Destination Bedford

Lynchburg College Jazz Ensemble with Chris Magee
2017-11-11 19:30 - 22:00 (America/New_York)
A night of big band jazz! Under the direction of Dr. Chris Magee, you’ll hear selections from the LC Jazz Ensemble and the LC Community Jazz Band.

Tickets: $10 in advance | $12 at the door

Ticket Locations: Bower Center Office, or Online
Cash Bar Available

Chris Magee has played lead trumpet for such artists as Wayne Newton, The Temptations, The Four Tops and the O’Jays, and he was staff trumpeter and arranger at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Chris is a native of Harrisonburg, Virginia and resides in Bedford. He received the Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from James Madison University and the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the University of Iowa brass methods. He teaches music at Lynchburg College where he directs the Jazz Ensemble and teaches trumpet, Music Appreciation and courses in world music, music appreciation, conducting and brass methods. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Music at Northeast Lakeview College in Universal City, Texas, and directed the jazz ensemble at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.

Forest Farmer's Winter Market
2017-11-18 08:00 - 12:00, 2017-12-09 08:00 - 12:00 | poplar-forest-group-tour
Indoor farmer and artisan market.

Forest Farmers Market
2017-11-18 08:00 - 12:00, 2017-11-25 08:00 - 12:00, 2017-12-02 08:00 - 12:00, 2017-12-09 08:00 - 12:00 | Forest Farmers Market, 15583 Forest Road, Forest, VA, 24523, United States
Virginia Grown Produce, meats, honey, flowers along with breads for locals to enjoy. The market is open the last week in April until the last week in Oct. Please come and enjoy the local food from our area.

43rd Annual Art, Crafts, & More Show
2017-11-18 09:00 - 16:00 | Charlemont Lodge, the Schoolhouse
Join us for the 43rd Annual Art, Crafts & More Show. We have artisans of unique handcrafted items, authors, wonderful food and learn about some of the non-profit orginzations in our area.
Door Prizes to be drawn at 3:30pm
$3 admission per person age 6 and up
Sponsored by GFWC Bedford Woman’s Club

Thomas Jefferson Wine Festival
2017-11-18 11:00 - 17:00 | Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, 687 Poplar Forest Dr., Forest, VA, 24551, United States
Come toast the “Father of Virginia Wine” with a variety of Virginia wineries, local food, artisans and live music in the company of Mr. Jefferson.
Held in large, heated tents, this event is rain or shine!

Click Here For Ticket Information

Bedford Community Orchestra Fall Concert
2017-11-18 19:30 - 21:30 | Bedford Middle School, 503 Longwood Avenue, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
The Bedford Community Orchestra would like to invite you to their Fall Concert on Saturday, November 18th, 2017 at 7:30pm at the Bedford Middle School! (503 Longwood Avenue, Bedford, Va)
Music to include Guys & Dolls, Star Wars Through the Years, Morton Gould’s Phantom Regiment, Defler Symphony 4th Movement, Aladdin Suite by Carl Nielsen, The Water is Wide, and more!!!
Suggested Donation $10/person
Don’t miss this wonderful evening of live orchestral music with the BCO!
For more info please visit www.BedfordCommOrch.org or call 540-947-0208

Festival of Trees
2017-11-21 09:00 - 2018-01-04 17:00 | Bedford Area Welcome Center, 816 Burks Hill Road, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
Join us for the annual Festival of Trees held at the Bedford Area Welcome Center. The theme this year is “Whimsical, Merry & Bright”. This is the 9th year of the event and it will feature more than two dozen trees decorated by community organizations and businesses.
You can vote for your favorite tree, voting is just $1.00 per vote. All proceeds of the winning trees will be donated to their selected charities.
There is also a scavenger hunt for the kids which is always a lot of fun.
The Welcome Center is open daily 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.* with extended hours until 9 p.m. on December 1, 8, 9, 10, and 15, which includes the nights of the National D-Day Memorial’s Flames of Memory Nighttime Illumination which takes place December 8, 9, and 10, 6-9 p.m. During the extended hour nights, Santa Claus likes to make surprise visits and loves to have his photo taken with the children (bring your own camera).
*The Welcome Center will be closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day.

