Before the Works Independence Day Festival
2026-07-03 17:00 - 22:00 (America/New_York) | Liberty Lake Park, 939 Burks Hill Road, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
Enjoy a fun-filled community celebration perfect for all ages — and best of all, admission is FREE for both adults and children! The event features live music, a variety of food and dessert trucks, and a spectacular fireworks show to cap off the evening. Families can explore the completely free Kids Zone, packed with activities including a foam party, multiple bounce houses, face painting, a balloon artist, Touch–A–Truck experiences, and more. Guests are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs to relax and enjoy the festivities.

Live Music at Portside
2026-07-03 18:00 - 20:00, 2026-07-09 18:00 - 20:00, 2026-07-10 18:00 - 20:00 | Portside Grill and Bar, 3619 Airport Rd., Moneta, VA, 24121, United States
Come to Portside Grill & Bar right on Smith Mountain Lake, for great food and live music! Click here to see who is playing!

Live Music at Benjamin’s
2026-07-03 18:00 - 21:00, 2026-07-10 18:00 - 21:00 | Benjamin’s Restaurant, 14900 Forest Rd., Forest, 24551, United States
Come to Benjamins for great food and live music every Friday! Click here to see who is playing each week.

Forest Friday Cheers
2026-07-03 18:00 - 22:00, 2026-07-10 18:00 - 22:00 | Apocalypse Ale Works, 1257 Burnbridge Road, Forest, VA, 24551, United States
Come to Apocalypse Ale Works for Forest Friday Cheers!
Live music, local vendors, food, and local craft beer.
Inflatable bounce pad for the kids, and other fun activities.
Free admission. Click here to see who is playing each week!

First Fridays at Falling Creek Park
2026-07-03 18:30 - 21:00 | Falling Creek Park, 1257 County Farm Road, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
The First Fridays concert series is back at Falling Creek Park, brought to you by Bedford County Parks & Recreation.
Come to the park for live music, kids activities and a food truck every first Friday of the month, May – October.
The music starts around 6:30 p.m.
Bring a chair or blanket. You can also bring your own food.
Admission is free!
Click here to see who is playing each month.

Live Music @ Apocalypse Ale Works
2026-07-03 19:00 - 22:00, 2026-07-10 19:00 - 22:00 | Apocalypse Ale Works, 1257 Burnbridge Road, Forest, VA, 24551, United States
Come to Apocalypse Ale Works for great beer and live music. For more information and to see who is playing each week, click here. Food by Bunker 42 Bar Bites will also be available for purchase!

Bedford Farmers Market
2026-07-04 08:00 - 12:00, 2026-07-11 08:00 - 12:00 | Bedford Farmers Market, Washington and Center Streets, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
The Bedford Farmers Market will have fresh produce, vegetables, baked goods, artisan crafts and a variety of Bedford and locally grown products! Free off-street parking. The market is open Every Saturday!
Click here to see which vendors will be on site each week!

Forest Farmers Market
2026-07-04 08:00 - 12:00, 2026-07-11 08:00 - 12:00 | Forest Farmers Market, 15583 Forest Road, Forest, VA, 24523, United States
Enjoy locally grown produce, meats, honey, flowers along with breads and local artisan goodies. You can also find breakfast sandwiches and a coffee truck most weeks. The market is open the last week in April until the last week in October every Saturday behind the Forest Library.

Independence Day Celebration
2026-07-04 10:00 - 16:00 | Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, 687 Poplar Forest Dr., Forest, VA, 24551, United States
Thomas Jefferson held July 4th as “the only birthday I ever commemorate…” Bring your family and friends out to Poplar Forest, his Bedford County retreat, to celebrate the 249th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in historic style. Enjoy colonial-style entertainment, demonstrations by colonial artisans and craftspeople, archaeological displays, old-fashioned children’s activities, a reading of the Declaration of Independence at 1:30 p.m. and more!
Tickets are $15/person ages 16+, under 16 are free. House Tours available for a reduced rate of $10 ages 18+, $7/ages 6-17, and free under 6. House Tour tickets are available day-of only on a first come, first served basis.
Click here for tickets.

Live Music at Harvest Moon
2026-07-04 13:00 - 17:00, 2026-07-05 13:00 - 17:00, 2026-07-11 13:00 - 17:00, 2026-07-12 13:00 - 17:00 | Harvest Moon Marketplace, 14917 Moneta Rd, Moneta, VA, 24121, United States
Come see live music at Harvest Moon Marketplace! Click here to see who is playing this weekend!

Enjoy beer, wine, meads, ciders, and non-alcoholic drinks, along with delicious food and great shopping at the Marketplace. Free admission and free music!

