Renew old friendships, shop for bargains and enjoy entertainment at a holiday shopping event this weekend.

Start your weekend with breakfast at Lone Oak Community Center Nov. 7 from 7:30 to 10 a.m. Everyone is welcome for good food and fellowship this and every first Saturday of the month.

With many scheduled fall and Halloween festivals make this a safe and fun weekend!

Celebrate Night Fall at Alexian Village Oct. 24, 4 to 7 p.m. Bring a chair or blanket to sit on. All Alexian Village and Signal Mountain residents are welcome to come and enjoy the entertainment, refreshments and fun together under the shade of the old oak trees at the Alexian Inn.

The 10k Pie Run will be Oct. 17 at 8 a.m. The run will start at the former Signal Mountain Middle School on Ault Road and follow a beautiful rolling course over East Brow Road.

The Signal Mountain High School football team will be away Oct. 9 at Sequoyah.

Cool weather will bring the return of Fall Hodgepodge, Signal Mountain's favorite fall tradition. Now in its 35th year, the annual arts and crafts show features dozens of craftspeople and artisans from the Chattanooga area and beyond. This year's event will be Oct. 2, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Oct. 3, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The show will take place at the Signal Mountain Community Center and Town Hall, just five miles from Chattanooga. Admission will be $2. Children 12 and under will be admitted free. Free parking and a shuttle service will be available.

Remember the Mountain Arts Community Center Coffeehouse Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. Call 886-1959 to confirm. If you play an instrument, bring it. This group meets the last Saturday night of each month and is free!

“For years, Fall Hodgepodge has been a great place to do early holiday shopping, pick up one-of-a-kind pieces at affordable prices and support local artisans,” Michael Huseman, president of the Friends of the Mountain Arts Community Center, said.

Remember September 11, 2001. Stop for a moment and remember the victims and their families, and reflect on where you were and what you were doing. How did this horrific attack on our country change you? Share with someone else, because as a people, we are always only one and a half generations away from forgetting history!

We welcome Tom McCullough as the new Signal Mountain Middle/High School principal. We would also like to say thank you to Eddie Gravitte for leadership to this point and work to help make SMMHS a reality. SMMHS is off to a great year with a great staff, faculty, student body and parental support. I would like to acknowledge that parents make all the difference in public education.

Hearty congratulations to the first ever win for Signal Mountain Middle/High School Varsity Football over Hixson High School last Friday. The next test will be Aug. 28, 7 p.m. against East Hamilton High School. Go Eagles.

Signal Mountain Middle/High School’s pep and marching bands, football, golf, volleyball, ladies soccer and cross country teams are well under way, and the first progress reports are due out on Aug. 28. Get out and support SMMHS extracurricular activities and help make this another exceptional school year.

Let your voice be heard. The Hamilton County Commission is voting at 9:30 a.m. today on whether or not to allow the sale of the old Signal Mountain Middle School to Tom and Monique Poteet. The Poteets’ plans call for the establishment of the athletic club and a health and wellness campus for Signal Mountain. Call or e-mail the commissioners at www.hamiltontn.gov/emailform.aspx. This vote has been postponed several times. Make your plans now to attend the annual Labor Day barbecue, brought to you by the Signal Mountain Lions. It will be a day filled with food, fun and fellowship.

The Hamilton County commission will be voting on whether or not to allow the sale of the old Signal Mountain Middle School to Tom and Monique Poteet. Their plans call for the establishment of the athletic club and a health and wellness campus for Signal Mountain. Call or e-mail the commissioners at http://www.hamiltontn.gov/emailform.aspx. The vote is now scheduled to take place at the next county commission meeting on Aug. 13 at 9:30 a.m. at the courthouse downtown.