Cultural Activities

Sanford boasts an active arts scene, and residents of Carolina Trace enjoy and participate in a wide variety of activities.  

The annual Sanford Pottery Festival is North Carolina's premier venue for the works of North Carolina potters. On the first weekend in May, almost 300 potters arrive in town, and the high quality of their work and the North Carolina pottery tradition bring visitors from an ever-widening geographical area. Fine arts are represented by a number of small galleries in downtown Sanford, and the local Brush and Palette Club show in October displays the diverse and outstanding work of many local artists with prizes awarded by visiting professional artists. 

The Temple Theatre, a professional, award-winning regional theater  presents a schedule of eight productions each year, including musicals, comedies and dramas. This wonderful performance center is designated as a National Historic Site. Carolina Trace's commitment to and support of the Temple Theatre is acknowledged on a local billboard -  "The Temple would disappear without a Trace"! 

The Lee County Arts Council sponsors many cultural events, including performances of the Lee County Community Orchestra. The Heart of Carolina Jazz Society performs regularly, and summer concerts at the newly renovated Depot Park feature local musicians and all kinds of music - from pop to rock, folk and country. 

Sanford's Central Carolina Community College offers continuing education classes for adults in areas such as creative writing, computers, music and art, in addition to its two-year college curriculum. Tuition is free for adults over sixty-five years old.

Carolina Trace Country Club Activities 

There are many activities at CTCC offered year-round. Activities in the Lifelong Learning series focus on health and wellness include: Yoga, Beginning and Intermediate Pilates, Dance Lessons, Conversational Spanish Classes, AARP Driving Schools, Blood Drives and the Vials of Life Campaign. Our Pro Shop offers Golf Aerobics at World Gym at varied times throughout the year. The Club's Get Happy Chorus of 40+ singers presents an annual Christmas concert. The Trace Players presents an immensely popular three-night dinner musical revue each spring. You can join the Dance Club with formal dances and live music during the year, as well as the casual monthly DJ Dance Club. Additional activities include Art lessons in painting and drawing, knitting classes, murder-mystery dinners, Bingo, Karaoke night, Piano Bar, Gourmet Club, LOTS, Ladies of the (Wall) Street, regularly schedule Texas Hold'em tournaments, Ladies Who Lunch, and the Women's Club has monthly luncheons and programs with fundraiser activities to benefit both the Club and local charities.

Eleven Garden Clubs are “in bloom” at Trace, including one federated club (Lake Trace) and one for men-only (the MACHO's - " Men's Agri-Cultural Horticultural Organization). The garden club names are as colorful as the plants they so enjoy - "Late Bloomers, Petal Pushers, Potted Planters, and Trowel and Error!" The Club hosts regularly scheduled duplicate and rubber bridge groups, and there are any number of home-based bridge groups playing duplicate, Swiss Team and party bridge. Add to these groups, is the Mah Jongg Club, Chess Club, San-Lee Wood Carvers, needlework groups, rug hookers, quilters, computer enthusiasts, book clubs, and RV and travel groups.

There are many Golf and Tennis groups at all levels of play, bowling leagues, water aerobics, fishing clubs, pontoon cruising, canoeing, kayaking, and fishing keep bodies as active as minds and hands. Beyond Carolina Trace, active adults can participate in Senior Games, the Sanford Area Mountain Bike Club, and an Antique Automobile Club, to name a few.
 
Volunteering is a major part of Carolina Trace's commitment to the Sanford area Click here to view Volunteer Activities. We offer many activities for everyone interests.

Additional Cultural Attractions near Sanford

Fayetteville's cultural attractions include the Cape Fear Regional Theater, Fayetteville Museum of Art, the Cape Fear Museum, and many seasonal events sponsored by the Arts Council of Fayetteville. Another popular Fayetteville destination is the Airborne and Special Operations Museum.

The Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area is a center for professional theater and music.  The Progress Energy Center for Performing Arts in Raleigh presents Broadway shows and concerts, and is the home of the nationally acclaimed Carolina Ballet. The Meymandi Concert Hall with outstanding acoustics has a strong schedule of performances by the North Carolina Symphony, directed by Grant Llewyllen, and many concerts by internationally renowned classical artists. The Opera Company of North Carolina also adds to the mix of music styles. Pop music venues include the Alltel Pavilion, the BTI Center, and Regency Park's summer concerts. The major universities in the Triangle area add to the theater, music and arts scene, as do the numerous live music nightclubs and art galleries. The North Carolina Art Museum has an impressive, encyclopedic collection and mounts a series of temporary exhibitions throughout the year. Arts and crafts festivals pepper the arts calendar as well.

History buffs can explore the many local Revolutionary War and Civil War sites, or learn about local history and railroad lore through the Railroad House Association and Lee County Historical Society.  

Sports fans can cheer on their professional teams - The Carolina Panthers (NFL), Carolina Hurricanes (NHL), the Bobcats (NBA), and NASCAR events at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The Durham Bulls represent AAA baseball. College sports and rivalries are a fixture of the area, and ACC basketball, with Duke, UNC, NCSU and Wake Forest providing local excitement, rules the airwaves during basketball season and through the "March Madness" of the NCAA tournament.

Outdoors enthusiasts will want to visit the San-Lee Park wildlife programs, walking trails and picnic areas. Raven Rock National Park, on the Cape Fear River, is just a 20-minute drive away, and the North Carolina Zoological Park, a well respected small zoo is in within one hour.