3rd Annual Bedford Artisan Trail Invitational Exhibit
2017-11-21 09:00 - 2018-01-12 17:00 | Bedford County Administration Building, 122 East Main Street, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
“Bedford Made: How the Arts Shape Bedford Business, Community and Tourism”.

Fine arts and craft works by artists and artisan members of the Bedford Artisan Trail.
Exhibit Dates: November 21, 2017 – January 12, 2018

Space ~ Art Exhibit at the Bower Center for the Arts
2017-11-21 11:00 - 2018-01-13 16:00 | Bower Center for the Arts, 305 North Bridge Street, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
This all media judged theme exhibit seeks to go deeper and explore the concept of “space, the final frontier.” One of the seven elements of art: space can be negative or positive, open or closed, shallow or deep, and two or three dimensional. Other possibilities include: outer space, deep space, office space, a space of time, wide open spaces, the space between words, personal space, rental space, or my space. Are your creative juices teaming with spacey ideas yet? Now, go boldly where no artist has gone before! Show us what’s in your head space!
Exhibit Dates: November 21, 2017 – January 13, 2018

Thanksgiving Weekend at Hickory Hill Vineyards
2017-11-24 12:00 - 2017-11-25 17:00, 2017-11-25 12:00 - 2017-11-26 17:00 | Hickory Hill Vineyards and Winery, 1722 Hickory Cove Lane, Moneta, VA, 24121, United States
Join us Thanksgiving weekend and shop for the wine-lover on your holiday list! Enjoy a wine tasting and then sip our mulled wine as you browse our gift shop and find that perfect gift for the wine lover on your list. Or, let us help you customize a gift of wine (and wine related gifts) in 2 or 3 bottle boxes.

2017 Christmas Market
2017-11-25 10:00 - 14:00
The Bedford Area Chamber of Commerce’s Christmas Market is a great opportunity to explore local businesses this Holiday Season. Join us for fun, food, shopping, and networking!
This year’s Christmas Market will be hosted on Small Business Saturday to encourage the community to shop small and local for the holidays.
This is a family friendly event that will feature kids’ crafts, Selfies with Santa and carriage rides!

Shop Small Business Saturday At The Electric Company Art Gallery
2017-11-25 11:00 - 17:00 | ElectricCoArt, 207 East Depot Street, Bedford, VA, United States
Nov 25th – Shop Small Business Saturday:
Saturday, from 11 AM to 5 PM, come by, relax, paint and Shop Small. We will be participating with 3 events that day for FREE. We will host a kid’s rock painting project from 11:30 AM to 12:30 PM, up next (for adults and kids), we will do a tile coaster painting session from 1 PM to 2 PM and Sherry Chairs & MORE! will follow-up with a painting session from 2:30 PM to 3:30 PM (for adults and kids) as well. We will have cookies, hot chocolate and cider that day.

English Meadows Elks Home Christmas Light Display
2017-12-01 17:00 - 2018-01-01 17:00 | Shady Grove Vineyards Cabin
The town of Bedford becomes a little bit brighter when the English Meadows Elks Home Campus turns on their spectacular Christmas light display!
The tradition of lighting the senior living facility has been ongoing for 62 years now. The display is arranged along the long entrance driveway and around the circle in front of the home’s grand entrance. This is a FREE activity that will leave a memorable impression. Donations are graciously accepted.
The lights are turned on at dusk at about 5 p.m. and turn off at about 10 p.m. from Dec. 1 through Jan. 1.

Candlelight Tours at Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest
2017-12-01 17:30 - 2017-12-16 19:00 | Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, 687 Poplar Forest Dr., Forest, VA, 24551, United States
Ring in the holidays with a magical candlelit tour of Mr. Jefferson’s cherished villa retreat dressed for the holidays with 19th-century panache. These annual and very popular after-hours tours offer an intimate look at what Thomas Jefferson’s and his family’s evenings might have been like. As visitors walk through the octagonal house, they’ll be entertained by anecdotes gathered from Jefferson’s letters and diaries.

