1. Honor bound
The North County Honor Band consists of middle school and high school students from Hockinson, Brush Prairie, Battle Ground, Ridgefield, La Center, Woodland, Camas and Washougal. As members of the honor band, students are challenged as musicians, performing with talented peers and esteemed guest conductors. The public is invited to hear these top instrumentalists at the free North County Honor Band Concert, 6 p.m. Feb. 1 at Hockinson High School, 16819 N.E. 159th St., Brush Prairie. Two of the honor band’s students have been selected for the Washington All-State Band and will perform at the 2020 Washington Music Educators Association Honor Groups Concerts in Yakima in February. www.hockinsonmusic.com/2019/10/02/578/
2. A soldier’s story
Clark County Historical Museum, 1511 Main St., Vancouver, begins its 2020 Speaker Series at 7 p.m. Feb. 6 with Frazier Raymond’s presentation, “Buffalo Soldiers in Clark County.” Raymond is president of the Buffalo Soldiers — Moses Williams Pacific Northwest Chapter, 9th and 10th U.S. Cavalry Association. Raymond will discuss his military service from 1968 to 1990 and his subsequent involvement with the Buffalo Soldiers, reflecting on his personal connections to the Buffalo Soldiers in the Pacific Northwest and how those experiences shaped his perspective. Admission is $5, seniors and students are $4, kids under 18 are $3, and the evening is free for CCHM members, veterans and active-duty military personnel. 360-993-5679 or outreach@cchmuseum.org
3. Bring home the bacon
Ridgefield is hosting its first bacon-themed First Saturday, Bacon, Baseball and Bingo, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Feb. 1 at the Ridgefield Administrative and Civic Center, 510 Pioneer St. Wear your favorite baseball jersey or bacon T-shirt and start things off with the Bacon Breakfast Bar from 9 to 11 a.m., then hang with Rally the Raptor and the Spudders baseball team for baseball-inspired indoor and outdoor games. Keep it sizzlin’ with a “bacon walk” and end the day with bingo from 1 to 2 p.m. Throughout the day, there will be bacon and baseball board games, raffle drawings and photo ops with Rally. If you get tired of bacon (is that even possible?), browse for art at a pop-up gallery, shop the farmers market and artisan vendors and enjoy kids’ crafts. ridgefieldwa.us
4. The spice of life
Spice up your Saturdays with the Vancouver Variety Market, an indoor marketplace held twice a month on the first and third Saturday of each month at Minnehaha Grange, 4905 N.E. St. Johns Rd., Vancouver. The market, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., features a wide variety of vendors offering new and used merchandise, household goods, pop culture collectibles, vintage pieces and antiques, plus handcrafted works of art. You can come to browse or you can join the sellers; 8-by-6-foot vending spaces rent for $35 (table sand electrical hook-ups not included). For more information, call 360-859-6044, email vancouvervarietymarket@gmail.com or visit www.vancouvervarietymarket.com for complete vendor guidelines.
