “particular stand out.” Past credits include SPACE FORCE (Netflix), A BLACK LADY SKETCH SHOW (HBO), and BILL BURR PRESENTS: THE RINGERS (Comedy Central). Punkie also served as a writer/consultant on Peacock’s upcoming series reboot QUEER AS FOLK. Punkie can next be seen in Orion’s BOTTOMS, directed by Emma Seligman (Shiva Baby) and produced by Elizabeth Banks’s Brownstone Productions.

Blues, Country, Music

REEFER MADNESS is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals. www.concordtheatricals.com

Originally directed by ANDY FICKMAN and produced by STEPHANIE STEELE for DEAD OLD MAN PRODUCTIONS

Doors Open 6:30pm

It All Begins Again…
Come join the hauntings!

Family-friendly Hayride (not scary) and/or Haunted Trail (scary), buy tickets at the door.
Get ready for a night of screams, scares, and unforgettable memories.

WITH:

Dark N Stormy
Desiree DeCarlo
Frenchy LaRouge
Rose Whip
Twirlisha Devine

Door Time: 9:00 PM
Punkie Johnson is a comedian and writer from New Orleans, Louisiana who joined the cast of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE in 2020. She also appeared on season 2 of HBO Max’s critically acclaimed series, LOVE LIFE, where her performance was hailed by Time Magazine as a “particular stand out.” Past credits include SPACE FORCE (Netflix), A BLACK LADY SKETCH SHOW (HBO), and BILL BURR PRESENTS: THE RINGERS (Comedy Central). Punkie also served as a writer/consultant on Peacock’s upcoming series reboot QUEER AS FOLK. Punkie can next be seen in Orion’s BOTTOMS, directed by Emma Seligman (Shiva Baby) and produced by Elizabeth Banks’s Brownstone Productions.

The Bedford Farmers Market consists of local farmers, artisans and bakers; all items for sale at the market are handmade/homegrown in Lawrence County and within 75 miles from courthouse. Products available at the Bedford Farmers Market include fresh produce, plants, farm fresh eggs, local beef, chicken and pork, baked goods, jams, jellies, sweet bread, pies, cinnamon rolls, jewelry, tie-dye, pottery, leather goods, baby items, candles, walking sticks, baskets, crochet dolls/animals and a variety of other art/craft items.

New vendors/performers welcomed throughout the season

No steaks, but LongHorn makes great pancakes and you can only get ’em served by our swimmers & divers once each year!

Nestled in picturesque downtown charm and, in 2024, celebrating its 50th anniversary, the Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market is a vital part of the local food culture.

Market goers can expect to find a wide assortment of goods from the farm and field, including fruits and vegetables, eggs, meats and cheeses, honey, seasonal flowers, and annual and perennial plants. Food and beverage artisans provide a tasteful variety of satisfying breads, drinks, pastries, and savory dishes. This weekly gathering provides individuals the opportunity to connect with their community in meaningful ways while supporting small farmers and businesses.

For the last day of our 5th season at the Woolery Farmers’ Market, we’ll be going out with a bang – or should I say, a boo! Come trick or treat your way around the market booths and stock up on some sweet treats. Enjoy the music of Destin Wernicke as he provides the proper Halloween ambiance with some seriously spooky organ music. Deck out your doggy in their best duds and dazzle the other dogs (No, Fluffy, a collar does not count as a costume!). Keep an eye out for our last Woolery Market Newsletter of the season next week for more spooky surprises. Hope to see you scare! I mean, there!

There will be singing from both the 1991 revision The Sacred Harp and The Shenandoah Harmony. Loaner song books will be available. Feel free to drop by to observe if you have limited time!
Doors will be open around 9am and are asking everyone to register even if not leading a song.
There will be breakfast snacks and drinks.
A traditional potluck dinner on the grounds at noon.
Social with a spaghetti supper at Barb’s house (520 W 6th St) in the evening.

