[Editor's Note: Due to the hurricane approaching our area, please check with the event's organizer for delays or cancellations before arriving.]
Whether you're in search of something fun to do with the kids or you have a babysitter and are planning a night out, look no further because Patch editors have picked a variety of events taking place today and tomorrow to help you make the most of your weekend. Click on the headline of each for more information.
Annual Pequonnock River Valley Hike
Where: Starts at the Commuter Lot at Daniels Farm Road and Park St., Trumbull
When: Saturday, October 27, 2012, 11 a.m.; Oct. 28 rain date.
Cost: Free
Description: On the hike you will learn how the valley has been transformed throughout history. Carved from a wild torrent of glacier melt, the valley was once a bustling industrial and commercial landscape but changing transportation and economic needs has returned the valley back to its natural habitat: a thriving ecosystem for a variety of plant and wildlife. It is now become a significant part of Trumbull’s ecological, recreational and cultural community.
The hike is free, but donations are always welcome. Guide books for this trail and other walking tours in Trumbull will be available for purchase at the start of the event.
Hamden: 44th Annual Apple Pie Festival at Dunbar Church
Where: Dunbar United Church of Christ, 767 Benham St, Hamden, CT
When: Saturday, October 27, 2012, 10:00 am
Cost: Free
Description: Dunbar United Church of Christ will hold its Annual Apple Festival on Saturday, October 27th from 10 am - 2 pm. In addition to purchasing delicious apple pies made by the members of the Dunbar Women's Fellowship Committee, a wide range of apple dishes are available to eat at the festival including a slice of apple pie, apple crisp, apple pancakes, and the festival's famous Danish specialty "aebel skivers". Apple cinnamon ice cream sundaes are also on the menu again this year. Get them while they last.
The festival happens rain or shine, and parking and admission are free. Dunbar United Church of Christ is located at the corner of Dunbar Hill Road and Benham Street in Hamden and is easily reached by turning onto Benham Street from Dixwell Avenue at the Home Depot Plaza. Visit the church website at www.dunbarchurch.com for more information about the church and its mission.
Fairfield: The Enchanted Castle - A Magical Storybook Experience
Where: Burr Homestead, 739 Post Road
When: Saturday, Oct. 27 and Sunday, Oct. 28 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cost: $5
Description: "Fun for all ages! The Ahlbin Rehabilitation Centers Auxiliary will present 'The Enchanted Castle: A Magical Storybook Experience.' This year's colorful storybook-theme rooms and friendly costumed characters include Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, the Little Mermaid, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Wizard of Oz and new this year, Candyland. Admission is $5 per person. For information, call 203-336-7364 or visit www.enchantedcastle.org. Proceeds from the event will support Ahlbin Centers’ Fit Kids program to reduce childhood obesity."
The Mix LIVE @ DRAFTHOUSE-Halloween Party-Classic Rock
Where: Draft House, 350 Bridgeport Ave, Shelton, CT
When: Saturday, Oct. 27, 10 p.m.
Cost: Free
Description: The Mix is a powerhouse rock band featuring 6 of the areas most highly regarded musicians. The Mix provide a perfect blend of classic rock that will keep you partying all night. If you like the music of Led Zeppelin, Journey, Boston, Kansas, The Foo Fighters, Styx, Heart, Foo Fighters, Queen, Van Halen and other true classic greats then The Mix is the band you need to see! Wear a costume!
Kids Night Out at Wells Hollow Creamery
Where: Wells Hollow Creamery, 656 Bridgeport Ave, Shelton, CT
When: Saturday, Oct. 27, 1 - 4 p.m.
Cost: Free
Description: An afternoon of fun for kiddos of all ages. Small business owners of bringtheHoopla, Chirp, and &J2 Kids have joined forces to produce kid-friendly events while highlighting local businesses. Admission is FREE and we encourage everyone to be a part of our Halloween costume contest. Prizes will be awarded and judging begins at 3:15 p.m. You will enjoy live music, vendors and Touch-A-Truck. Additional activities being offered are a bounce house, pumpkin decorating, corn maze, face painting and much more!!
