WTJU

The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection has reopened their expanded gift shop for the holiday season. You must make a reservation to shop, and if you plan to look at the exhibitions as well, they suggest you make two reservations back-to-back. For shopping hours and to make reservations, go to Kluge-Ruhe.org.

Plan to join McGuffey Art Center this holiday season for its annual Holiday Show, featuring two floors of art and a fully stocked, seasonal shop in the Sarah B. Smith gallery. New this year is the addition of an online store filled with home goods, original art, prints and cards, jewelry, and more. All purchases support the artists and McGuffey Art Center. The show and shop will take place at McGuffey Art Center, located at 201 2nd Street NW in Charlottesville. Holiday hours will run Wednesday through Sunday from 1 to 5 p.m. through December. For online shopping, visit mcguffeyartcenter.com/shop.

This radio station practices acceptance and respect for all people. As part of the University of Virginia, WTJU promotes an inclusive and welcoming environment that embraces the full spectrum of human attributes. WTJU envisions a community of understanding, tolerance, and respect. Thank you for being one of our listeners and thank you for being a part of this community.

Second Street Gallery in Charlottesville announces a new exhibition of landscape paintings by Laura Wooten, titled View from the Ridge. On view from Friday, December 4th, through January 22nd the series illustrates the changing seasons of Virginia’s landscape and human connection to the land. Wooten painted over 90 small works for the exhibition, inspired by the daily walks she and her dog took to the same spot every day for a year. For details, go online to SecondStreetGallery.org.

Piedmont Virginia Community College presents the 14th annual Let There Be Light, lighting up Charlottesville for two nights with 22 light-centered art installations and performances. This year, the exhibit will be held at multiple locations throughout Charlottesville in neighbors’ front yards and outside local businesses. For more information and exhibit locations go online to LetThereBeLightPVCC.com. The exhibit is free and open to the public, Friday and Saturday, December 4th and 5th from 6 to 9 pm. You are encouraged to please wear masks and maintain social distancing if you choose to get out of your car.

The annual Christmas parade in Stanardsville will take place this year observing a new format owing to COVID-19. The Red, White, Blue ‘n Greene County Christmas Cruise-Thru Light Display will take place on Saturday, December 12th from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Monroe Drive, passing through the school complex. Guests will drive past stationary floats, emergency vehicles, inflatables and light displays safe and warm inside their cars. One-way traffic will be observed on Monroe Drive from 5 to 7 p.m.  Anyone wishing to enter as a float or light display should e-mail to thestanardsvilleparade@gmail.com.

Do you need health insurance? Open enrollment for Affordable Care Act coverage starts November 1st and runs through December 15th. Experienced counselors at the Legal Aid Justice Center are offering free help via phone and video. They can also help you get health insurance right now if you qualify, and they can answer your questions about the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid and more. Call the Legal Aid Justice Center at 434-220-1496 to schedule your appointment.

Many in the aging population are on a fixed income, and struggle from month to month, but there is help: help with medications, health care, income assistance, food and nutrition, housing and utilities, tax relief, veteran assistance, employment and more. The National Council on Aging has built a resource website for seniors and their families to find help, nationally and locally. Visit BenefitsCheckup.org to connect with the $20 billion in benefits that go unclaimed each year.

This holiday season, if you or a loved one is battling prostate cancer, call ZERO360, a free patient support hotline, to receive immediate financial support and resources. For more information, visit zerocancer.org/zero360 or call toll-free 1-844-244-1309 to get started.

If it's time for you to think of replacing your old car, please consider donating it to benefit WTJU  ... and you could get a tax break.  It's easy. Just call 844-WTJU-CAR. Or go to wtju dot car easy dot org. That’s wtju dot car easy dot org. Thanks! 

Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank has seen a twenty- four percent increase in individuals coming to their doors. That means about 24,000 more individuals need help getting groceries each month. The Blue Ridge network of partner pantries continues to adapt and serve neighbors in need. As low temperatures increase, so, too, does the need for groceries. Will you continue to stand with the Food bank so that hunger won’t stand a chance? To learn more, support the food bank’s work, or to find food, please visit brafb.org.

Here's a novel way you can serenade someone who's important to you with a live music perfrmance by musicians from University Records. University Records at the University of Virginia is an organization that provides recording, performance, and music networking opportunities for UVA students. During this time of social distancing, they want to bolster and support the UVA community with Musical Care Packages. To arrange a live performance, you go to MusicCarePackage.com and order either a live performance on UVA Grounds or a virtual one through the internet -- all for a nominal fee that goes to benefit University Records and the Charlottesville Emergency Relief Fund for Artists. That's MusicCarePackage.com.

The newly built St. Thomas Aquinas University Parish in Charlottesville is celebrating its brand new hybrid pipe organ by launching the Majestic Organ Series.  The series, which runs through December 17^th, features weekly Thursday afternoon concerts opened to the public.  You can also listen via livestream. The Church, which is located at 401 Alderman Road, has seating for 1,200 and Covid protocols are maintained. Registration, however, is required. If you would like more information about the organ concerts or to register, visit the Church’s website at stauva.org or call 434-293-8081.

The Rivanna Solid Waste Authority is offering free mulch to customers of the Ivy Material Utilization Center, located at 4576 Dick Woods Road. The mulch giveaway will run until Saturday, December 5th. Each customer will receive up to one ton free, with a charge for additional tons. For more information on the mulch giveaway and programs offered at the Ivy MUC, please visit rivanna.org.

Wildrock, a nonprofit nature playscape and discovery center in Crozet, is offering small group field trips, self-guided Nature Nook trail adventures, and quaranteam group reservations for the Nature Playscape. All programs complement virtual learning and help kids playfully connect with wildlife and nature. To learn more, email info@wildrock.org or visit wildrock.org.

ShenanArts in Staunton invites you and the family to share the Christmas spirit as they present a stream-staged radio play production of the Christmas tale,"Yes Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus". In this unique style of theatre, actors take on multiple roles, perform music, and make all of the sound effects themselves using their voices or objects in creative ways. Based on a true story from 1897, this touching play celebrates the magic of Christmas and believing in the unseen. Streaming the weekend of December 18th to 20th. Keep watch at shenanarts.org for show times and tickets.