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Got Fresh Tree Trimmings? Elephant Sanctuary Seeks Fresh Donations For the Winter Months

Issue #270

In this What’s Up Columbia issue…

🗓 List of Upcoming Events

🌧 Columbia Weather - Showers with a high of 63

🐘 Got Fresh Tree Trimmings? Elephant Sanctuary Seeks Fresh Donations For the Winter Months

🎄 Christmas Tree Goes Up in Downtown Columbia

🎁 Nov. 23-24: A Very Maury Christmas Celebrates Their 10th Annual Holiday Market

🚧 Mount Pleasant Bridge Out for Six Months: Alternate Routes Recommended

🎵 This Week’s Live Music

⛑ Looking For Ways to Help Victims of Hurricane Helene? Click Here

🗓 Know of Some Local Events Not Listed? Send us the Details!

Upcoming Local Events

🗓 Have an event to add? Send us the Details!

Wednesday, November 13th

Thursday, November 14th

Friday, November 15th

Saturday, November 16th

Sunday, November 17th

Got Fresh Tree Trimmings? Elephant Sanctuary Seeks Fresh Donations For the Winter Months

From The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee’s Facebook event

Have extra tree trimmings? The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee is reaching out to our Middle Tennessee community for donated trees, branches, and trimmings as browse and enrichment for our elephant residents!

During the cooler months, when the elephants tend to stay closer to their heated barns, it’s essential to provide a variety of browse and enrichment. This not only offers necessary nutrients but also promotes mental stimulation through exploration. Browse typically includes leaves, branches, and other vegetation that elephants naturally consume, while enrichment consists of items that engage their minds and encourage physical activity. A diverse selection of browse greatly enhances the elephants' overall well-being by fostering natural behaviors such as stripping leaves and chewing on branches.

In addition to our popular seasonal donations of pumpkins and Christmas trees, we are seeking various types of browse from November 2024 through March 2025, but welcome donations year-round.

Please ensure items are cut within the last 2-3 weeks, and as fresh as possible. We ask that all items remain free from pesticides. Only limbs and small logs are accepted—no stumps or thick tree trunks. For a list of approved browse types, visit elephants.com/browse.

Browse donations can be brought to The Sanctuary’s Elephant Discovery Center, located at 27 East Main Street, Hohenwald, where a designated drop-off location will be available behind the building next to the 're-tired' elephant statue. Donors are invited to visit the exhibits inside the Elephant Discovery Center, which is open every Tuesday through Saturday from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

For large or heavy delivery arrangements, please contact Kristy, Browse Coordinator, at [email protected].

The elephant habitats are closed to the public. Visitors to The Discovery Center will not see or interact with the elephants.

Christmas Tree Goes Up in Downtown Columbia

From The City of Columbia’s Facebook post

The City of Columbia is excited to kick off the holiday season by putting up the Christmas tree and getting into the festive spirit! For the first time ever, the community will enjoy not one, but two nights of celebration.

The fun begins on Friday, December 6th with the Tree Lighting Celebration at December’s Columbia First Fridays event from 5-8 PM. Santa and Mrs. Claus will light the tree, accompanied by festive music from DJ Rio. 

The evening will feature local craft vendors, food trucks, and a variety of holiday-inspired, family-friendly activities, making it the perfect start to the season of joy and giving.

Stay tuned for more details about the Columbia Main Street Christmas Parade on December 7th! 

Special thanks to City of Columbia Public Works and Columbia Power & Water Systems for assembling the beautiful 40 ft. tree downtown!

Mount Pleasant Bridge Out for Six Months: Alternate Routes Recommended

The bridge between Sugar Creek Lane and Magnolia Drive in Mount Pleasant will be closed for up to six months as the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) undertakes a full repair project. Initially expected to span 11 months, the repair timeline has now been shortened to approximately six months, according to Mount Pleasant City Manager Philip Grooms.

At the recent October meeting of the Mount Pleasant City Commission, TDOT shared updated plans, outlining the reduced repair timeframe. Work on the bridge was slated to start around mid-November, and while the process will require a complete closure of this section of State Highway 243, Grooms assured the commission that the closure would be kept as brief as possible.

Drivers in the area are advised to use alternate routes during the construction period. Recommended detours include taking Highway 43 to bypass the closed section of the pike. Drivers can access Mount Pleasant’s north end by using the South Cross Bridges Road and Highway 166/1st Avenue exits, while the Mt. Joy Road and South Main Street exits provide access to the south end. To get onto 243 north of the bridge, drivers can take the Highway 43 exits onto Canaan Road, Zion Road or the airport road.

Local businesses on both sides of the bridge remain open for regular operation despite the bridge’s closure.

Nov. 23-24: A Very Maury Christmas Celebrates Their 10th Annual Holiday Market

A Very Maury Christmas is returning for our 10th annual holiday market! We are so excited to host this event again at the Factory at Columbia! Join us for the very best holiday shopping! This event has become a well-loved tradition for many.
We are happy to welcome back SANTA and Mini Makers!

AVMC is a regional holiday market featuring over 80 curated vendors on Saturday, November 23rd from 9am-6pm and 24th from 12pm-4pm. The entrance fee is $10 on Saturday and $5 on Sunday. Children 12 and under are free.

There will be a Preview Party on Friday, November 22nd. It is a ticketed event hosted by aMuse'um, our local children's museum. Please find more information here.

🎵 This Week’s Live Music

Wednesday, November 13th

Justen Harden, Puckett's, 6-7:30 PM

Thursday, November 14th

Kyle Matthew, Puckett's, 6-7:30 PM
Todd Ciprian, Tito's Spring Hill, 6-9 PM
The Alderson Jazz Collective, McCreary's Irish Pub, 7-9 PM
Wendy Moten, Cherry Street Theater at Columbia State, 7 PM

Friday, November 15th

Nicholas Graham Hall, August Sage, 5:30 - 7:30 PM
Nick Bentley, Meat Social, 6-8 PM
Kiana Renae, Grinder's Switch, 7-9 PM
Tom Saffell & Robert Johnson, McCreary's Irish Pub, 7-9 PM
Golden Soul Revue, Puckett's, 7:30-9 PM
Smokin' Peas, Fozzy's Bar & Grill, 8-11 PM

Saturday, November 16th

Rick Armentrout "The Unforgettables", Puckett's, 10 AM-2 PM
TBD, Natchez Hills Vineyard, 4-7 PM
Stevierock, McCreary's Irish Pub, 7-9 PM
The Turntables, The Rebel, 7-10 PM
Karli & James, Puckett's, 7:30-9 PM
The Wentzel Brothers Band, Ember’s, 8-11 PM
Bald Kernal, Fozzy's Bar & Grill, 8-11 PM

Sunday, November 17th

TBD, Natchez Hills Vineyard, 1-4 PM
Kenny Durham, Puckett's, 6-7:30 PM
Nicholas Duhe, The Rebel, 4 PM

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