10am-12pm: Spooky Crafts- (Craft) Drop by the Nature Center to create a fangtastic craft that will make you want to sink your fangs into reading. Come create a cute snake bookmark and meet a few our snakes.
1-3pm: Pumpkin Carving- (Event) Carve a pumpkin, $3 cost per pumpkin. Please bring cash. Meet at Nature Center Amphitheater. Supplies is limited to the first 50 guest
4-5:30pm: Trick or Treat Trail- (Event) Put on a costume and meet the Friends of McCormick’s Creek at the Nature Center to go Trick or Treating. We will be walking the habitat trail and trail 8 to get be spooked by a trick or a sweet treat on the way. The trail is accessible for all.
6:30-8pm: Spooky Story Telling- (Event) Join the Bloomington Storyteller Guild at the Canyon Inn in front of the fireplace. They will be telling family friendly spooky stories.
8:30 pm: Spider Spoofing Hike- (Hike) Join Park Naturalist Jessie at the Nature Center to look for spider’s eye shine at night. Bring a flashlight! This is a family friendly event. The trail is accessible for all.

Join the Monroe County History Center Cemetery Committee and the Prospect Hill Neighborhood Association to learn the basics of headstone cleaning and repair. Drop in / out anytime.

Wear outdoor work clothes and bring work gloves and knee pads if you’d like. Please bring your own water and snacks.

Funding is provided in part through the City of Bloomington’s Housing and Neighborhood Improvement Program and the Monroe County History Center.

Author T. L. McBeth will be joining Morgenstern Books for Saturday Storytime to get us ready for the holiday season with his brand new book, I Am NOT Santa Claus!

There will be vendors of all sorts, music, and lots of shopping!

Gates open at 11 a.m. Launching begins at noon.

Fall has arrived and pumpkins are flying in the skies over the Monroe County Fairgrounds!

Launcher teams send pumpkins soaring through the air in competitions for distance and accuracy. Get a team together to build and enter a pumpkin launching device! Cannons and chemically powered launchers are NOT permitted.

Not a builder? Not to worry! Watch the competitions, and see pumpkins splatter to the ground when we drop them from a bucket truck.

There is plenty more to do and see at the Pumpkin Launch, including a children’s area with fall-themed activities, live music, food vendors, and the festive feel of fall.

Bring a lawn chair, sit back, and be amazed by launch device ingenuity!

Spin your creativity into a spiderweb suncatcher at the Wylie House! While you work, weave spooky fall stories about 19th century Bloomington into your mind! You don’t want to miss getting caught in the Wylie House Museum’s web of crafts and history every Saturday this October!

These events are free, and open to the public, with no registration or experience required (though we appreciate advance notice for groups of 5+ people). We simply ask that you dress appropriately to do outdoor work, and bring plenty of water to stay hydrated. Snacks and drinks will be provided as well as any other tools you may need to help out!
We hope you can join us to get outside and enjoy nature, make new friends, and learn some sustainable, organic orcharding practices. All are welcome!

Where History Buffs and Bookworms Connect
Do you love to read books? How about books about history? If so, join the HiStory Book Club to discuss the great stories of our past over a glass of coffee or tea. Books about historical figures, places and times throughout Monroe County, Indiana, and the world!

It’s simple – follow the reading recommendations below and mark your calendars. Admission is free and you don’t even have to complete the book to attend and participate in the discussion. Come meet some new friends as we talk about old times.

Bloomington Restorations, Inc. invites you to the October Museum Open Day, “A Fall Gathering” at the Hinkle-Garton Farmstead. Volunteers will give indoor tours of the Farmhouse. Located in the Music Room Parlor, Music will be performed with sing-along invited.

Featured for sale inside the main house will be the delightful cookbook, “Call to Lunch,” a collection of Daisy Hinkle-Garton’s recipes. Volunteer Janette Robertson, quilter and seamstress, will be offering some of her homespun creations for sale. She will be donating a
percentage of the sales to the Farmstead.

The book on BRI’s affordable housing program, From Historic Ruins to Affordable Homes, Saving Bloomington’s Vintage Cottages will be offered for sale. In addition, offered for sale will be maple syrup made at the Farmstead, as well as maple syrup products supplied by the Indiana Maple Syrup Association. 

