This and that: A Community Feast edition

This and that for your Thanksgiving. Save some room for dessert.

• Support for today’s edition comes from Purdue Convocations, offering 25% all shows for Black Friday weekend. Give the gift of live performance this holiday season! Save 25% on tickets to the biggest spring shows at Purdue, including The Mingus Big Band, Hadestown, Pretty Woman: The Musical, Chicago, and Vivaldi’s Four Seasons at 300 by Les Arts Florissants. Valid through Dec. 1, 2024. Limit 6 discounted tickets per show. SHOP NOW

---

• Sponsorship help for this edition also comes from Purdue Musical Organizations. The 91st Annual Purdue Christmas Show is the must-see event of the year! Gather your family and friends, and create lasting memories as you sing along to your favorite songs and marvel at the extraordinary Purdue student talent on display. Get tickets here.

---

This and that for your Thanksgiving. Save some room for dessert. Speaking of which …

COMMUNITY THANKSGIVING FEAST IS THURSDAY: The annual Community Thanksgiving Feast, hosted by Lafayette Urban Ministry, will be served from noon-2 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 28, at the Central Presbyterian Church social hall, 31 N. Seventh St. in downtown Lafayette. LUM expects to serve 800 people, coming from all walks in the community. The meal is free, no reservations needed. Entertainment will be provided by West Lafayette High School orchestra students, Frank Rosenthal and Friends, and Chris Gipson.

The community feast has been an opportunity for LUM member churches to pull together meals. Here’s a bit of the behind-the-scenes prep, via First Christian Church in downtown Lafayette, in interviews about one church’s history and tradition of cooking turkeys for the LUM meal.

---

PURDUE IN TOURNAMENT PLAY ON THANKSGIVING: The Purdue men’s basketball team tips off at 3 p.m. Thursday against North Carolina State (remember last year’s Final Four semi-final?) in the Rady Children's Invitational in San Diego. The game is on FS1. Purdue follows up on Friday, either against Ole Miss or BYU. Here are a couple of reads looking at the matchup. Indianapolis Star reporter Nathan Baird has this: “Purdue basketball vs N.C. State.” Brian Neubert at Black and Gold has this one: “As Purdue Basketball heads to SoCal, five critical elements to watch.”

---

PROGRAMMING NOTE …

That said, how about a few upcoming events:

• Twenty-four downtown Lafayette businesses and nonprofit agencies will host a scavenger hunt staring with Small Business Saturday on Nov. 30. Hosted by the Downtown Lafayette Small Business Owners Association, here’s how it works: Large paper ornaments will be placed in downtown shops and offices between Nov. 30 and Saturday, Dec. 7. Get a scavenger hunt sheet at any participating location. Participants can drop off their scavenger hunt page at Main Street Books or Flora Candle Co. once they’ve matched 12 businesses with their ornaments and receive a small prize and entry into a grand prize drawing of a gift basket filled with items from participating businesses, provided by First Farmers Bank & Trust.

• The 11th annual Indiana Makers Market’s Holiday Market opens Saturday for the first of three weekends at Wea Creek Orchard, 5618 S. County Road 200 East. The market, assembled by Angela Vinson, owner of LaLa Gallery in Lafayette, includes handmade gifts from more than 50 regional artists and makers. Hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 30-Dec. 1. For more details, plus hours and events for the following two weekends, check IndianaMakersMarket.com.

• The West Lafayette Public Library’s Caretaker’s Cottage, home of the library’s local history center, will hold an end-of-the-season event from 1-5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 29, through Sunday, Dec. 1. The Caretaker’s Cottage, 1496 N. Salisbury St., will offer hot cider, cookies, traditional games and help with the online genealogy program Ancestry.com. After the Thanksgiving weekend, the Caretaker’s Cottage will close for the season. It is scheduled to reopen in mid-March 2025.

• Holidays at the Haan, an annual event at the Haan Museum of Indiana Art, opens Friday, Nov. 29, for a run that continues through Dec. 29. The museum, at 920 State St. in Lafayette, will be decorated for the season, with Christmas decorations and model train displays. Holidays at the Haan is open 1-4 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday. Admission: $12/$15 for adults, $6/$7 for youth, free for those 5 and younger. For advance tickets and more information: thehaan.org.

• The 34th annual Lafayette Living Nativity, hosted by Faith Church, will be 6:30-8:30 p.m. Dec. 6-8 and Dec. 13-15 at its east campus, 5526 Indiana 26 East. Admission is free and includes either walking or drive-through tours.

Thanks for support from Purdue Musical Organizations, presenting the 91st Annual Purdue Christmas Show, Dec. 7-8. Get tickets here.

Thanks also to sponsor Purdue Convocations, offering 25% all shows for Black Friday weekend. Get your tickets now.

Thank you for supporting Based in Lafayette, an independent, local reporting project. Free and full-ride subscription options are ready for you here.

Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.