Tour Schedule

Thursdays, December 7 & 14 at 5:30 p.m.
Fridays & Saturdays, December 1 & 2, 8 & 9, and 15 & 16 at 5:30 & 6:30 p.m.

Admission is $20 per person. Reservations are required and can be made by purchasing tickets or by calling the Museum Shop at 434.534.8120

Jonathan Byrd with the Pickup Cowboy – Contemporary Folk/Bluegrass
2017-12-01 19:30 - 21:30 | Relaxing
Join the Friends of the Bedford Public Library on Friday, December 1, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. as they host in concert, Jonathan Byrd with the Pickup Cowboy. The concert, held in the Bedford Room of Bedford Central Library is open to the public, with a ticket price of $15.00 per person; collected at the door or purchased in advance through Lynchburg Tickets. Seating is limited. For more information, call 540-586-8911, or visit http://www.friendsofbedfordlibrary.org. Join us and bring a friend or two!
“…a folk singer with the heart of a rock ‘n’ roll band.” — K. Oliver, Free Times Jonathan Byrd is a preacher’s son, a Gulf War veteran, and an award-winning songwriter from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, known for literary, outsider songs that have become campfire favorites. The Chicago Tribune called Byrd “one of the top 50 songwriters of the past 50 years.” Multi-instrumentalist Johnny Waken cut his teeth on electric guitar in Pittsburgh with rock legend Norm Nardini, opening for The Blues Brothers Band on their Red, Hot & Blue tour in 1992. On stage and after hours, he jammed with members of Bon Jovi and the legendary Steve Cropper. At the age of 24, Waken left music to pursue primitive skills and through-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2000 with an eleven-pound pack. Returning to music years later Johnny joined theatre troupe Paperhand Puppet Intervention, contributing to scores for nine shows and winning 4 Indy Awards for best original music. Jonathan Byrd and The Pickup Cowboy are musical gunslingers, vaudevillian hucksters, and old-fashioned tent revivalists. Between heartbreaking ballads and hell-raising sing-alongs, the Cowboys entertain and get audiences involved in the show. “Jonathan Byrd doesn’t sing songs; he sings truth.” — Mare Wakefield, Performing Songwriter “Jonathan Byrd swings from the roots of American music…He jumps between gutbucket blues and tender ballads, empathetic work laments and sympathetic character studies…Byrd shares the often-missed, always poignant tales of the small people that make this world such a big place.” — Grayson Currin, The Independent

Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic 5K
2017-12-02 08:00 - 10:30 | Bedford Middle School, 503 Longwood Avenue, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
The Peaks of Otter Christmas Classic 5k is celebrating 38 years! Join runners and walkers of all ages and abilities for this central Virginia holiday tradition. Children are also invited to participate in the “Peaks Junior” 1 Mile and 1/4 Mile fun run.
ONLINE REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!
https://runsignup.com/Race/VA/Bedford/PeaksChristmasClassic
If you are on a team then register in the 5K event to add your team name.

Bedford Christmas Parade
2017-12-02 11:00 - 13:00 | Centertown Bedford, Main Street, Bedford, 24523
Bedford’s Annual Christmas Parade will be held on Saturday, December 2, 2017 at 11 am.
(The rain date will be December 3rd.)

Christmas Home Tour
2017-12-03 13:00 - 17:00
Bedford Council of Garden Clubs is proud to present the 2017 Bedford Christmas Home Tour on December 3, 2017 from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM. The theme of this year’s home tour is Christmas in the World’s Best Little Town. WBLT were the call letters of the local radio station founded by Jim Synan in the early 1950’s. This became the unofficial trademark of the town of Bedford.
Since 1973 the Bedford Council of Garden Clubs has sponsored a biennial Christmas Home Tour the first of December. The homes this year are ones in Bedford that the owners so graciously have agreed to open for this liesurely Sunday afternoon tour. The five unique homes selected for 2017 range from an 1800’s Vernacular to a 1946 Colonial style cottage. Many points of interest in these homes allow opportunities for the garden club members to showcase their many talents and creativity. The Bower Center for the Arts will be open to the public as a tour stop where refreshments will be served. The recent renovation of the Bower Center and the art exhibits showcased will add appeal for those who visit.
Tickets for the 2017 Christmas Home Tour are $15.00 in advance and $20.00 the day of the tour. The program containing information on the homes and the advertisements are the ticket for the tour and must be presented at the door to visit the home. The funds raised from this event are for the many projects of the clubs belonging to the Bedford Council, the Council itself, the Virginia Federation of Garden Clubs, and National Garden Clubs, Inc. Therefore the tickets are non-refundable. Your program/ticket provides access to these properties at the time of the tour.
The Bedford Council of Garden Clubs welcomes you to Christmas in the World’s Best Little Town.