The Hinkle-Garton Farmstead is sending a call out for Volunteers who might be interested in assisting with Farmstead tours one Saturday per month (usually the last Saturday of designated months) from 1-4 PM. Volunteer duties include introducing visitors to the Farmstead history and act as docents/hosts for the afternoon. Our Open Days are conducted in a very easy-going atmosphere, minimal training and commitment required and always under supervision and guidance. All that would be required is an ability to pleasantly engage the public and a 1-1/2
hour training. If interested please contact LeAnn Luce, Hinkle-Garton Farmstead Open Days and Events Coordinator at: [email protected] for more information.

The Farmstead, located at 2920 E. Tenth Street in Bloomington, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is owned and maintained by Bloomington Restorations, Inc., an organization committed to the preservation of historic properties in Monroe County. It is free and open to the public on the last Saturday of most months.

A musical “tail” that will bring the house down

Wear your best costume and enjoy Trunk or Treat!

Wear your favorite geo-costume and explore spooky specimens of Indiana’s oddest fossils and minerals in this family-friendly event. Part museum, part lab, and part classroom, the Learning Lab is where you can compare thousands of rocks, minerals, and fossils, create art inspired by our collections, explore real-time datasets, and participate in interactive activities. Pull open drawers to discover real specimens and question the world beneath your feet using scientific evidence.

The Learning Lab is open to people of all ages and abilities in Room 1011 of the Geology Building.
Free parking is available in the IU Forrest Avenue garage, located 1 block to the north.

The program is typically located in Lab A, but may also be in the garden if the weather is nice.

STEM Saturday is a weekly program that gets visitors to engage in STEM. STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Saturdays are designed to provide engaging hands-on STEM activities aimed at inspiring interest in STEM subjects and to make learning both hands-on and fun. STEM Saturday is meant for ages 5 and up. Each week the Education Team and volunteers develop different hands-on activities meant for the entire family. STEM Saturday is designed for ages 5-17, but we encourage adults and children to work together so that they can learn together! STEM Saturday is partially sponsored by Cook Medical and CFC Properties.

Key features of STEM Saturdays include:

• A variety of hands-on activities that encourage exploration of STEM concepts.
• Age-appropriate Curriculum: STEM Saturday content is tailored to different age groups, ensuring that the activities are suitable for a wide range of developmental levels.
• Expert Guidance: WonderLab Educators and Volunteers lead these sessions. They guide and answer questions helping guests gain a deeper understanding of the concepts.
• Collaborative Learning: STEM Saturdays encourages collaboration among participants, fostering teamwork and communication.
• Parent Involvement: Parents and caregivers are encouraged to participate, creating an experience for everyone in your group to take part in.

A musical “tail” that will bring the house down

Join PALS for Halloween with the Horses on October 26th from 5-7 PM! Come in costume, enjoy the festive activities, including pumpkin decorating, trick-or-treating on the sensory trail, photo booth, food trucks, face painting, and meet the incredible horses in costume!

You start the Haunted Train in the Kids Train station it is just FUN for the kids with games & things to see nothing scary! Then the brave go to the Haunted Train station & on to the Haunted Train.

Doors at 6:30 pm

Constellation Stage and Screen presents the 19th annual interactive screening

Join us 30 minutes prior to each screening (6:30 & 10:30pm) for our highly-anticipated pre-show event, featuring a costume contest, fabulous prizes, devirginization ceremony, and more! To host this year’s pre-show festivities, Constellation will welcome back local drag queen, producer, and host Oriana Perón.

Oriana Perón is a dynamic drag performer from Bloomington, IN, who turned her love for cosplay into a captivating stage career. Since 2006, Oriana has combined her passion for anime, video games, and musical artistry into one-of-a-kind drag acts that have dazzled audiences across the country. Known for her quirky and fun performances, she’s been featured in Crunchyroll, Anime News Network, and Watermark Magazine. With a mission to create safe, engaging spaces and expand her anime-inspired drag shows internationally, Oriana continues to push the boundaries of performance art while spotlighting other talented nerdy performers.

In this cult classic, newly engaged sweethearts Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon) find themselves stuck with a flat tire during a storm and happen upon the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry), a “sweet transvestite” and scientist. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker (Meat Loaf), a creepy butler (Richard O’Brien), and a pair of wicked groupies. Through elaborate songs and dances, Frank unveils his latest creation: a muscular male specimen named “Rocky.”

