Unity at the Lake movie night will feature “Defending Your Life” with Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep. This film about overcoming fear through great love.

The movie will be shown Nov. 30 at 7pm, 1195 Rufus Allen Blvd., South Lake Tahoe.

Popcorn provided. The film is 111 minutes. Donations accepted.

Barton Memorial Hospital Auxiliary will host its bi-monthly blood drive on Dec. 3 at Embassy Suites, in the first floor ballroom (4130 Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe).

Donations will begin at noon and conclude at 6pm.

Parking will be validated.

For more info, Dan Kerr at (775) 781.5343.

A multitude of businesses participated in the inaugural Light up South Lake Tahoe event on Thanksgiving weekend.

While this was the launch date for businesses to turn on holiday lights, more keep coming on.

Tahoe Standup Paddle is in the holiday spirit. Photo/Provided

While an official contest was not planned, South Tahoe Standup Paddle (3115 Harrison Ave.) received the Best Participation and Most Enthusiastic award from city staff.

Festivities concluded at the Y with the annual tree lighting and a visit from Santa.

• The U.S. Postal Service expects to deliver 365 million packages this holiday season.

• The Tahoe Pipe Club has put out a calendar showing all of the gunk flowing directly into Lake Tahoe. Click on 2013 calendar for a PDF copy.

• Three state agencies along with local entities are gathering info about how Californians travel. More info about the survey is online.

• Small World is having house concert fundraiser in South Lake Tahoe on Dec. 7 featuring musician Zo Tobi from Berkeley. Click on the flyer for more info.

• Northstar will host a joint North Lake Tahoe/CVB/Resort Association and Truckee Donner Chamber of Commerce Business Mixer on Nov. 29 from 5-7pm at the Tavern 6330’ in the Village at Northstar.

Project Learning Tree is an award-winning environmental education program designed for educators working with youth from pre-K to grade 12.

A workshop on Dec. 5 is designed to certify adults as a project learning tree educator. The seminar is from 10am-4pm at the Parasol Community Non-Profit Center, Trepp Room, 948 Incline Way, Incline Village.

The workshop is free.

For more information or to register, contact Joy Barney (530) 543.2685 or jbarney@fs.fed.us.

The El Dorado Children’s Dental Van will be in South Lake Tahoe at the Al Tahoe Center from Dec. 3-21.

The Dental Van’s primary focus is to serve children up to age 5 with Medi-Cal and pregnant women with Medi-Cal.

Children ages 1-5 should see a dentist for an oral health check up at least every year, and ideally every six months.

Call Julie Day at (916) 836.7174 with questions or to schedule an appointment for a child on the dental van.

U.S. Forest Service fuels management crews will continue prescribed fire operations in the Cold Creek area near South Lake Tahoe on Nov. 27.

Crews expect to burn 2 acres, conditions permitting. Operations in the Cold Creek area are scheduled to last one day.

In addition, prescribed fire operations will begin Nov. 28 in the Ward Canyon area south of Ward Creek on the West Shore. Crews expect to burn as many acres as possible before the predicted rainstorm moves into the Lake Tahoe Basin. Operations in Ward Canyon are expected to last one day, weather permitting.

Residents and visitors can expect to see smoke from these prescribed fire project areas. The Forest Service strives to minimize the impacts of smoke on local communities. Smoke-sensitive residents should consider staying indoors and keeping doors, windows and outside vents closed.

To directly receive prescribed fire updates, send an email to pa_ltbmu@fs.fed.us.

Lake Tahoe: State of the Lake Presentation with Geoff Schladow of the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center is Dec. 13.

The report will include a summary of how natural variability, long term change and human activity have affected the lake’s clarity, physics, chemistry and biology over the previous year. The data shown will reveal a unique record of trends and patterns – the result of natural forces and human actions that operate at time scales ranging from days to decades.

A no-host bar opens at 5:30pm. The presentation begins 6pm.

Cost is $5.

For more information, contact Heather Segale at (775) 881.7562 or hmsegale@ucdavis.edu.

The 26th annual Santa Paws Benefit for Local Animals in Need is Dec. 1 from 11am to 4pm at the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Center, 1180 Rufus Allen Blvd.

Pets and family pose with Tahoe’s exclusive Santa Dog. Bows and antlers provided. Multiple poses on a photo CD cost $20.

There will also be a raffle, pet gifts, refreshments and pet nail trims. The 2013 Tahoe Pets calendar will also be for sale.

Pets must be on leash or in carrier.

Pet Food Bank donations are welcome. Dry cat and dog food, and cat litter are needed.

Call (530) 542.2857 for more information.

For every paid subscriber form Lake Tahoe New receives between now and the end of the year, we are going to give one non-perishable food item — might be a can, might be pasta, might be rice or something else — to entities in the basin that are in need.

Paid subscribers help Lake Tahoe News in two key ways — the more forms we have, the better for attaining adjudication, and cash keeps electric bills paid so the computers stay on and reporters get paid.

A benefit to being a paid subscriber is that you become part of the NEWS Team. From time-to-time we give away things — with the last being two tickets to the Soroptimist wine tasting.

Credit goes to longtime LTN supporter Old Long Skis for coming up with the subscriber-food drive. He’s even volunteered his truck to deliver all the goods. He’s that confident LTN will have that much food to donate after all the subscriber forms come in.

Here is a copy of a subscriber form. LTN is getting a bag of food together to donate no matter how many forms come in.

— Kathryn Reed, LTN publisher