In brief: Holiday Lights display opens Friday

MANITO – Spokane Parks and Recreation, together with the Friends of Manito will host the 2010 Holiday Lights display at Manito Park’s Gaiser Conservatory, Friday through Dec. 19. The best viewing of the display is after 4 p.m. The Conservatory is open daily, from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

The Conservatory is decorated with more than 30,000 lights, along with seasonal poinsettias, mums and other holiday floral displays.

The event is free and open to the public.

On Saturday and Sunday, the Friends of Manito will have an open house in the Manito Meeting Room, just east of the Gaiser Conservatory, from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

For more information visit www. thefriendsofmanito.org.

Get Lit! plans gift wrapping benefit

SPOKANE VALLEY/NORTHTOWN – Eastern Washington University’s Get Lit! Program will hold a holiday fundraiser, on Saturday at Barnes & Noble bookstores in the Spokane Valley and NorthTown malls, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Books purchased at the event can be gift wrapped for free at the store. A percentage of the books purchased will help support the annual literacy festival and on-going outreach education programs.

The fundraiser will also include Gene Engene, an actor from EWU’s adaptation of Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried,” who will read from the collection at 2 p.m. in the Valley and 4 p.m. at NorthTown. Also, story time for children will be presented by Page Ahead Children’s Literacy Program at 1 p.m. in both stores.

For more information about this Get Lit! fundraiser, go to http://outreach.ewu.edu/ getlit/2517.xml.