The Rocky Horror Picture Show has a long history of audience participation. At screenings, audiences typically throw rice, ring bells, yell specific phrases, and generally cause mayhem in the theater! Prop bags with goodies and guides on how to participate in this cult-classic tradition will be available to purchase with tickets or at the show.

Kick off the Halloween season with sweet transvestites, mad scientists, and a big hunk of Meat Loaf at the 19th annual screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show!

REEFER MADNESS is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals. www.concordtheatricals.com

Originally directed by ANDY FICKMAN and produced by STEPHANIE STEELE for DEAD OLD MAN PRODUCTIONS

The Woomblies Rock Orchestra is a powerhouse of talent. 11 musicians, including a 4-piece string section, and 2 horns, playing some of the greatest Rock and Motown music ever written. Music from Rock bands like ELO, Moody Blues, and Led Zeppelin – and greats like Al Greene and The Four Tops.

It All Begins Again…
Come join the hauntings!

Family-friendly Hayride (not scary) and/or Haunted Trail (scary), buy tickets at the door.
Get ready for a night of screams, scares, and unforgettable memories.

Sounds From the Black Hole: a concert series featuring experimental music and explorations of sound.

Nia Petrol (soundcloud) is usually behind the scenes, running sound at Sounds From the Black Hole. She’ll be given the spotlight to show off her synth skills, creating experimental techno that contorts and mutates, driving forward with constant motion while ever changing.
________________________
Sheetmetalgirl (instagram, bandcamp) abuses metal, cassettes and herself to create blistering harsh noise. Hails from Indianapolis, IN and has been performing killer shows there for several years. This will be Sheetmetalgirl’s first performance in Bloomington.
________________________
Sklermbot (bandcamp, youtube, spotify) is the project of Benjamin Handel, creating cinematic and eclectic electronic sounds. Benjamin is a performer, musical educator, producer and arranger…making his first foray into solo live music.

Door Time: 7:00 PM
Punkie Johnson is a comedian and writer from New Orleans, Louisiana who joined the cast of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE in 2020. She also appeared on season 2 of HBO Max’s critically acclaimed series, LOVE LIFE, where her performance was hailed by Time Magazine as a “particular stand out.” Past credits include SPACE FORCE (Netflix), A BLACK LADY SKETCH SHOW (HBO), and BILL BURR PRESENTS: THE RINGERS (Comedy Central). Punkie also served as a writer/consultant on Peacock’s upcoming series reboot QUEER AS FOLK. Punkie can next be seen in Orion’s BOTTOMS, directed by Emma Seligman (Shiva Baby) and produced by Elizabeth Banks’s Brownstone Productions.

Presented by Spirit of ’68 | Ages 18+
With the arrival of his self-released breakout single “Pick and Choose” in 2022, Memphis-born singer/songwriter Daniel Nunnelee introduced the world to his sweetly offbeat and soul-baring form of folk/indie-rock. An instant viral sensation that amassed over a million streams in just ten days, “Pick and Choose” soon led to the making of June, Baby: a strangely enchanting debut album revealing both his old-soul sensibilities and wide-eyed perspective on finding your way in the world. With its title nodding to his birthday month and to the duality he embodies as a quintessential Gemini, June, Baby explores such emotionally heavy matters as anxiety and anticipatory grief, endlessly showcasing the graceful musicality he first developed by playing guitar in church as a kid.

A lifelong nature lover who wrote much of June, Baby at his favorite park and at remote cabins in Mississippi and Colorado, the Nashville-based artist also sets his self-reflection to a one-of-a-kind sound matching its homespun charm with the unbridled energy he’s brought to the stage opening for artists like Madi Diaz and Shakey Graves (in addition to headlining his own tours). A truly gifted vocalist who brings an undeniably playful spirit to his existential questioning, Nunnelee ultimately hopes that listeners might take whatever they need from his songs — whether it’s a deeper communion with the natural world that incessantly inspires his music, or a monumental shift in their own outlook on life.