Flames of Memory and Christmas in Wartime Presentation
2017-12-08 18:00 - 2017-12-10 21:00, 2017-12-09 18:00 - 2017-12-11 21:00
As twilight deepens and obscures the Blue Ridge, the Memorial will honor the 4,413 men killed on D-Day.
Arranged throughout Elmon T. Gray Plaza, thousands of luminaries will shine in recognition of Overlord’s fallen and in tribute to the ultimate sacrifice each made to relight the lamp of freedom.
Luminaries are sold throughout the year and will be displayed on December 8th, 9th, & 10th – 6:00pm to 9:00pm.
Click here for information on purchasing luminaries.

The Joybells ~ Holiday Concert
2017-12-08 20:00 - 22:00
Come out to Bower Center during 2nd Friday, December 8th and hang around for the free concert.
Seating is limited, so come early!
Cider, hot chocolate, and bottled water will be available for purchase.
Complimentary coffee will be available.

Christmas in Sedalia
2017-12-09 10:00 - 16:00 | The Sedalia Center, 1108 Sedalia School Road, Big Island, VA, United States
The Sedalia Center and ​Mountain Run Farm’s CHRISTMAS IN SEDALIA to be held, snow or shine, Saturday, December 9, 2017 from 10am to 4pm.

Shop Local. Shop Sedalia.
A treasure trove of unique, hand-crafted gifts for everyone on your list.
Christmas in Sedalia showcases the best of the region’s creative community and offers holiday shoppers an opportunity to purchase unique, hand-crafted gifts for everyone on their list.
Selfies with Santa
1pm to 4pmKids Craft Activity
1pm to 4pm

Gift Wrap Station, Holiday Baked Goods, Lunch Menu, Hot Cocoa, and lots more!
CLICK HERE to download the VENDOR APPLICATION. Please mail payment and the application to The Sedalia Center.

An 1850’s Christmas Celebration at Avenel
2017-12-09 18:00 - 20:30 | Historic Avenel, 413 Avenel Avenue, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
Avenel is hosting another 1850’s Christmas Party!
Please join us on Saturday, December 9th for An 1850’s Christmas Celebration! Avenel will be beautifully decorated for the holidays. There will be a Costume Contest (1850’s costumes optional), delicious food, and an open bar! Avenel’s famous egg nog will be flowing again this year too! It will be a festive evening in one of Bedford’s most historic landmarks. Tickets are only $40, and will be available in October at lynchburgtickets.com and from Avenel Board of Directors members, Arthur’s Jewelry, Scott & Bond Insurance, and the Bedford Area Welcome Center.
Click here to link to the Facebook event.

Virginia Dare Flotilla for Toys Christmas Boat Parade
2017-12-09 19:00 - 21:00
An evening event, with a parade of boats ‘decked out’ for the holiday season with lights and displays. The boats leave port from the Virginia Dare Marina at 7 p.m., travel to Halesford Bridge at Bridgewater Plaza, circle past the SML State Park and return to the Virginia Dare Marina.
This event is a local toy drive with all gifts distributed by the Lake Christian Ministries.

Holiday Art Studio and Galley Tour
2017-12-10 13:00 - 17:00
December 10th – Art Studio & Gallery Tour:
Sunday in Bedford from 1 PM to 5 PM. For your shopping pleasure we will be featuring the magical music by Fawn Evans on her dulcimer from 2 PM to 3 PM. Children’s Activities Available! Visit the Art Gallery, Artist on Depot studios, Artisan Gift Shoppe and Sherry Chairs and MORE! Refreshments served.
