Hugh Torance House & Store, on Gilead Road, is one of the county’s few surviving 18th century buildings.

The Hugh Torance House & Store on Gilead Road in Huntersville, one of Mecklenburg County’s few surviving 18th century structures, will have an open house this Sunday, April 14, from 3 to 5pm. Visitors will have a chance to tour the building, which is North Carolina’s oldest standing store.

Organizers say new period furniture pieces have been added to the house’s collection. Sunday’s open house will include refreshments and is free, though donations are welcome. The house is at 8231 Gilead Road, two miles west of I-77 Exit 23. Read the full story

Oxford University scholar Nigel Biggars lectures Monday and Tuesday at Davidson on Christian ethics.

A busy week lies ahead in the Lake Norman area with films, public meetings and fundraisers, including Free Cone Day Tuesday at Ben & Jerry’s scoop shops. Davidson Community Players’ Connie Co. youth theater opens its production of “Treasure Island” and there’s plenty of live music at area venues. The April Is for Arts Festival in Davidson kicks off with a Downtown Davidson gallery crawl Friday night. Meanwhile, the sports schedule includes games for the Hough High girls soccer team and Davidson College teams, as well as the home opener for the Kannapolis Intimidators minor league baseball team, who face the Hickory Crawdads Thursday. Saturday is chock full of community festivals, including the Lake Norman YMCA’s Family Fun Day, Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore Community Fest, the Davidson Lands Conservancy’s Paddlefest on Lake Davidson, and the Pawz Too Run 5K on the Davidson Village Green. Read on for the details.

Our Town Cinemas has “The Croods,” “Olympus Has Fallen,” “GI Joe: Retaliation,” and “The Host.” See the showtimes at right on this page. Read the full story

Kevin Goodwin, a Charlotte area singer/songwriter, performs at Bella Love’s Open Mic Night at Kadi Fit. Local artist Justin Christenberry is working in the background. (Andrew Wilkins/DavidsonNews.net)

By ANDREW WILKINS
DavidsonNews.net

CORNELIUS – Twice a month, the Lake Norman area arts community packs in to local fitness studio Kadi Fit in downtown Cornelius for Bella Love Inc.’s open mic night.

Local performers are in abundance, like this week’s opening act, Carter Jones. Jones, a musician with a soulful voice that belies her age – 12 – took the stage for the first time Thursday night. Read the full story

Huntersville Parks & Recreation Department is offering a variety of camps this summer, from sports including basketball and volleyball to field trips and other recreation programs. Information and registration is now available at Huntersville.org

Davidson Parks & Rec has a summer camps guide out now. Click to see it on the department website.

Davidson Parks & Recreation has opened registration for 2013 summer camps for children and teens. The department offers a combination of sports, games, and enrichment activities for all ages, in a nurturing and safe environment. Each camp promotes friendship, teamwork, and exploration, from Spybotics or Legos to an All-Sports Camp or American Girl Doll camp. Read the full story

Click to read more about Cornelius PARC summer camps.

Cornelius Parks, Arts, Recreation and Culture (PARC) will host its annual Summer Camp Crawl on Saturday, April 13, from 9 am to noon, at the Cornelius Arts Center, 19725 Oak St., behind the police station in the Oak St. Mill.

The event is a chance to meet summer camp teachers, sign up for camps and learn more about summer programs for students ages 4-18. Read the full story