NCMC Events From Around the State… May 21, 2012
1). High Point Museum  presents Genfest on Saturday, June 2, Noon to 5 pm. The Heritage Research Center’s annual family- and local-history and culture festival will be held on the first floor of the High Point Public Library. Exhibitors will include genealogists, historians, authors, craftsmen, and representatives from local historical and genealogical societies, museums, and lineage societies. Genealogy and local-history books, maps, and other products will be available for purchase. Free and open to the public. Attendees will be eligible for exhibitor prizes and can qualify for entry in our drawings for Ancestry.com memberships.

2). Bennett Place State Historic Site  will present a program to remember and honor American soldiers on Saturday, May 26. The Memorial Day tribute is for military personnel over time. History re-enactors will represent some of the first soldiers from the French and Indian War, the American Revolution, and War of 1812. Union and Confederate Civil War soldiers, Rough Riders from the Spanish American War, and soldiers of World Wars I and II, and Vietnam, will be represented. The free program is from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

3). Waterworks Visual Arts Center  Summer Exhibition opens at Waterworks Visual Arts Center on May 19 and runs through August 11, 2012. With A Discerning Eye: Realism to Abstraction explores the boundaries between the artist’s use of elements of design to express their thoughts. Some artists manipulate the elements to mirror the world in photographic detail while others take pleasure in showing us the elements as a statement in itself. Artwork from five regional artists challenge the viewer to look beyond the obvious and to deepen their understanding of the realism in abstraction and the abstraction in realism.

4). HandsOn!  is planning a family MUD FUN event scheduled for Saturday, June 2 from 5:00 – 7:00 at Berkeley Park. You may have heard of the upcoming mud run to benefit Hands On! that will be a challenging 3.5 mile obstacle race in the mud, but this smaller family-oriented event will focus more on those families who enjoy the creativity and programs offered at Hands On! Family MUD FUN will include muddy games for kids and adults of all ages. Tickets for the event are $15 per person for ages 2 & up, and this includes a Chick-Fil-A meal, live music throughout the event and muddy games and fun! All participants must register prior to May 25, but participation is limited and may be cutoff earlier.

5). The Bascom  Alex Matisse: Ometto opened at the Bascom on May 17th. “In Italy, the word Ometto, meaning ‘little man’, is used to describe rock cairns that lead the way on hiking trails above the tree line,” shares Alex Matisse whose works will be at The Bascom through October 21. The pots in the exhibition originate from the tradition of salt-glazed stoneware grave markers that were made in abundance in the counties of the eastern Piedmont of North Carolina. “The Ometti will convene on the front lawn of The Bascom, holding vigil for a few months, before being marshaled into the world to take up their posts,” he adds.

6). Museum of the Albemarle  Forty images appear in The Photography of Lewis Hine: Exposing Child Labor in North Carolina, 1908-1918, an exhibit at the Museum of the Albemarle in Elizabeth City. Peering from across a century, many of the children look much older than their actual years. Hine captured the harsh realities of their mill village lives in Cabarrus, Gaston, Lincoln, Rowan and other Tar Heel counties. His compelling photographs range from girls running warping machines in Gastonia to boys covered in lint after long hours as doffers and sweepers in a Hickory mill. The exhibit will open May 29th at 10:00 am. Admission is free.

7). Kings Mountain Historical Museum  On Tuesday, May 22 at 4:30PM, the Kings Mountain Historical Museum will host Flower Arranging Workshop for Children ages 9 – 12 by Susan Patterson, Sunflowers by Susan and Thursday, May 31 at 6PM – Julie Flowers, Area Consumer Horticulture Agent, Gaston and Cleveland Counties will share techniques for your vegetable garden at the Family Gardening Fun Night. Advance registration is requested with both programs due to space limitations.

8). Discovery Place  Dive beneath the surface of ice with penguins, swim through tropical landscapes with turtles, forage in the forest with a family of bears and see the world as never before through the eyes of some of the planet’s most majestic and powerful creatures when National Geographic Crittercam: The World Through Animal Eyes opens May 26 at Discovery Place. Showcasing the ongoing research of National Geographic’s Crittercam, a scientific video- and data-gathering tool safely worn by wild animals, the exhibition invites visitors to see the world through animal eyes and encompasses more than 20 years of scientific invention and research collaborations.

9). Mount Airy Museum of Regional History  Historic Downtown Mount Airy Ghost Tours every Friday and Saturday May – October. Join us for an exciting 90 minute, lantern-lit walking tour through Mount Airy's streets and its historic past on Friday May 25 and Saturday May 26 at 8pm. You will hear about 13 of our "less mortal" friends and some of Mount Airy's resting places. Tours begin and end at Old North State Winery, 308 N. Main Street. Wear comfortable shoes and bring your camera and umbrella, if needed. Tickets are $10 and pre-paid reservations are required!

10). Port Discover  See what’s in Port Discover’s incubator! Mason Lawrence, with the NC Cooperative Extension, visits Port Discover to teach the basics of embryology during Embryology – Egg to Chicken, at Port Discover’s Afterschool Science, Thursday, May 24, at 3:00 pm. Take a close-up look at chicken eggs as they begin to develop into little baby chicks! The incubator and eggs will remain at Port Discover after the program.