Americus
Kiwanis Pet Parade: The annual Kiwanis Pet Parade and Downtown Treat or Treat is from 4-6 p.m. Oct. 29 downtown. Wristbands for children will be distributed under the tent at the Public Safety Building parking lot. The wristbands are for children toddler to age 10. If children without wristbands come to your business, kindly direct them to the tent. Registration for Pet Parade begins at 3 p.m. in front of First Presbyterian Church, Jackson Street. Everyone is invited to free Zombie Zumba from 6-7 p.m. in Rylander Park, downtown.

Development Authority: The Schley-Sumter-Macon Joint Development Authority meets at 4 p.m. Oct. 29 at the Rees Park Economic Development Center, 409 Elm Ave. in the conference room on the second floor. The meeting is open to the public.

Free Event: The public is invited to a benefit check-up and Medicare open enrollment at 10 a.m. Oct. 29 at the Koinonia Community Center, 1324 Ga. Highway 24 South. Sponsored by Georgia Cares amd Aging and Disability Resource Connection, the event features answers to all your questions. All ages are welcome. Call 706-256-2917 for more information.

Airport Authority: The Americus-Sumter County Airport Authority meets at 5 p.m. Oct. 29 in the bnoard room of the Brown Hodges Terminal at Jimmy Carter Regional Airport. The meeting is open to the public.

PDA Meeting: The Americus-Sumter County Payroll Development Authority meets at 4 p.m. Nov. 3 at the Rees Park Economic Development Center, 409 Elm Ave. in the conference room on the second floor. The meeting is open to the public.

Board of Assessors: The Sumter County Board of Assessors meets  at 9 a.m. Nov. 3 at the Sumter County Courthouse in the Board of Assessors office. The meeting is open to the public.

Quarterly Meeting: The Americus Sumter County Chamber of Commerce holds its quarterly membership luncheon meeting at noon Nov. 4 in the faculty dining room, Georgia Southwestern State University. Speaker is Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D. Georgia Department of public Health and State Health Officer. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door. For reservations, call 924-2646.

Poinsettia Sale: Sumter County 4-H is taking orders for big, 3-ft. tall poinsettias as a fundraiser. Plants are $20 each. Deadline to order is Nov. 4 and pick up is Dec. 4. Choose from red, white, pink or marbled. Call 924-4476 to order.

Live Broadcast: Georgia Southwestern State University holds a special event, featuring Jesse Eisenberg. Eisenberg is widely known for being an American actor, but is also a play writer. He’s in “the Social Network” acting as Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder of Facebook, and in “Now You See Me.” The National Society of Leadership and Success (Sigma Alpha Pi) is all about people like Eisenberg. Eisenberg’s live broadcast is at 7 p.m. Nov. 4, in the SSC Conference rooms.

First Aid Class: Innovative Senior Solutions offers a CPR First Aid class Nov. 7 at 721 B Felder St., ISS Training Center. Cost is $50.

Food Fundraiser: Come see National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation!  Fundraiser for Harvest of Hope Food Pantry families to buy food for Christmas. Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Americus, the movie is at 7 p.m. Dec. 4 at the Rylander Theater. Tickets are $10. Purchase at the box office; call 229-931-0001 or buy online www.rylander.org

DeSoto
Fall Festival: A Fall Community Festival is from 4-6 p.m. Oct. 31 in downtown. Event features fall fun for the family including live music, candy, great food, carnival games and more. To donate or set up a booth, treat-n-trunk or game station, call Cynthia Wright at 815-9226.

Smithville
Chicken Pie Festval: The 20th annual Smithville Chicken Pie Festival is Saturday, Oct. 31. The event begins with a parade at 9 a.m. and the festivities will continue throughout the day until 5 p.m. Enjoy a variety of family friendly activities such as horse and buggy rides, small train rides, an Elvis impersonator, and games for the kids. Browse the offerings of area arts and crafts vendors, check out the bake sale, enjoy hot dogs, hamburgers and chicken pie! There will be a chicken pie contest at 12:30 p.m. First prize will be $100, second prize $50, and third prize $25. If you want to compete, you must bring your entry to the conference room behind City Hall by 11 a.m.  For more information about the festival, or if you (or your organization) would like to be in the parade, contact Jack Smith at 229-846-4402 or 229-846-2631.

Ongoing
Americus
Relay for Life Shirt: Americus Fire & Emergency Services’ new 2015 t-shirts are in and ready for sale. Call Harriett Williams at 924-3213 to order. Funds go toward Relay for Life.

Six Flags Tickets: 2015 Six Flags Tickets are available for $41.50 each at the Sumter County Extension/4-H Office, Sumter County Agricultural Center, 127 William Bowen Pointe. (Save $25.27. Gate Price is $66.77. Cash only! Call 229-924-4476 for information. Ticket valid any regular operating day through Jan. 3, 2016.

Volunteers Needed: Learning for Everyone Inc. (LEAP) is seeking volunteers for its Mentor Partnership with the Sumter County School System. Volunteers will mentor children in the grades 3-9. Interested applicants may check out our website at www.learningforeveryone.org or contact Brittany Dawson, Mentor coordinator at 229-924-9443 or bdawson@learningforeveryone.org. They may also attend our mentor trainings. Mentor trainings are held at 5:30 p.m. on the third Tuesday of each month at 200 Cotton Ave.

Volunteers Needed: The Flint River Chapter of the American Red Cross seeks volunteers willing to invest time in Disaster Preparedness Education for our chapter and the surrounding areas. We are looking for dedicated individuals that are willing to speak and train others on what to do before, during and after a disaster. Any volunteer with time on his/her hands is an excellent candidate for this program. This is of vital importance to our area as we never know when a disaster will happen. Call Marvin Grace, Community Disaster Educator at 229-733-9738 or the chapter at 229-436-4845 for more information.

Weight Watchers: Weight Watchers meets Thursdays at First Presbyterian Church, 125 S. Jackson St. Weigh-in is at 5 p.m., followed by meeting at 5:30 p.m. Visit weightwatchers.com

Become a Mentor:  LEAP “Learning for Everyone … Avenue to Progress” continues to provide mentorship to elementary, middle and ninth-grade academy students and free adult education classes to the citizens of Sumter County. LEAP is currently accepting applications for the 2013-2014 school year. Applicants need to be 18 or older and commit 30 minutes per week for one academic school year. For more information or to make a donation, contact Brittany Dawson at leapcis@gmail.com or call at 229-924-9443.

Mustard Seed House: Calvary Episcopal Church’s Mustard Seed House is open from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. every Saturday on Brannan Avenue. Stop by for some great deals.

Al-Anon: You do not have to be an alcoholic to suffer from the effects of alcoholism. Al-Anon offers a safe place to recover from the effects of another person’s drinking. Meetings are 7-8 p.m. Tuesdays at the AA Clubhouse, Ga. Highway 30. All meetings are confidential and open to interested persons.

Help Available: The ROAD Program (Reaching Out to Assess Dementia) is a free and confidential memory screening. The  goal at the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving is to screen for memory loss and refer for further follow-up, as indicated. Stay active in your care and decision making. Call today for free screening 229-928-1234.

GED Testing Hours: GED testing at the Stein Center are 8 a.m.-noon and 1-5 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, and the first Saturday of each month.