Christmas calendar
Christmas drama
Harlem High Drama will present Sanders Family Christmas at 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday at the school. Tickets are $10; for information, call 556-5980. All proceeds benefit the drama scholarship program and the Scotland Troupe.
Holiday shopping
Stevens Creek Elementary School will hold its Third Annual Holiday Shopping Extravaganza from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday in the school cafeteria, with more than 30 vendors selling jewelry, Christmas crafts, pocketbooks, raffles and more. Additional vendor tables are available by calling 868-3705, extension 364.
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ACS choral concert
Augusta Christian Schools will present its Christmas Choral Concert 7 p.m. Thursday at Grace Baptist Church on Hardy-McManus Road in Evans. Call 863-2905 for more information.
Grovetown parade
Grovetown's annual Christmas parade is scheduled to begin at noon Saturday. For information, call 863-1212.
Christmas tree lighting
Columbia County's Christmas tree-lighting ceremony will be 4:30-6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Columbia County Justice Center in Evans. Spaces for craft vendors are available. A fun run will precede the event, with prizes for children and adults. For more information, call Beth Roberson, 868-3458.
Martinez parade
The annual Martinez Christmas Parade, sponsored by the Merchants Association of Columbia County, will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday at Columbia Square Shopping Center and head east on Washington Road to the county line. For information, call Billy Becton, 863-7645, or Key Kernaghan, 650-5700.
The Columbia County Humane Society will sponsor Pictures with Santa Paws at PetsMart in the Augusta Exchange shopping center from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and again Dec. 13 and 14.
All pets are welcome to pose with Santa. The cost per package is $9.95 for two Polaroid pictures in holiday frames, with $5 of each purchase supporting the Humane Society. For more information, call 860-5020.
Harlem UMC drama
Harlem United Methodist Church will present the Christmas drama Beginning of the Way at 6 p.m. Sunday and Monday. The church is located at 115 Milledgeville Road in Harlem. For more information, call 556-6885.
Christmas pageant
Trinity Baptist Church, 4594 Columbia Road in Martinez, will hold its seventh annual Christmas pageant at 7 p.m. Saturday, and at 6 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free, and a nursery is provided. For more information, call 863-1222.
Santa and Elf Run
A Santa Run for runners 14 an older, and an Elf Run for those 13 and younger, will precede Columbia County's Christmas tree lighting Saturday at the Justice Center in Evans. Sign-ups begin at 3 p.m. The first 25 to register receive a commemorative T-shirt; winners in the Santa and Elf categories will receive trophies and prizes. Registration fee is $10, or $5 with a new, unwrapped toy valued at least $5. All toys will be donated to the Columbia County Foundation for Children. For more information, call Beth Roberson, 868-3458.
Choral society
The Columbia County Choral Society has two upcoming performances. The first is the O Come, O Come, Emmanuel Holiday Concert at 7:30 p.m. Friday at First Baptist Church of Evans, at Washington and Belair roads. Tickets are $8, $6 for seniors and students, and are available at the door. The society also will perform at the Columbia County Christmas tree lighting ceremony Saturday at the Justice Center in Evans.
Christmas pageant
Trinity Baptist Church, 4594 Columbia Road in Martinez, will hold its seventh annual Christmas pageant at 7 p.m. Saturday, and at 6 p.m. Dec. Sunday . Admission is free, and a nursery is provided. For more information, call 863-1222.
Lakeside performances
The Lakeside High School Chorus will hold a holiday concert at 7 p.m. Dec. Sunday at the Lakeside High auditorium. Admission is free.
The Lakeside Concert Choir will join the Augusta Collegium Chorus for A Festival and Nine Carols at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 9 at Sacred Heart Cultural Center. Admission is $15.
Fort Gordon concert
The U.S. Army Signal Corps Band will present a concert of holiday music at 7 p.m. Friday at First Baptist Church of Augusta, 3500 Walton Way.
Christmas performances
Selah, a contemporary Christian singing group from Nashville, will perform a Christmas concert at 7 p.m. Dec. 18 at First Baptist Church in North Augusta. Ron Jones Augusta Dance Theatre will perform O Holy Night, a ballet choreographed especially for this event. All proceeds support Laban Ministries, a missionary effort in Congo, Africa. For more information, call 278-7379.
Live nativity
Christ's Sanctified Holy Church of Evans will hold a live nativity 7-8:30 p.m. Dec. 17-19 at the church, 136 Belair Road in Evans.
Christmas play
Sharon Baptist Church will present its annual living portrayal of the life of Christ from 7-9:30 p.m. Dec. 18-21 at the Columbia County Fairgrounds. Visitors will ride a hay wagon to each live scene. Area church choirs will perform, and free hot chocolate will be available. For more information, call 541-1532 or 556-3034.