We’re excited to welcome LANDON CIDER, winner of season 3 of DRAGULA to The Back Door! Hosted by BeelzeBabe and Verna Vendetta and starring Dahlia Desire, Black Ivy, and Jack Offerman.

Costumes!
Drink specials!
And mother freakin’ Bonita!
Doesn’t get much more holiday than that!
Make your plans now, spooky season is upon us

Constellation Stage and Screen presents the 19th annual interactive screening

Join us 30 minutes prior to each screening (6:30 & 10:30pm) for our highly-anticipated pre-show event, featuring a costume contest, fabulous prizes, devirginization ceremony, and more! To host this year’s pre-show festivities, Constellation will welcome back local drag queen, producer, and host Oriana Perón.

Oriana Perón is a dynamic drag performer from Bloomington, IN, who turned her love for cosplay into a captivating stage career. Since 2006, Oriana has combined her passion for anime, video games, and musical artistry into one-of-a-kind drag acts that have dazzled audiences across the country. Known for her quirky and fun performances, she’s been featured in Crunchyroll, Anime News Network, and Watermark Magazine. With a mission to create safe, engaging spaces and expand her anime-inspired drag shows internationally, Oriana continues to push the boundaries of performance art while spotlighting other talented nerdy performers.

In this cult classic, newly engaged sweethearts Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon) find themselves stuck with a flat tire during a storm and happen upon the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry), a “sweet transvestite” and scientist. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker (Meat Loaf), a creepy butler (Richard O’Brien), and a pair of wicked groupies. Through elaborate songs and dances, Frank unveils his latest creation: a muscular male specimen named “Rocky.”

The Rocky Horror Picture Show has a long history of audience participation. At screenings, audiences typically throw rice, ring bells, yell specific phrases, and generally cause mayhem in the theater! Prop bags with goodies and guides on how to participate in this cult-classic tradition will be available to purchase with tickets or at the show.

Kick off the Halloween season with sweet transvestites, mad scientists, and a big hunk of Meat Loaf at the 19th annual screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show!

10 am-2pm: Spider Donuts– Come create a spooky sweet treat at Buck’s Dead and Breakfast. Donuts will be available at the Nature Center parking lot for a $2 cash donation to the Friends Group. We hope you enjoy your treat before or after riding the hayrides. Supplied is limited.
10 am-2pm: Hayrides- (Event) Take a beautiful hayride through McCormick’s Creek to see the fall colors. Cost is $2 per person. Pick up and Drop off is at the Nature Center. Children 2 and under ride for free.
10 am-5 pm: Fall Scavenger Hunt- (Self-guided Hike) Pick up a Fall Scavenger Hunt to learn more about forest animals and the seasonal changes of autumn. Turn in your hunt to earn a prize at the Nature Center.
2:30pm: Leaf Pounding Bandana- (Craft) Trees are getting ready to store their energy from their leaves into their trunks. Come to the Nature Center to hammer the colors of the forest into a bandana to take home. Learn how leaves are changing and preserve them on a wearable art. The cost of this program $3 per bandana. Program is held at Nature Center Amphitheater.
8 pm: Owl Prowl- (Hike) Join Naturalist Kaitlyn in front of the Canyon Inn to learn about owl adaptations and call-in owls on this 1.4-mile night hike through the woods! Relight flashlights only please.

bring your portable project for a casual get-together of fiber lovers, ask your questions and offer friendly tips and advice!

A musical “tail” that will bring the house down

Off Night Productions is teaming up with three other local, women-led theatre companies for a play-reading festival, “In Her Words: A Celebration of Female Playwrights,” running October 27-29 at the Constellation Playhouse!

Opening the festival on Sunday, October 27 at 2:00pm, Resilience Productions, a company focused on educating and enlightening the public regarding many unknown contributions of African Americans to Indiana’s history, will be presenting A Selection of Scenes from Resilience: Indiana’s Untold Stories.

Crafting with humans! Masks are required inside. Outdoor seating is available in good weather. All crafts are welcome, just nothing real loud or with fumes as it’s a small area. No purchase required to hang out with us. Just the love of crafting!