Live Music @ Beacon Seafood Pub
2026-07-05 14:00 - 16:00, 2026-07-12 14:00 - 16:00 | Beacon Seafood Pub at The Virginia Dare Marina, 3619 Airport Rd., Moneta, VA, 24121, United States
Come to Beacon Seafood Pub located at the Virginia Dare Marina at Smith Mountain Lake, and enjoy great food, drinks and live music! Click here to see who is playing each week!

The Life and Art of Charles M. Schulz Exhibition
2026-07-08 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-09 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-10 13:00 - 18:00, 2026-07-11 11:00 - 15:00 | Bower Center for the Arts, 309 North Bridge Street, Bedford, VA, United States
Legendary cartoonist Charles M. Schulz’s legacy is one of cultural influence through his beloved Peanuts comic strip and of humble service in World War II. His wartime experience left a lasting impression on him, so much so that he became the Capital Campaign Chair of the National D-Day Memorial Foundation from 1998 until his passing in 2000.
The National D-Day Memorial is proud to bring The Life and Art of Charles M. Schulz to the Bower Center for the Arts in Bedford, Virginia. The traveling exhibition, curated by the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa, California, U.S.A., explores Schulz’s personal history and his role as the sole inspiration and artistic talent behind the most successful comic strip in history.
Gallery admission is free.

Music Bingo
2026-07-09 19:00 - 21:00 | Apocalypse Ale Works, 1257 Burnbridge Road, Forest, VA, 24551, United States
This is where the fun of bingo meets the excitement of your favorite tunes! Each round features hit songs across various genres, and you’ll mark your card to the beat. Win the coveted Music Bingo chain, gift cards, and of course, ultimate bragging rights! It’s a lively and unique way to enjoy great music, compete with friends, and score awesome prizes. Don’t miss the fun!

Wine 4-Wildlife 4-Miler
2026-07-11 10:00 - 11:30 | Fables & Feathers Winery, 2117 Bruno Dr., Goodview, VA, 24095
Join Fables & Feathers Winery for the third event in the RunAbout Roanoke Race Series 2026: the Wine 4 Wildlife 4-Miler benefitting Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center! This event overlaps the winery’s annual Christmas in July event so wear your festive gear for $20 in store credit!
New to the race circuit, event overall male and female winners will be crowned based on their predicted finish time. It is completely optional to compete in the prediction run challenge; however challenge participants will be required to leave all technology with race personnel at the start line! Good luck meeting your target time if you stop at the 21+ on-course “hydration station” sampling house wines perhaps delaying you in the most delicious way.
All participants who register by June 1 are guaranteed an event wine-stopper finisher medal as well as a voucher for a free glass of wine of their choice in the F&F tasting room. Winners of the prediction run challenge enjoy a prize package from Hoka and Fables & Feathers! So rally your gal pals or make it a day date out and enjoy the beautiful rolling hills along the vineyard for a great cause

Christmas in July
2026-07-11 11:00 - 18:00 | Fables & Feathers Winery, 2117 Bruno Dr., Goodview, VA, 24095
It’s the best way to beat the July heat- pretending it’s December!
Come out for the third annual Christmas in July!
We’re kicking it off early with a 4 miler presented by Run About Sports-Roanoke to benefit the Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center. Be sure to dress to impress (and get $20 of running store credit!) & get your tickets early, the run starts at 10:00!!
There is no entrance fee to attend the rest of the party which starts at 11:00 with shopping and food.
Santa will be on site from 1-4
Daniel & Creasy are playing music (we promise it won’t ALL be Christmas music) from 2-5
Munsey’s Smoke Shack is smoking up the best BBQ on wheels all day- or at least until they run out!
And get a jump start on your Christmas shopping! Vendors include Half Acre Farms, Fletcher Fields Ceramics, Honey Spark Permanent Jewelry, Tracy’s Fused Glass, Mary Kay, Diamond Dotz, S & L Junk 2 Treasures, Marigold Acres Crochet, Max Meadows Lavender, Mrz. Sweet Cakez & Fairy Hair Extraordinaire Jackie
Check back often for updates!
AND don’t forget, you ONLY need tickets for the RUN. If you aren’t running, save your money for the artisans (and wine!)

Peaks and Pieces Quilt Guild show
2026-07-15 09:00 - 18:00 | Bedford Public Library, 305 North Bridge Street, Bedford, VA, 24523, United States
This free event showcases Peaks and Pieces Quilt Guild members’ quilts with entries from modern art pieces to wearable quilts to large bed quilts. Winners in each category, as well as Best in Show, are decided by Viewer’s Choice. The show is open during usual library hours, MWF 9-6, TTh 9-8, and Saturday 10-6.
