PARIS – The Paris Memorial Day Parade steps off at 10 a.m. Monday, May 31, in front of the Oxford County Courthouse on Western Avenue. All active-duty service personnel, veterans, civic organizations and youth groups are invited to march and should assemble between 9:30 and 9:45.

The parade is scheduled to swing across the railroad tracks and proceed north on Main Street, halting at the entrance to Riverside Cemetery where a ceremony will be held.

At the conclusion, the parade will reform and march back to the American Legion Hall on Church Street. Should the parade be canceled due to bad weather, the service will take place at the Legion Hall. The annual memorial church service will be at 10 a.m. Sunday, May 30, at the First Congregational Church. Foster-Carroll members are to meet at the church at 9:30.

Norway parade

NORWAY – The Norway Memorial Day parade will start at 8:30 a.m; participants will assemble at 8:15 in Advertiser Square.

A brief stop is planned at Witheral Park for a wreath-laying at the Civil War Memorial. The parade will continue down Main Street to Veterans Memorial Park, where memorial services will be concluded.

The mounted marshal of the parade is Harley Stevens. Robert Stevens is the featured speaker. Ceremonies will be moved inside the Legion Home in case of inclement weather.

Summer dances

WATERFORD – The Waterford World’s Fair Association will begin the annual summer season of dances from 8 p.m. to midnight Saturday, May 29, at the fairgrounds in North Waterford.

Dances will be held every Saturday through Sept. 25. No one under age 21 will be admitted. IDs will be checked. Admission is $8 per person. Live bands will provide music. A different band will play each week. Refreshments will be on sale.

Annual breakfast

STONEHAM – The Stoneham Rescue annual Memorial Day breakfast will be held from 7 to 10 a.m. Sunday, May 30, on Butter Hills Road. The menu will offer plain and blueberry pancakes, french toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and beverages.

Cost is $5 per person, $2.50 for children 12 and under.

Run for Lilacs

PARIS – A Run for the Lilacs will be held to benefit the McLaughlin Foundation at 8 a.m., Monday, May 31, at the Foundation, 97 Main St. Several nurseries have donated more than 60 good sized lilacs. The race route will follow quiet neighborhood roads and will start and finish at the garden.

The route includes up and down hill stretches, rest, water stations, and the scent of lilacs. Registration forms are available at the foundation or by visiting www.mclaughlingarden.org.

Entry fees are $10 for adults, $5 for kids under 12. The first 200 pre-registrants will receive a lilac T-shirt. Lilac prizes will be awarded to the first three runners in each age group, male and female, and to the first three walkers in each age group.

There will also be awards for the oldest and youngest entrants, best single, double and triple lilac costumes, and best canine costume. All dogs must be on a leash, well mannered and cleaned-up after. Random prizes may be awarded that day at the discretion of the race director.

Race participants are encouraged to stay for the South Paris Memorial Day parade at 10 a.m. and to hear Dan Lakeman read the annual favorite “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloomed,” at 11 a.m. in the garden.

Road race

NORWAY – The Norway Paris Kiwanis Club will sponsor the Club’s 25th annual Woody Allen Road Race. Norway Savings Bank continues to support and host the event in memory of Woody Allen, a long-time Kiwanis member, friend and civic leader in the Oxford Hills. Proceed benefit The Woody Allen Memorial Scholarship Fund.

The family event is for all ages and will be held at 9 a.m. Sunday, June 6, at the main office of Norway Savings Bank at 261 Main St. Check-in time will be at 8 a.m. Awards will be presented to the top three finishers in each division, each race; male and female as well as overall oldest and youngest participant.

Free t-shirts will go to the first 100 registrations received by May 20, 2004. Entry fee for the one mile fun run and fitness walk is $7, $10 for the 5K road race.

Registration forms are available at the Norway, South Paris and Oxford offices of Norway Savings Bank, at the Oxford Hills Chamber of Commerce, 743-2281 or by writing to the Norway Paris Kiwanis Club, P.O. Box 174, Norway, ME 04268. For more information, call Bob Bizier at 743-9303 days or 743-6005 evenings.

Shooting competitions

BUCKFIELD – The Norway Paris Fish and Game Association will hold weekly shooting competitions Wednesday nights at its shooting range on Buckfield Road, Route 117 in South Paris. The format is trap shooting only and begins at 5 p.m. Each round cost $2.50. Proceeds benefit the Fish and Game Club. Special targets are released at random that allow a successful sharpshooter the chance to win a free round. The general public is welcome to compete for fun. For more information, call Sam Giles at 890-8325.

Art show

NORWAY – Fare Share Commons under the auspices of the Commons Arts Collective will host a show with highlights from more than 20 years of creative work by Westbrook based artist and collective member Mary Brooking. The show, “Bearings,” will open with a public reception from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday, June 4, and will run through June 26. She will host one of the ongoing series of Conversations with the Artists at 7 p.m. Sunday, June 13, at the Commons at 447 Main St.