Holiday concert
Greenbrier High School will hold a holiday concern at 7 p.m. Dec. 11 in the school's auditorium. Call 650-6040 for more information.
Museum holiday
The Augusta Museum of History's Holiday at the Museum will be noon to 5 p.m. Sunday , featuring artisans and crafters selling holiday items, children's activities and guided tours of the museum. For more information, call 722-8454.
Museum Christmas
The Lucy Craft Laney Museum of Black History will hold a Christmas brunch 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at the museum, 1116 Phillips St., Augusta. Photos with Santa are available. The museum also will celebrate the spirit of Christmas and Kwanzaa through storytelling and caroling from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 10. For more information, call 724-3576.
Thomson festivities
McDuffie County's Christmas season begins Friday with Christmas Off Main Street. The city will light four Christmas trees, stores will stay open late and elementary school children will sing carols. The 5k Depot Dash is Saturday morning, followed by the Festival Off Main Street 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The annual Thomson Christmas Parade begins at 3 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call (706) 597-1000.
Christmas musical
North Columbia Elementary School students will perform a musical Christmas program at 6 p.m. Dec. 11.
Surfin' with Santa
The Family Y will offer Surfin' with Santa, a dive-in movie 7 p.m. Dec. 12 at the heated indoor pool of the Wheeler Branch, 3532 Wheeler Road. For information, call 738-6678.
Art exhibit
Two Painters and a Potter, a holiday exhibition and sale of artwork by Bea Kuhlke, Elizabeth Moretz-Britt and David Stuart, will be 6-10 p.m. Dec. 11 in the north tower of Enterprise Mill. For more information, call 279-7813.
Christmas story
The Young Artists Repertory Theatre Company, Inc., will present The Homecoming, a Christmas story, Dec. 11, 12 and 13 in the Goodwin Commons at Augusta Preparatory School. Dinner and dessert will be served at 6:30 p.m., with the performance at 8 p.m. Tickets and reservations are available by calling 210-8915.
Dance show
Augusta West Dance studio presents It's the Night Before Christmas, Thursday-Saturday at Augusta State University's Grover C. Maxwell Performing Arts Theatre. School performances are 10 a.m. and noon Thursday and Friday with general performances at 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $7 for adults, $5 for children and senior citizens, with all proceeds supporting the Make-a-Wish Foundation. For information, call Barbara Green, 860-0998.
Christmas musical
Stevens Creek Community Church, 600 Stevens Creek Road, will again present the Christmas musical Scrooge! at 7 p.m. Thursday through Dec. Sunday , with a 3 p.m. matinee Dec. 7. Tickets are available at the church, at Family Christian Bookstores, or on line at www.stevenscreek.net. For more information, call 863-7002.
Nativity display
Covenant Presbyterian Church, 3131 Walton Way, will present No Room at the Inn Friday through Sunday , featuring more than 200 nativity scenes. Shows are 4-8 p.m. Friday, noon to 8 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday . The event is a benefit for Interfaith Hospitality Network. For tickets or other information, call Diane Griffin, 860-0832.
Crafters needed
Crafters are being sought for Christmas in the Heart of Downtown Harlem, an event from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 13 in conjunction with the Harlem Christmas parade. Space rentals are available for $10. For more information, call 556-0401.
LMS concert
The Lakeside Middle School 8th-grade band and Ladies Ensemble will perform a Christmas concern at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 11 at the school. For more information, call 855-6900.
Augusta Chorale
The Augusta Chorale's annual Christmas concert will be 4 p.m. Dec. 14 at Gilbert Lambuth Chapel at Paine College. Admission is $15 for adults, $5 for children, and may be purchased at the door or from any Chorale member. For more information, call 733-7809.
Holiday camps
The Family Y will hold holiday camps for kids and teens and a gymnastics camp Dec. 19-Jan. 2 at the Wheeler Branch, 3532 Wheeler Road, Augusta. For more information, call 738-6678.
Choral music
The Augusta Museum of History will present the Augusta Collegium Musicum, an a cappella vocal group, in the seventh annual Concert of Holiday Music: Choral Music for Advent and Christmas at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 15 at the museum, 560 Reynolds St., Augusta. For more information, call 722-8454.
Dessert musical
The Paul Knox Middle School Chorus will present its fourth annual dessert tasting and musical, A Winter Fantasy, at 7 p.m. Dec. 12 at the school's cafetorium, 1804 Wells Road, North Augusta. For more information, call 442-6300.
Creative Impressions
The youth musical group Creative Impressions will perform Behold the Star at 8 p.m. Dec. 20 at Bell Auditorium. Dinner precedes the show at 6:30 p.m. Individual tickets for dinner and the performance are $50, and may be ordered at 722-3521. Corporate tables also are available.