Weekly update, December 6

Hello Neighbors! The free December print issue of The Carrborean is available around town and other locations (not yet in the grocery stores this week except for Weaver Street Market in Hillsborough!)

This is a combined and expanded December/January issue that includes a local holiday gift shopping guide, previews of holiday performances, and expanded Carrboreatin' and Events Calendar sections. Instead of preparing the next print issue this month, we're taking time to breathe, review what we've done in 2025, and refocus on what we want to do in 2026. Your weekly online stories and newsletters will continue as usual. The next print issue will be available at your favorite spots in February.

Online this week: the Holiday Parade starts at 10am tomorrow at 501 West Weaver Street and travels east along Main Street and then on to Franklin Street, ending at 140 West Franklin. Check out the preview of Carrboro High School's Choir Concert written by CHS student Leah Coyle and the highlights reel from the Town Council meeting December 2, where new Council Members were sworn in and a proclamation was issued commending outgoing Council Member, Randee Haven-O'Donnell.

Exciting news here! Last month, a librarian at the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill requested copies of The Carrborean to add to its repository "for preservation and widespread use." The Carrborean's official archive is at UNC!

News from Town: There is a Tree Lighting tonight at 6 at Town Hall, with performances from local elementary schools. The Carrboro Garden Club created a huge wreath for Town Hall, a 40-year tradition. The Town's newsletter this week contains a description of the natural materials used to make the wreath.

To commemorate Braxton Dunkin Foushee Day of Service on December 13, "residents are encouraged to learn and reflect on Carrboro’s Black history and perform an act of service." In particular, volunteering with youth education, mentorship, and life-skills development for at-risk youth is encouraged as these have been Mr. Foushee's focus throughout his life.

The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified on December 6, 1865. Events commemorating Abolition Day begin this evening in Chapel Hill and continue tomorrow from 10am - 2:30 pm at the Century Center in Carrboro. The symposium tomorrow includes panel discussions and keynotes from legal scholars and historians including Dr. Martha Jones, American historian, legal scholar and Professor of History at Johns Hopkins University and Anita Earls, American Civil Rights attorney and Associate Justice on the North Carolina Supreme Court. Please register for this free event.

On The Carrborean Radio Hour on WCOM this week, the Triangle Youth Ballet Director, Lauren Lorentz de Haas and Conductor of the Tchaikovsky Virtuosi, Andrew McAfee spoke about upcoming performances of The Nutcracker at The Carolina Theater in Durham December 11, 12, and 13. There is a related story in the print issue and we'll post it online next week. And on The Carrborean Radio Hour next week (Monday, 4—5pm on WCOM 103.5), we'll play a list of songs that got us through 2025. Which songs reliably provided you comfort, solace, inspiration, or motivation this year? Send one or two names and artists to info@thecarrborean.com and we'll add your suggestions to the playlist.

Come by the Drakeford Library Building on Monday between 5 and 6pm for The Carrborean's informal pop-up newsroom to talk about Carrboro and stories you'd like to hear or tell.

The Community Bulletin Board has announcements and giving opportunities and is updated weekly.

Looking for something to do in Carrboro this weekend? Check out The Events Calendar! Correction for the print issue: The Bazaar is this Sunday, December 7 from 12 - 5 at Town Commons, 301 W Main Street. Shop local! Vendors have fun holiday gifts for your special people and pets. The Bazaar will not be held December 14.

Please consider a paid subscription to help keep us going and ask your favorite businesses if they advertise in The Carrborean. Thank you!

*Edited to include information about The Carrborean's pop-up newsroom.