UNICEF Festival for Kids at Jones Family Farms
Where: 120 Beardsley Road, Shelton
When: Saturday & Sunday, Oct. 27-28, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Cost: Free
Description: Games and crafts for kids will help raise money for UNICEF. Entertainment will take place on the Munchkin-land stage and includes a musical performance from Shelton’s CenterStage Theater Teen Cabaret on Saturday at 2 p.m. Also, pig and chicken feeding demonstrations and story-times throughout both days. As usual, guests will be able to choose from over 50 varieties of pumpkins, squash and gourds grown on the Jones farm. The hayrides will be running and weather permitting the corn maze will be open too.
Talk on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking
Where: Darien Nature Center, 120 Brookside Rd., Darien
When: Sunday Nov. 11, 4 to 5:30 p.m.
Cost: Suggested donation of $10
Description: UNITE The World With Africa, Global Girls & Global Guys UNITE (GGU) & The Darien Nature Center present an afternoon talk by Jessica Hendricks, Founder & Director of The Brave Collection -- Using Fashion to Illuminate and Fight Human Trafficking & Slavery Ms Hendricks started The Brave Collection in her early 20s, and she is fast becoming an internationally recognized advocate in the fight against modern-day slavery. With a focus on sustainability and all that is possible, this event will educate, inspire, motivate and reinforce UNITE & GGU’s central message that there is nothing that stands between us and the problems at hand. We are empowering change agents.
Suggested donation: $10 per person. For more info email anne@unitetnz.org.
Milford: Cats: The Musical
Where: Parsons Complex, 70 W River St, Milford, CT
When: Friday, October 26th at 7:30pm; Saturday, October 27th at 7:00pm and Sunday, October 28th at 2:00pm.
Description: If you missed seeing CATS on Broadway you will have the chance to catch it in another ‘life’ at the Parsons Complex in Milford, October 26-28th. Lauralton Hall students and faculty are reviving this beloved musical in an amateur production based on “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats”, by T.S. Eliot, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Cost: $15 for adults and $10 for students and seniors.
Naugatuck Cheerleaders Clothing Drive
When: Saturday 9 a.m. to noon
Where: Naugatuck High School, 584 Rubber Ave.
Description: The team will collect clothes and other others to raise money for the team on the patio at the high school.
Oxford PTO Tag Sale & Shred It Day
When: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday
Where: Oxford Center School, 462 Oxford Road
Description: A traditional tag sale with several vendors will be held. Also, the event will feature a truck from Secure Eco Shred will be at the school and will shred all documents on site. People can purchase a pre-order shred bag for $10. The bag will hold approximately 30-to-35 pounds of paper and junk mail.
Oxford: Civil War Re-Enactment
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Oxford Grange Hall, 30 Oxford Road
Description: The Oxford Historical Society will present Kevin Johnson as Private William Webb, an African-American Civil War soldier from Connecticut at the Oxford Grange Hall on Saturday, Oct. 27, at 1 p.m. The Grange Hall is located between the Oxford Center Firehouse and Oxford Center School on Route 67.
When: Saturday, Oct. 27
Where: Silvermine Arts Center
Description: The popular fundraising art sale and event for collectors and enthusiasts returns to Silvermine Arts Center. Join us for wine and hors d’oeuvres at a special private collector’s party featuring over 500 4” x 6” original works of art in all media - paintings, prints, photographs, and collages. Tickets are $35 each.
Wilton: Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde
When: Saturday, Oct. 27
Where: Wilton Playshop
Description: Adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher, from the novella "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" by Robert Louis Stevenson. Tickets: $20/adults $15/Students & Seniors
Bethel: Trick or Treat Street
When: 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27
Where: Downtown Bethel
Description: An Animal Encounters show with "Curious Creatures," Trick or Treat at the businesses in downtown Bethel, costume contest on the Bethel Library lawn.
Bethel: FCCB Kid-Friendly Haunted House
When: 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 27
Where: First Congregational Church of Bethel
Description: FCCB will be participating in Bethel Trick or Treat Street by putting on a kid-friendly hauted house. The haunted house will be $3 per person or $5 for two people. There will also be activities for the children who are too young for the haunted house. Procceds will go toward the FCCB youth group's mission projects.
