Good morning, Cookeville.

It's Halloween week, and my kid's costume is still listed as "in progress." I've learned not to ask follow-up questions. At least the weather's cooperating, with sunny, dry afternoons all the way to Friday.

In today's Cookeville Scoop:

Let's get into it.

Bands of America Middle Tennessee Regional - Tennessee Tech hosts 38 top high school marching bands at Tucker Stadium (1105 N Peachtree Ave) this weekend. It's the first major non-football event in the renovated stadium, and about 6,000 people are expected. Friday's prelims run 7 to 9:15 PM (gates open at 6:30). Adult prelim tickets are $30 plus fees online ($37 at the gate), and kids 10 and under get in free but still need a ticket. It's cashless with a clear bag policy. Get tickets.

The Blackout Bash - Leslie Town Centre's Estes Williams Room (1 W First St) turns into a blacklight costume party Friday from 8 PM to midnight. Expect a live DJ, a free photo booth, finger foods, a hosted bar, and a $500 prize for best costume (UV gear encouraged, but any costume can win). It's 21+, and tickets are advance only: $28 early bird, $35 general, $45 VIP. Tickets here.

Poppy & Pearl Ribbon Cutting - Owner Emily Bochette has moved her beauty studio into the former Borden Jewelry building at 136 E Broad St, and the Chamber cuts the ribbon Thursday at 4 PM. Stop by to see the new downtown space and meet the team behind the blowouts, makeup, spray tans, nails, brows, and lashes. Event details.

Cosgrove Family Eye Care Ribbon Cutting - Dr. Pamela Cosgrove brings more than 33 years of experience to her first private practice, located inside Sam's Club (1177 Sams St). The ribbon cutting is Wednesday at 3 PM. She offers routine eye exams, contact lens fittings, and medical evaluations for dry eye, glaucoma, cataracts, and diabetes-related concerns. Come say hello. Event details.

Logan's Roadhouse is Wednesday's stop for Child Advocacy Awareness Week. When you eat at 1395 Interstate Dr, part of the day's sales go to the Upper Cumberland Child Advocacy Center and the Family Resource Center of Putnam County. Grab a steak and a basket of rolls, and you're helping local kids too. Event listing.

Father Tom's Pub went full Halloween this week. The Rocky Horror Poutine Show piles thick-cut potatoes with garlic-breaded cheese curds, then smothers it all in house-made curry gravy and fresh cilantro. For dinner, there's the Voodoo Fredo, cook Queon's creation: linguini tossed with shredded chicken and bacon in a creamy roasted garlic and cheese sauce, with a mysterious spice blend and green onions. The new fall cocktail menu is out too. Find them at 32 N Cedar Ave. See the specials.

First Watch has a date. The breakfast-and-brunch spot opens Monday, Nov. 9, at 1115 Interstate Dr (the old IHOP), serving daily from 7 AM to 2:30 PM. Opening week brings a free pot of Project Sunrise Coffee, and the first 100 guests on opening day get a free tumbler. Details from UCBJ.

Every year on the last Friday of October, downtown Cookeville smells like a New Orleans kitchen for two hours. This Friday, it gets to do that for the 30th time.

Upper Cumberland Habitat for Humanity's Cooking on the Square fills the streets around the Putnam County Courthouse on Friday, October 30, from 11 AM to 1 PM. It's an all-you-can-eat Cajun lunch, with vendor teams serving things like gumbo, jambalaya, beignets, and crawfish étouffée. You walk the square with your bowl, try a little of everything, and go back for seconds of whatever won you over (I always end up in a long debate with myself about the gumbo).

For year 30, Habitat says it's going bigger. The layout is expanding, there will be more vendors, and a Mardi Gras-themed parade is part of the celebration. There's also a 30th Anniversary commemorative mug and a community-designed T-shirt.

The best part is where the money goes. Every ticket helps build an affordable home for a local family, one that family gets to buy. As of Tuesday, the campaign had raised more than $139,000 toward its $200,000 goal. That's a lot of houses built one bowl at a time!

Here's the practical stuff. Advance general admission is $30 online, and you'll pick up your bowl the day of the event. Those online tickets are going fast (about 200 of 900 were left Tuesday afternoon). Golden Ticket and general admission tickets are also sold at in-person locations, but those spots don't carry the T-shirts or anniversary mugs. Last year, the streets around the square closed from 6 AM to 2 PM, so plan to park a few blocks out and walk in hungry.

