Calendar of Events

Many families have made this illuminating evening a family tradition. Start your tour in the Visitor Center with holiday treats and entertainment and pick up your free ticket for your tour of the home. Enjoy a candle lit path to a historic home aglow with candlelight and decorated with fresh greenery, fruits, vegetables and nuts as it would have been during the days that the Ramsey Family occupied it. This event is open to the public as a thank you to all our supporters. There is no admission charge but Historic Ramsey House would accept all donations. Seasonal music, hot cider, and Christmas treats served in the visitors’ center will have you, your friends, and family members in the holiday spirit in no time!

2614 Thorngrove Pike, Knoxville, TN 37914. Information: 865-546-0745, www.ramseyhouse.org

Each Second Sunday of the month at 2pm, docents offer free guided tours of Higher Ground, Currents, and traveling exhibitions to the public. In order to reach a broader audience the KMA offers Spanish speaking tours once a month at 3pm.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM, Sunday, 1-5PM. Information: 865-525-6101, www.knoxart.org

In celebration of the Christmas season, Home Federal Bank invites its East Tennessee neighbors to enjoy two free screenings of "It's a Wonderful Life" at the historic Tennessee Theatre on Sunday, Dec. 14.

"As we mark five years of presenting this holiday classic film, we appreciate the community's enthusiastic response," said Home Federal Bank President Dale Keasling. "It's rewarding to see the packed house each year and to hear from people that attending the movie has become a fun and relaxing annual tradition."

The film will be shown at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m., and doors will open one hour prior to each screening. The event is free, and no ticket is required. Seating is limited to the theater's capacity.

As a bonus, moviegoers will have the opportunity to pick up $2 discount coupons for the City of Knoxville's Holidays on Ice open-air skating rink on Market Square, also sponsored by the bank.

Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. For information/tickets: 865-684-1200, www.tennesseetheatre.com, www.ticketmaster.com

East Tennessee PBS provides area fans of the show two opportunities to indulge their obsession before Season 5 premieres Sunday, January 4, at 9 p.m.

Station supporters are invited to attend a Downton Abbey-themed tea at Historic Westwood, 3425 Kingston Pike. The tea is from 2 – 4 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear 1920s-style clothes. Tickets are $100 each to benefit East Tennessee PBS, available for purchase by calling the station at 865-595-0239 or online at www.EastTennesseePBS.org.

Later that afternoon, East Tennessee PBS hosts a free preview screening of the first hour of Season 5 of Downton Abbey on MASTERPIECE, at 5 p.m. at Regal Downtown West Cinema 8, located at 1640 Downtown West Boulevard. Admission is free. General admission seating is first come, first served. The event also includes the opportunity to take your photo in a special photo booth and enter to win a Department 56 replica of Highclere Castle, provided by The Christmas Place.

Season 5 of Downton Abbey on Masterpiece features a few new faces including Richard E. Grant (Girls, Gosford Park) as Simon Bricker, Anna Chancellor (Four Weddings and a Funeral) as Lady Anstruther, and Rade Sherbedgia (Eyes Wide Shut, 24) as a Russian refugee. Season 5 of Downton Abbey on MASTERPIECE premieres Sunday, January 4, 2015, at 9 p.m. on East Tennessee PBS. For DVDs and more Downton Abbey items, visit shopPBS.org. East Tennessee PBS will rebroadcast Season 4 episodes of Downton Abbey beginning at 9 p.m. on Sunday, December 7.

For more information about the tea and the preview screening, visit EastTennesseePBS.org or call the station at 865-595-0239.

Christmas Carol Sing-Along
First Baptist Church of Oak Ridge

An annual tradition - we invite you to come sing along and get in the holiday spirit.

The Oak Ridge Wind Ensemble/The Oak Ridge Community Band: P. O. Box 6980, Oak Ridge, TN 37831-6980, 865-483-3044, www.orcb.org

Grab your hot cocoa and get ready to sing! 'Tis the season for caroling.
Time: All Day!
Who: Everyone! All musicians are encouraged to do a Christmas Carol and Holiday Music set, any time on Sunday. Try to keep your shows down to 30-45 minutes to give everyone a chance to perform. This is way more fun than caroling outside in the cold!

