EGYPTIAN ART: The new “To Live Forever” exhibition of Egyptian art and artifacts at Joslyn Art Museum opened to the public Saturday. The exhibit features a mummy, sarcophagi, funeral objects, jewelry, and other ancient artfacts. “To Live Forever” will remain on view through June 3.
CHILDREN’S STORY TIME: Project Interfaith is taking reservations for a weekly children’s program about world religions that will run Feb. 5 through March 4. The story times for children and their families will be 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays at the Bookworm, 8702 Pacific St. Each week, a member from the local religious community will read a children’s book about a holiday, talk about some beliefs and practices and show items connected to their faith. The schedule: Buddhism, Feb. 5; Christianity, Feb. 12; Hinduism, Feb. 19; Islam, Feb. 26; and Judaism, March 4. Story times will be free and open to the public; donations will be welcome.
MEN FLIP FOR DUCHESNE: “Men for Duchesne” will be flipping pancakes during the Pancakes for Our Girls fundraiser on Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the cafeteria at Omaha Duchesne. Tickets are $5 per person or $20 for a family.
OMAHA’S IRISH HISTORY TALK: James Cavanaugh will explain the evolution of Omaha’s Irish population at the Douglas County Historical Society’s “Second Sunday Talk” at 2 p.m. Sunday. His talk will take place at the General Crook House Museum at Metropolitan Community College’s Fort Omaha campus, 30th and Fort Streets. Cavanaugh, an attorney, is a fifth-generation Nebraskan and a member of the Irish American Cultural Institute of Nebraska. He will trace both the major players of the Irish immigration and some of the lesser-known immigrant personalities.
LINCOLN HOME SHOW: More than 275 exhibitors will be at the 40th annual Nebraska Builders Home & Garden Show in Lincoln Thursday through Sunday. The show, sponsored by the Home Builders Association of Lincoln, will be at the Lancaster Event Center, 84th Street and Havelock Avenue. Hours will be 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission for adults is $6, or $5 with a nonperishable food item donation for the Lincoln Food Bank. Children 12 and younger will be admitted free.
FREE FAMILY FLICKS: Aksarben Cinema has brought back its Free Family Flicks. Families can enjoy a movie with the donation of a canned good/nonperishable item or $1 donation per person on Saturday and Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. All donations will benefit Together Inc. Doors open approximately 30 minutes in advance, and seating is offered on a first-come, first-served basis. The Free Family Flicks schedule for February: 11-12, “Spy Kids 4”; 18-19, “Mr. Popper’s Penguins”; and 25-26, “Kung Fu Panda 2.”
FREE MOVIE SERIES: See “The Unforgiven” at the Homestead National Monument of America’s Education Center on Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. It is the sixth film in the 2012 Hollywood and Homesteading Film Festival series, part of the events to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Homestead Act. This isn’t the Clint Eastwood “Unforgiven.” This is a 1960 film directed by John Huston and starring Burt Lancaster, Audrey Hepburn, Audie Murphy and Lillian Gish. Admission is free, so bring the whole family and popcorn to share.
“WITH BELLS ON”: The Omaha Percussion Ensemble will be guest artists for the Nebraska Wind Symphony’s Sunday concert at 3 p.m. at the Strauss Performing Arts Center on the University of Nebraska at Omaha campus. The concert, titled “With Bells On,” will feature 20 top eighth-grade percussionists playing “The Pink Panther.” The 80-piece community concert band also will play Percy Aldridge Grainger’s “Gumsuckers March” and Edwin Franko Goldman’s “Chimes of Liberty,” among other pieces. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for senior citizens and students.
GROUNDHOGS DAY: What was Punxsutawney Phil doing before he came out to look at his shadow? Kids can find out at the Hitchcock Nature Center’s KinderNature program, Great Groundhogs. The nature center, in Honey Creek, Iowa, will host a series of Sunday afternoon programs starting this weekend. The first session, 1:30 p.m. Sunday, will focus on how groundhogs spend their winter months, what they eat and how they prepare for hibernation. The program will include outdoor time if weather permits. The KinderNature programs include hands-on activities and they are designed for children ages 3 to 5 years old accompanied by an adult. Sessions are one hour and cost $4 per child. Future dates and topics are: March 11, opossum; April 15, eggs; and May 20, bees.
The nature center is located at 27792 Ski Hill Loop in Honey Creek. For more information, call 712-328-5830.
CELEBRATE HONEST ABE: President Abraham Lincoln will be honored at a free family celebration at Lincoln Southwest High School, 7001 S. 14th St. in Lincoln, on Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Lincoln folk musician Chris Sayre will open the celebration. The Smith Family Band will play and Pam Smith will lead the crowd in traditional dances. Lance Mack of Marion, Iowa, will portray President Lincoln throughout the celebration but there will also be a Lincoln impersonators contest at 2 p.m. (Contestants may register at the information desk when they arrive.) Contest winners will be announced at 3 p.m. and the crowd will sing Happy Birthday to President Lincoln. Exhibitors at the celebration will include the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War and Homestead National Monument. Free refreshments, including birthday cake, will be served. A children’s area will have toys, games and crafts.
