First Congregational Church, 109 E. Washington Ave., Tomahawk, will host a Thanksgiving Eve Service tonight (Wednesday, Nov. 27), at 6:30 p.m. The church is handicap accessible. Coffee and fellowship will follow the service. All are welcome.

A Community Thanksgiving Dinner will be held on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 28), from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at St. Mary’s Corpus Christi Center, 320 E. Washington Ave., Tomahawk. Join family, friends and neighbors for a free Thanksgiving meal with turkey and all the fixings. Anyone who would like to donate to the meal, or those who are unable to attend and would like a meal delivered to their home, are encouraged to call St. Mary’s Parish Office at 715-453-2878, between 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday.

A blood drive, in partnership with The Community Blood Center, will be held at Spirit Baptist Church, W1602 Hwy. 86, Ogema, on Thursday, Dec. 5, from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Walk-ins welcome. To schedule an appointment, call Andy Holmquist at 715-564-2416.

CESA 9 in Tomahawk is offering Substitute Teacher Training on Dec. 5 and 6, 2019. Individuals with an Associate’s or Bachelor’s Degree and who successfully complete this training are eligible to apply for a Substitute Teacher permit. For additional information, please go to the CESA 9 website at www.cesa9.org or call CESA 9 at 715-453-2141.

Immanuel Lutheran Church women will be hosting their annual holiday bake sale on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 9:30 a.m. in the Church Fellowship hall. Featured items will be specialty cookies, FAMOUS homemade Norwegian Lefse, and many other ethnic baked items. Coffee and cookies will be served beginning at 9 a.m. The church is located at 21 W. Timber Dr., Rhinelander, with plenty of accessible parking. Contact the church at 715-362-5910 for further information.

St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 320 E. Washington Ave., will host its annual free Advent Concert Sunday, Dec. 8, at 4 p.m., with live harp prelude music beginning at 3:30 p.m. The concert, presented by St. Mary’s Choir and Friends, is a celebration of inspirational songs of peace and joy of the Coming of Christ. 70 voices will be accompanied by six instrumentalists. Refreshments and fellowship will follow the concert.

Randy’s Bambinos, 204 W Wisconsin Ave., Tomahawk, invites veterans and first responders, both current and retired, to stop in and enjoy free coffee, tea, soda and a tasty treat, from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7, and Saturday, Jan. 4, 2020, as a way of saying thanks and to provide a monthly opportunity to connect in the Northwoods. For more information, call Randy’s Bambinos at 715-453-6373.

A blood drive, held in partnership with the Community Blood Center, will be held at Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital, 401 W. Mohawk Dr., Tomahawk, on Friday, Dec. 13, from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. To schedule an appointment, call 800-280-4102.

Grace Lutheran Church, 108 W. Somo Ave., Tomahawk, will host a Cookie Walk, Lefse & Craft Sale Saturday, Dec. 14. The craft area opens at 8:30 a.m., and the Cookie Walk and Lefse will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. Many homemade cookies, candy, fudge and handmade craft items will be featured. Fair Trade items, including coffee and chocolates, will be for sale. All are welcome.

A benefit for Larry Jacobsen, including raffles, silent auctions, a soup luncheon and more, will be held at The Well (formerly Prince of Peace Church), 1328 Cty. Rd. A, Tomahawk, on Saturday, Dec. 14, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Larry sustained significant head trauma, along with other injuries, in a fall on Oct. 22. All are invited to show support for Larry’s family and help offset medical and living expenses.

Veterans and their spouses are invited to join the Coffee and Chat Club at Ma’s Place, 5375 Highway 17, Gleason, on the second Tuesday of every month at 10 a.m. The monthly gathering is sponsored by the VFW Post 1638 and Auxiliary in Merrill. For more information, call Janet Tesch at 715-921-2398.

Kinship of Tomahawk will be celebrating Christmas with all Kinskids (and mentors) and would like to give all 83 Kinskids a gift. There are stocking tags (most containing items from Kinskids wish lists) hanging at Trig’s of Tomahawk and Tomahawk Pharmacy. Kinship is asking the community to take a tag (or two), purchase an item on the tag, and return the tag and gift to either the Tomahawk Leader or Tomahawk Pharmacy by Dec. 6. Gifts should total around $25 for each tag and are not required to be wrapped. For more info, call Kinship at 715-453-1910.

VFW Post 2687, 203 S. 4th St., Tomahawk, will host cribbage every Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. Entry is $5.00 per person, with all money paid back to winners. All are invited to join. For more information, call David Hubatch at 715-224-3444.

The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Tax-Aide Counseling Program is seeking volunteers in the Tomahawk area to join its core group of counselors. Tax-Aide, a free community service program offered by AARP and working in cooperation with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Wisconsin Department of Revenue (DOR), helps hundreds of people in the Tomahawk area every year. Volunteers will partake in a three-day training session in Jan. 2020, and will serve as counselors and work with computers to assist clients in preparing and electronically filing Federal and State Income Tax returns, along with Homestead Credit forms, if applicable. Counselors usually devote on day per week from February to mid-April preparing tax returns at the Tomahawk Senior Center, 113 S. Tomahawk Ave., Tomahawk. Scheduling is flexible. For more information, contact Ron Lueneburg at 715-453-6864.

Kinship of Tomahawk is seeking Lunch Buddy mentors to spend time with elementary or middle school youth on the Kinship waiting list. Mentors and youth will meet during the child’s lunch hour one day a week, or every other week. This commitment is for the remainder of the school year. Mentors will eat with the child, then either play a game, read a book or just sit and talk. The time together may include help with academics, but at all times the focus will be the fostering of a caring and supportive friendship. If interested, contact Patti Hilgendorf at 715-453-1910.

Tomahawk Public Library’s “Play and Learn” program is now called “Library Time.” Library Time is an opportunity for children to develop friendships and early literacy skills through talking, singing, reading, writing and playing. This play based program is for young children and those who take care of them. Library Time will be held from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. every Thursday from September through May. The library also hosts LEGO days from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on early school release days and board games after school from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. on the last Tuesday of every month. For more information, call the library at 715-453-2455.

Eagle Summit Healing Center, W5676 Water View Lane, off of County Road A, north of Tomahawk, invites the public to attend free and confidential Community Healing Rooms to receive prayer for healing. The rooms are open Thursday evenings from 6 to 8 p.m. Contact Paula Thomas at 715-453-4119 with questions.

Open Arms Community Soup Kitchen is open Tuesdays, welcoming any hungry souls as well as those who want to socialize between 5 and 6:30 p.m. at the Corpus Christi Center adjacent to St. Mary’s Church. All are welcome to enjoy the free dinner. Anyone who would like to support this volunteer effort may send donations to P.O. Box 1, Tomahawk, WI 54487.