Poinsettias!

Gull Lake Band Parents are taking orders now (until Nov. 30) for gorgeous poinsettias, to be delivered Saturday, Dec. 11. Go here and order now!

Music miscellany

Enjoy the Ryan Intermediate Fall Vocal Showcase at 7 p.m. tonight, Thursday, Nov. 4, at Richland Bible Church . . . then the 4th-grade music program at 7 p.m., Monday, Nov. 8 and Tuesday, Nov. 9, at the Gull Lake Middle School Cafeteria. (Monday night will showcase the students of teachers Howe, Badiner, Curtis, and Wisser; Tuesday night is for the students of Deming, Fournier, Misner, Kenyon, and Fuehr.)

And don't forget the Performing Arts Foundation meeting at 5 p.m., Tuesday, Nov.9, at the Richland Area Community Center, 9400 East CD Avenue. All are welcome . . . Just remember that we're meeting at 5 p.m. nowadays, still on the second Tuesday of the month!

Bryan Charles at Kalamazoo Public Library

It's always fun to "Meet the Author," and in this case, the author happens to be 1992 Gull Lake grad Bryan Charles. You can meet and greet him at the Kalamazoo Public Library (Central Branch), Wednesday, November 3, at 7 p.m. Charles's new memoir about his struggling days looking for work and becoming a writer in New York City, There's a Road to Everywhere Except Where You Came From, is officially published today, November 2, and I'll wager there will be an opportunity to buy a copy--and perhaps even to get it signed?--at Wednesday's event. Read a Gazette review by KPL librarian Kevin King here. And get more info about the event at the KPL's website. You might also enjoy picking up a copy of Charles's first book, Grab On to Me Tightly as if I Knew the Way, which is novel but based strongly on the author's adolescence in the Kalamazoo area and thus very recognizable.

Free, free, free!

You pays NO money and you STILL takes yer choice! These two Gull Lake/Richland-related arts events are free.

At the Halloween Hootenanny, Notified, the singing troupe that features our own Mary Teutsch, will open the show, with three more a cappella groups to follow. Bring your chair and blanket to this free outdoor event in Kindleberger Park in Parchment at 7 p.m. Friday, October 22. See also their Facebook and web pages.

Also on Friday, October 22, at 7 p.m., Community Advocates for Persons with Developmental Disabilities, whose CEO/president is Richlander Deb Russell, presents the Sprout Film Festival at the Radisson Hotel downtown. Check out Community Advocates' Facebook page or website for more info.

GLHS Marching Invitational

Get ready for some fantastic music and marching this Saturday, October 9, starting at 1 p.m. at the Gull Lake High School football stadium. It's the 7th annual GLHS Marching Invitational, with 11 bands competing and Gull Lake's own band in an exhibition performance. Admission is $7, $5 for seniors/students, free for kids 4 and under, family rate $20--all to benefit the Gull Lake Band Parents' Association.

Gull Lake behind the scenes of GODSPELL

That favorite off-Broadway musical Godspell opens at the Civic Theatre on Friday, September 24, then runs through Sunday, October 10. You'll enjoy a great show, thanks to the behind-the-scenes work of Gull Lake alumnae Stacy Bartell, props master, and Lisa Watson on the sound board. And a PAF stalwart known to you all is running a follow spot for the first time. Go, enjoy, and applaud! Call 269-343-1313 or go to the Civic's website for tickets.

It's Barbershop Time!

And we don't mean you need a haircut (though you well may). No, it's time to enjoy some great barbershop harmonies with the Mall City Harmonizers, under the direction of Gull Lake's Dave Woolf. They perform this Saturday, September 18, at 7 p.m. at the Dalton Recital Hall on the Western Michigan University Campus. It's the 69th Annual Show for the Barbershop Harmony Society. If you enjoyed--or missed--them at last year's PAF Ice Cream Social, here's your chance!