Block party: There may not have been a homecoming parade this year for Potomac Falls High School, but there was no shortage of fun at the PFHS campus on Friday, Oct. 5. The school’s Homecoming Block Party, designed as a parade alternative, offered a showcase for a wide range of creative teen pursuits, as well as fun for participants of all ages. The Ultimate Frisbee Club was on hand with demonstrations and feats of Frisbee-skimming skill. The PFHS dance team showed off some of their latest routines. A “human splatter painting” session offered a chance to participate in the creation of an art masterpiece—and the opportunity to win a finished splatter painting. The younger set—and some of the high school-aged students—enjoyed gleeful romping in a moon bounce set up at the front of the school. The Latin Club brought the past to life with an ongoing Twister game, played at times with club members in dressed in togas and helmets. Famous Dave’s food truck was on hand with barbecue that helped raise funds for school programs. All in all, the event proved to be a great kick-off to the PFHS Homecoming, and one of the community’s key fall events. The Panthers clearly found an enterprising way to rise above the obstacles that halted their 2012 parade.

History fundraiser: The StageCoach Theatre Company presents a dinner theater fundraiser for the Black History Committee of the Thomas Balch Library on Saturday, Oct. 13, at the Cascades Senior Center. The evening includes a presentation of “Murder in the News,” an original murder mystery written by Sterling resident Terry Smith, and a barbecue menu catered by Famous Dave’s. The cast includes Lisa Alford and Herbert Duvall, of Sterling; Gary Baker, of Ashburn; Jennifer Bonetti and Bob Rosenberg, of Leesburg; and Peter Markey and Jerri Wiseman, of Herndon. The cost is $48; advance reservations are required. For information, call 571-477-9444.

Healing quilts: The CountrySide Quilters group presents “Healing Quilts,” a presentation by quilt artist Lisa Ellis, on Tuesday, Oct. 16 at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Lutheran Church in Cascades. The evening includes a look at quilting as a power to make the world a better place, and includes a slide show presentation of projects such as “Alzheimer’s: Forgetting Piece by Piece” and “Sacred Threads and Beyond the Barrier” (quilts made by inmates of the Ohio Reformatory for Women). Ellis also will present a trunk show of quilted pieces purchased at auctions designed to raise funds and awareness for important causes.