SOUL FOOD DINNER: Mount Calvary Community Church, 5112 Ames Ave., will host a soul food dinner on Sunday from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The cost will be $8 for adults and $5 for children age 12 and younger.
SOULFUL HEALING: Workshops on tai chi, yoga, acupressure and many other health topics will be part of the Soulful Healing program on Sunday from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, 7020 Cass St. Registration will be from 1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., and the suggested donation will be $10 for age 12 and older. Information: 402-556-6262 and www.fumcomaha.org.
VESPER CONCERT: Lutenist Kenneth Bé will play German baroque music by Sylvius Leopold Weiss at a free concert on Sunday at 3 p.m. The concert is part of the Vesper Concert series at Presbyterian Church of the Cross, 1517 S. 114th St., and supported by the Nebraska Arts Council and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment. Information: www.vesperconcerts.org and 402-333-7466.
SOUP DINNER FUNDRAISER: Emmaus Lutheran Church in Kennard, Neb., will host its annual soup dinner fundraiser on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Kennard Auditorium. Chicken noodle soup and chili will be available, plus a bake sale. Information: 402-427-7127.
JUGGLING ENTERTAINMENT: International juggling champion Mark Nizer, one of the world’s foremost practitioners of this form of entertainment, will take over the stage at the Orpheum Theater on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. “Expect the Impossible” with Mark Nizer’s 3D Live Show is part of Omaha Performing Arts’ 2011-2012 Family Series. Nizer will awe his audience with show-stopping tricks and technology. He launches everything from spinning laser beams to a burning propane tank into the air. Tickets for “Expect the Impossible” start at $19 and can be purchased at the Ticket Omaha office in the Holland Performing Arts Center, 13th and Douglas streets; online at TicketOmaha.com; or by calling 402-345-0606.
ONGOING EVENTS:
CHILDREN’S BOOK ILLUSTRATIONS ON DISPLAY: “Bravo!” featuring works by Chris Raschka is now on display in the Mind’s Eye gallery at the Joslyn Art Museum. Raschka has illustrated more than 50 children’s books, including “The Hello, Goodbye Window,” which won a Caldecott Medal. He will be teaching a number of workshops at the museum in February, including a talk for educators on Feb. 23, and a public appearance on Feb. 25 from 10 a.m. to noon at the museum. The free public event will include an art-making activity.
OUTDOOR SKATING: The University of Nebraska Medical Center’s public ice rink is open for its third season. The outdoor skating rink, located between 40th and 42nd Streets between Dewey Avenue and Emile Street, will be open through Feb. 29. Hours will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 8 p.m. Sundays. The rink is closed Mondays. The cost to skate is $5, which includes skate rental. Hot chocolate will be available for purchase.
ZOO’S IMAX THEATER: Take in a movie at Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo’s Lozier Imax Theater. Showing now are “Sharks 3D,” “Journey Into Amazing Caves,” and “Grand Canyon: The Hidden Secrets.” Presented by Jean-Michel Cousteau, “Sharks 3D” is a breathtaking 3D film experience that offers audiences an astonishing up-close encounter with the lions and tigers of the ocean. Come face-to-face with a multitude of shark species, including the great white, hammerhead, and whale shark. Witness them as they really are: not wicked man-eating creatures, but wild, fascinating and endangered animals that have been in existence since a million years before dinosaurs roamed the earth. “Journey Into Amazing Caves” takes a look at one of Earth’s last unexplored frontiers. For those compelled to push their limits in the world’s most hostile environments, the risk of fatal danger and the thrill of new discovery are the everyday factors that make cave exploration such an awe-inspiring experience. “Grand Canyon: The Hidden Secrets”opens with the beginning of man’s fragile kinship with the twisting 277 mile Grand Canyon in Arizona, then moves the audience through time with brief glimpses at the stone pages of human history. Movie admission is $5 per person. You need not pay zoo admission fees if you only want to attend a movie. Go directly to the theater or to the guest services office at 3701 S. 10th St. to gain admission. Information and show times: www.omahazoo.com and 733-8400.
TRAVEL BACK IN TIME: “Travel Back in Time,” a new exhibit at Homestead National Monument, gets you close to the buggies, carts and wagons that moved generations of homesteaders across the prairie. Horse-drawn vehicles were a common means of transportation in cities and rural areas until early in the 20th century. The vehicles will be in the monument’s education center through March, 2012. Homestead National Monument, 8523 W. State Highway 4 in Beatrice, is a unit of the National Park Service. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free and the buggy exhibit is also free. Information: 402-223-3514 or www.nps.gov/home.
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