Bring a coworker, take a long lunch, and eat for a good cause.

Get tickets

Cookeville doesn't have a data center, but some have asked about building one. Next month, the Planning Commission will consider rules that would allow data centers only in the Heavy Manufacturing District, and only by special exception from the Board of Zoning Appeals. Each proposal would be judged on power and water demand, cooling, generators, noise, and whether city infrastructure can keep up. Community Development Director Jon Ward says no plans have been submitted.

Looks like the city wants to process this one carefully.

Herald-Citizen report

Wednesday
Early Voting – Vote early for Nov 3 at 705 County Services Dr (photo ID required)… 8 AM to 5 PM
Drums Alive! – Drumstick-and-stability-ball fitness with the Baxter Senior Center at the Baxter library… 10 to 11 AM
Blood Donation at the YMCA – Give blood at 235 Raider Dr, and every donor gets a T-shirt… 10 AM to noon
Rosenwald Schools Exhibit – Free exhibit at the Cookeville History Museum, Wednesday through Friday… 10 AM to 4 PM
Child Advocacy Week at Logan's Roadhouse – Part of your bill helps local kids, 1395 Interstate Dr… from 11 AM
Job Fair – Meet local employers at the Cookeville library, no registration needed… 11 AM to 1 PM
Cosgrove Family Eye Care Ribbon Cutting – Welcome a new optometry practice inside Sam's Club… 3 PM
Scrapbooking Club – Bring your photos, and the Monterey branch brings the supplies… 3:30 to 4:30 PM
Board Game Club – 100+ games for ages 13 and up at the Cookeville library… 3:30 to 7:30 PM
A Bloody Good Discussion: Carrie – Dr. Brian Williams and Tech's English Club talk the Stephen King classic and the new miniseries at Plenty (free, RSVP)… 6 to 7:30 PM
Tracks & Racks – Karaoke and a pool tournament under one roof at Roasted (21+)… 7 to 10 PM
Octubafest – Tech's Tuba Ensemble plays its fall recital in Derryberry Hall… 7:30 PM

Thursday
Early Voting, Last Day – Final chance to vote early, with extended hours at 705 County Services Dr… 8 AM to 7 PM
Storytime in Algood – Fall and Halloween stories for ages 0 to 4… 9 to 10 AM
Moving for Better Balance – Free balance classes for seniors at Cane Creek Rec Center… 9 AM (beginner) and 10:30 AM (intermediate)
Halloween Storytime in Monterey – Spooky stories, then decorate your own trick-or-treat bag… 10:30 to 11:30 AM
Halloween Hollow Blood Oath – Give blood at DelMonaco Winery in Baxter and get a free Halloween Hollow ticket (sponsor code HHHBLOODOATH)… starts at 11 AM
Movie Discount Days at Roasted – Free horror double feature, Nosferatu and Night of the Living Dead (21+)… around 4 PM
Poppy & Pearl Ribbon Cutting – Celebrate the beauty studio's new home at 136 E Broad St… 4 PM
Rachel Meginnes Gallery Talk – An artist talk and reception on the last day of her fibers exhibition at Tech's Joan Derryberry Art Gallery… 4:30 PM
Dungeons & Dragons – Beginners welcome at the Cookeville library… 5 to 7:45 PM
Pumpkin Carving Night at 37 Cedar – Your ticket covers a pumpkin, a carving kit, and a sandwich… 6 PM
Open Mic Night – Local talent takes the mic at Red Silo Brewing… 6 to 9 PM
Revolver Halloween Bash – Costume contest with cash prizes, drink specials, and free beer at 565 S Jefferson Ave… 7 PM
Dabgo Music Bingo – Free music bingo on your phone at Roasted (21+)… 7 to 9 PM

