The city of Eustis will host its inaugural trunk-or-treat and haunted house event from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 25 in Carver Park, 2214 Bates Ave. Festivities will include candy giveaways, games and a family-friendly haunted house that winds through the city's Parks and Recreation facility at the park. Admission is free and open to the public.
Details: Eustis.org.
The City of Tavares Annual BOO! Festival will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 25 at Wooton Park, 100 E. Ruby St, and along Main Street.
The family-friendly will feature a large trunk-or-treat with free candy, live DJ, food vendors, a Creepy Tent for kids sponsored by the YMCA, a costume contest, entertainment, a movie and carnival games. Costume judging will begin at 7 p.m. in the park.
The Marianne Beck Memorial Library, 112 W. Central Ave., Howey-in-the-Hills, will have its annual Halloween Bash with games, music, photos, a movie, and trick or treating from 4 to 6 p.m. Oct. 26.
Costume contests for age groups 5-under, 6-12, teens, adults, plus pets will take place. The Howey Community Church will serve hot dogs. The event is free and open to the public.
Details: 352-324-0254.
The town of Lady Lake will host its annual Not Too Scary Halloween Boo Bash from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 26 at the Guava Street Athletic Complex, 221 W. Guava St. Events include a foam party, Halloween-themed bounce houses, a costume contest, music and food trucks.
Prizes for the costume contest are sponsored by the Lady Lake Library, with categories for preschoolers, children ages 3-5, K-12 students and family groups. The event is free and open to the public.
Details: Amy Alicea at [email protected] or 352-205-2826.
First Presbyterian Church of Mount Dora, 222 W. Sixth Ave., will have another movie night with a special screening of "Facing the Giants" at 6 .pm. Oct. 30.
The film centers on high school football coach Grant Taylor, who hasn't had a winning season in six years. Admission is free and open to the public.
Details: 352-383-4089.
Upcoming events in Mount Dora include two rescheduled due to Hurricane Milton:
-- The city will host its 50th annual Cycle Mount Dora Bicycle Festival Nov. 2-3 with two full days of cycling adventures for cyclists of all skill levels beginning at 7:15 a.m. each day at Gilbert Park, 310 S. Tremain St.
Highlights include eight route options through Lake County's countryside, with a choice of distances for all skill levels, commemorative gear, with all registered participants receiving a custom event shirt and a special finisher medal to celebrate five decades of cycling history.
A pre-event gathering will take place at 3 p.m. Nov. 1 at the park. Registration for both days is $85.
All profits from the event will help teach kids to swim and provide funds for scholarships for those in need. The festival was originally slated for Oct. 11-12.
Details and registration: cyclemountdora.com.
-- In partnership with Steamroller Animation, an independent animation studio based in the city, Mount Dora will host a chalk art event from noon to 5 p.m. Oct. 30 at Sunset Park, 230 W. Fourth Ave.
Teams of skilled Steamroller artists will face off for a friendly competition, transforming the park's sidewalks into a gallery of chalk art inspired by the company's original animated episode, Spice Frontier.
The community is invited to watch as the artists showcase their creativity and bring their imaginative designs to life. The competition will culminate in a selection of the winning artwork by Mount Dora Mayor Crissy Stile.
-- The City of Mount Dora Fire Department will have an open house from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 2 at Fire Station 35, 3200 County Road 19A. The event will include tours of the station, fire trucks, ambulances and other emergency vehicles, fire department team meet-and-greet, fire safety tips, bounce house, a kids fire challenge course and refreshments and is free and open to the public.
The event originally was scheduled during Fire Prevention Month but postponed due to Hurricane Milton.
Retired Lake County Schools planetarium director Mike Ryan will explain why hurricanes circulate counterclockwise during a program at 1:30 p.m. Nov. 2 at Trout Lake Nature Center, 520 E. County Road 44, Eustis.
Participants can bring a small calculator and writing instrument to help complete a chart that provides the answer.
The program is free and open to the public, but admission to Trout Lake is $5 per vehicle. Members get in free.
Details: troutlakenaturecenter.com, 352-357-7536 or email [email protected].
In advance of the Lady Lake Library's expansion project, the public should be aware of the placement of construction fencing on Oct. 28, the closure of the west entrance, which borders the Guava Street Athletic Complex, and the adjacent parking area.
All other public parking will remain open and patrons may continue to use the front and youth library entrances on Guava Street.
In August, the Lady Lake Library announced it was awarded a $1 million Lake County Library Impact Fee grant to support its ambitious expansion project. This allocation will contribute to the Children's Library portion of the project, with the town of Lady Lake funding the remaining cost that includes an expansion of the Information Technology Department.
The project aims to enhance the library's offerings by enlarging the youth library area from 4,560 square feet to 7,697 square feet. It also includes an expanded lobby, an additional public elevator and a landing area for the new second floor Children's Library, adding more than 3,000 square feet to the public spaces.
The library, part of the Lake County Library System, serves over 16,000 registered cardholders and welcomes approximately 14,500 visitors each month.
Details: ladylakefl.gov.
The Okahumpka Community Club is sponsoring a presentation on the Okahumpka Rosenwald School, listed on the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation's "11 to Save" for the most endangered historic places in the state, from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Oct. 25 at the Leesburg Public Library, 100 E. Main St.
The presentation will include images, photos, videos and dialogue covering the history of Rosenwald Schools, which existed from 1910 through the 1960s throughout the south, including the Okahumpka school.
The schools were funded by philanthropist Julius Rosenwald, who partnered with African American educator and activist Booker T. Washington to build thousands of schools for Black students in 15 states. The Rosenwald Schools were most often the first schools in a Black community.
Details: 352-728-9790.
The Eustis Memorial Library, 120 N. Center St., is sponsoring a two-sentence horror story contest for adults through Oct. 31. Area adults can unleash their dark imagination by submitting an original story, limited to two sentences.
Blind judging will take place by library staff during the first week of November. Entry forms can be picked up at the library, or emailed after contacting the library. Winners will be announced Nov. 13.
Details: 352-357-5686.
A GriefShare Support Group, for those grieving the death of a loved one, will take place Mondays from 3 to 4:30 p.m. through Dec. 9 at First Presbyterian Church of Eustis, 117 S. Center St.
The cost is $15 and includes a workbook. Details and registration: 352-357-2833 or GriefShare.org.
The Lakes League Men's Softball League for ages 50 and over plays at 9 a.m. on Thursdays at Pear Park, 26701 U.S. Highway 27 in Leesburg.
Interested players should email [email protected].
The Leesburg Public Library is seeking submissions from local authors who have published their first book in any genre or category since Jan. 1, 2024, with selected authors given the opportunity to participate in the library's ninth Literary Arts Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 1-2 in downtown Leesburg.
Held in conjunction with the Leesburg Center for the Arts Emerge 48 festival, the two-day event aims to celebrate and support emerging literary talents in the community. There is no charge for authors to participate in the festival and sell their books.
Submissions are due by Nov. 1. Authors should send a brief description of their book to [email protected], along with a short bio and contact information, including email and mailing address and phone number.
A copy of the printed book should be sent to Leesburg Public Library, Attn: Dusty Matthews, 100 E. Main St., Leesburg, FL, 34748.
Details: 352-728-9790.
To submit a community event for online publication, email information at least two weeks before the event to [email protected].