Street Jelly Media: www.streetjelly.com

STEAM out Hunger food drive - As part of the “STEAM Out Hunger” exhibit, AMSE is offering free admission during a weekend-long food drive. Admission will be free to visitors who bring four canned or non-perishable food items per person. All food collected and the cans from the exhibit structure will be donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank to provide hunger relief in the East Tennessee community.

American Museum of Science & Energy, 300 S. Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Monday-Saturday 9AM-5PM, Sunday 1-5PM. Information: 865-576-3200, www.amse.org

The Mabry-Hazen House invites you to join us for our Annual Christmas Tours. Rooms and other areas will be decorated by well known Knoxville decorators as well as volunteers and museum staff. The event is free of charge and light refreshments will be served. Christmas Tours are scheduled for Saturday, December 13th from 5-8pm and Sunday, December 14th from 2-5pm. Donations are encouraged

Mabry-Hazen House, 1711 Dandridge Avenue, Knoxville, TN, 37915. Information: 865-522-8661, www.mabryhazen.com

Metamorphosis: Angel-Phoenix Figures
Art By Theophilus
The Literacy Imperative Arts Reception:
December 11, 2014 4PM to 8PM
Exhibit: December 11, 2014 to January 31, 2015
Burlington Library, 4614 Asheville Hwy, Knoxville, TN 37914
(865) 525-5431

Grade-school students from the Stanford Eisenberg Knoxville Jewish Day School are building a canned food sculpture, featuring the school’s name and ram mascot, for a “STEAM Out Hunger”. The project is inspired by Knoxville’s Holiday Canstruction® event hosted by Messer Construction. ConAgra and Bush Beans donated the 1,440 canned-food building blocks for the sculpture. The Besmann Family Fund for Social Justice and Spiritual Enrichment of the Knoxville Jewish Community Family of Funds also provided support.

American Museum of Science & Energy, 300 S. Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Monday-Saturday 9AM-5PM, Sunday 1-5PM. Information: 865-576-3200, www.amse.org

Sunday, December 7, 8:30AM and 11:00AM
Festive music for the season led by our Children and Youth Choirs.

Sunday, December 14, 8:30AM and 11:00AM
A service of Music and Readings by the Parish Adult Choir with the Brasswind Quintet.

Church Street United Methodist Church, 900 Henley Street, Knoxville, 37902
865-524-3048; www.churchstreetumc.org

At the Museum of Appalachia, log cabins and barns nestle at the base of a hill. Smoke rises lazily from chimneys, signaling warmth from within on a chilly December day. Beginning on December 6th, the Museum will celebrate Christmas in Old Appalachia, a festive winter celebration that captures the beauty and simplicity of an old-fashioned Christmas. Inside the cabins, simple cedar Christmas trees are draped with paper chains, popcorn strings, sweet gum, and sycamore balls. In the Dan’l Boone Cabin, a dormant sapling wears cotton “snow” and scraps of cloth for bows. Pine clippings, magnolia leaves and holly berries line the mantels above the fireplaces. The Little Tater Valley School House is adorned with hand-made ornaments made by local students. Tattered or well-worn quilts are laid under the trees; topped with carved wooden animals, tin horns, rag dolls, wagons, and spinning tops—all of which were presents found early on Christmas morning. Children often opened their Christmas packages to find practical gifts, such as new shoes or books, purchased from a mail order catalog; and relished in the joy of receiving something as simple as an orange or a peppermint stick.

For December 6th-7th the Museum has planned a variety of charming holiday festivities to kick off its Christmas season. Such fun activities include: craftsmen demonstrating traditional arts, warm fires surrounded by traditional porch musicians playing seasonal music, local authors signing their books, and a delicious home-cooked dinner at the Museum’s restaurant. Continuing through December 24th, special holiday exhibits include the children’s display in the Hall of Fame, with toys and furniture made by loving parents and grandparents, and Granny Irwin’s traditional Christmas Crazy Quilt—brought out only on special or festive occasions.

Browse the regional, ‘American made’, hand-crafted gifts and books in the Shop at the Museum for a special Christmas gift. Enjoy hot, southern country-style lunches, served daily from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Museum restaurant. Home-made cakes, pies, cookies, and other holiday treats are available all day, or can be made special to order for Christmas gatherings.

December hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily (8:30 a.m.-3pm on Christmas Eve and closed Christmas Day). The Museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate and a not-for-profit organization, is located 16 miles North of Knoxville, one mile East of I-75, Exit 122. Information: 865-494-7680, www.museumofappalachia.org