Friday
Trick-or-Treating at the Library – Candy at the circulation desks in Cookeville and Monterey, extra if you're in costume… all day
Read, Play, Grow – Stories and play for ages birth to 3 at the Cookeville library… 10 to 11 AM
Chair Yoga – Gentle chair yoga in Algood at 10 AM and Baxter (ages 50+) at 11 AM
Train Tales – Preschool train storytime at the Depot Museum… 10:30 AM
Cooking on the Square – The 30th annual all-you-can-eat Cajun lunch benefiting Habitat for Humanity ($30 advance)… 11 AM to 1 PM
Friday Matinees – Obsession at noon, then Backrooms at 2 at the Cookeville library (both rated R, under 18 with a parent)
ThunderHawk Canine Halloween Party – Dog costumes, a glow walk, and games at Cane Creek Park… 5 PM
First Responders Trunk or Treat – Candy and emergency vehicles at the Cane Creek Sportsplex lot, 2200 W Jackson St… 5 to 7:30 PM
Sparta Trunk or Treat – Costume contest, bounce houses, and a petting zoo at 117 E Bockman Way in Sparta… 5:30 PM
Tech Volleyball vs. ETSU – The Golden Eagles host East Tennessee State… 6 PM
Mountain Mayhem – Haunted hayride, trail, and corn maze in Brotherton, now in its final weekend… 6 to 11 PM
Bands of America Prelims – Nine bands take the field Friday night at Tucker Stadium… 7 to 9:15 PM
Halloween Hollow – Four haunts in Silver Point, open its last three nights ($30)… Friday night
The Blackout Bash – Blacklight costume party at Leslie Town Centre (21+, advance tickets only)… 8 PM to midnight
CJ Walton Halloween Comedy Show – Stand-up at Roasted ($5 presale until noon Friday, $10 at the door, 21+)… 8 to 10 PM

Looking ahead
Spooky Season Celebration – Silent disco, crafts, and games at the Cookeville Depot Museum… Saturday, 2 PM
Cookeville Treat Trail – Free trick-or-treating at Dogwood Park for kids 12 and under (line up by 5:30)… Saturday, 4 to 6 PM

The First Responders Trunk or Treat returns for its third year Friday from 5 to 7:30 PM in the Cane Creek Sportsplex parking lot (2200 W Jackson St). The Tennessee Highway Patrol hosts, and other local agencies join in. Kids can collect candy, look over the vehicles, and ask all the questions they want. Trooper Haley Uzelac says the goal is to show kids "there's more to us than just seeing us in an emergency."

ThunderHawk Canine and Inspired Paws throw their annual Halloween party for dogs and their people Friday at 5 PM at Cane Creek Park (201 C C Camp Rd). There's an outdoor costume contest, a glow walk, and dog-friendly games. If your pup's costume got rave reviews last week, here's its second chance at glory.

Trick-or-treating at the library is on all day Friday. Stop by the circulation desks at the Cookeville or Monterey library for candy (and extra candy if you're in costume). Anyone in costume at the Cookeville library can also enter the 2nd Annual Costume Contest. With your OK, staff will post your photo on the library's Facebook page, and the most likes wins a trophy and a 3D-printed ghost.

Wednesday
Derryberry Hall, Tennessee Tech – Tech Tuba Ensemble's Octubafest, 7:30 PM (raising money for the Sarah Cannon Fund). Link

Thursday
Red Silo Brewing – Open Mic Night, 6 PM. Link

Meet LYNEY, a neutered male Labrador Retriever and English Foxhound mix at the Cookeville / Putnam County Animal Shelter. When the shelter shared his story last month, he was 2 years and 8 months old and weighed 59 pounds. He came in after his family lost their home and couldn't keep him. He's been waiting since Aug. 18. His notes say he's good with dogs, cats, and kids, loves a game of fetch, and also loves to snuggle up close to his people.

Adoption for dogs 5 months and older is $170 (cash or check) and includes neuter, vaccinations, a microchip, and heartworm testing. The shelter at 2650 Gainesboro Grade is closed Wednesdays for now, so visit Thursday from 12 to 6 or Friday from 12 to 5. Call (931) 526-3647 to set up an appointment.

LYNEY on Petfinder

Wednesday 75 / 44 | 2% rain
Thursday 77 / 44 | 6% rain
Friday 80 / 54 | 5% rain

Share this Scoop with the friend who never misses gumbo day on the square.
Have an event or tip for next time? Reply to this email. We read every note.

Browse the local directory at local.cookevillescoop.com · Submit an event at local.cookevillescoop.com/submit

Thanks for reading, and for being a town that turns lunch into houses and candy into a community night out. Rain moves in late Saturday, so trick-or-treat early and stay cozy. Happy Halloween! 🧡

-- Travis

Resources