Salem

The 17th Annual Salem Children’s Charity Annual Holiday Fundraiser and Christmas Party at Victoria Station will be held on December 14th. This years event features a Silent Auction, Live Auction and Raffles with fabulous items to bid on including sports collectibles and celebrity collectables. All proceeds go directly to meeting the basic and often emergency needs of Salem’s school children. For more information or to donate gift certificates, new items, gifts or services to the auctions and raffles, please contact Patty Levasseur at 978.836.1146 or Witchcraft Heights Principal, Mark Higgins, at 978.740.1270. To make an online donation or to learn more about Salem Children’s Charity, please visit www.salemchildrenscharity.org.

What happens to nighttime when the Night Eater isn't hungry? Find out when we read Ana Juan's whimsical tale The Night Eater (Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator Award) . Then sponge paint your own moonlit scene.

• For children ages 3 to 6 with accompanying adult
• Reservations by November 19

This event was highly recommended by a friend.  After reading about it, we're definitely going because it sounded like so much fun, and appealed to us as a great way to enjoy this holiday tradition.  Join Scrooge on the Salem Trolley as you ride through Salem in this rolling production performed by the Griffen Theater in Salem.

Haunted Happenings is buzzing with excitement in Salem this year and the weather is perfect today to attend the Pumpkin Festival on Salem Common. Enjoy a display of pumpkins decorated by area school children and see if your little ones can find their way through a hay bale maze that's just their size! Sure to be a great adventure for the kids.

The Carnival on Derby Street in Salem and it's another good reason to get your family to Salem before the end of the month. Fiesta Shows Carnival moved from Topsfield Fair into a vacant lot on Derby Street in Salem, across the street from the Pirate Museum.

Take a spin on the rides and test your skill with the games.

This years Haunted Happenings in Salem is a nicely family-focused set of events. Among the special events for children are the annual Children's Day, set for Saturday, Oct. 16, which will include a costume parade, children's music and storytelling; and the Children's Costume Party and Parade, sponsored by the Phoenix School, on Sunday, Oct. 17, at Salem Common.

Here is a list of happening this weekend in Salem for families:

Part of the Studio Saturdays Program. Decorate a pot and plant a Camellia sinensis seed to grow your very own tea. Then take an activity sheet to the Fish, Silk, Tea, Bamboo exhibition and further explore natural motifs in Asian art.

Suitable for all ages!

Before the live music and horror movie at 8 pm, make illusion art, create spooky sounds and visit Eye Spy, Playing with Perception in the interactive Art & Nature Center from 6:30 to 8 pm.

• Suitable for Adults and children ages 9 and up
• Refreshments available for purchase at the Atrium Café.

Activities include:

• Drop-in art activity
• Workshop
• Film and Live Music

Ticket Reservations Recommended by October 20- see website.

Delicious design, edible harmonies, traditional recipes and more await you during our weekend festival. Marvel at chocolate architecture created by local chef and Food Network star Jorg Amsler, experience the story of Hansel and Gretel as performed by Tanglewood Marionettes, try your hand at our food art drop-in activities or take a walk to discover wild edible plants with botanist Russ Cohen.

Celebrate art inspired by food!

Delicious design, edible harmonies, traditional recipes and more await you during our weekend festival. Marvel at chocolate architecture created by local chef and Food Network star Jorg Amsler, experience the story of Hansel and Gretel as performed by Tanglewood Marionettes, try your hand at our food art drop-in activities or take a walk to discover wild edible plants with botanist Russ Cohen.