Pierce County Events Calendar

Pierce County Events Calendar

This calendar is the place to find fun events happening throughout Pierce County, including Tacoma, Puyallup, Lakewood and beyond.

Have an event that isn’t listed? Please email events@SouthSoundTalk.com with the following information:

  • Name of Event
  • Date, time and location (name of business if applicable and complete address)
  • Organizer(s) name
  • Cost
  • URL to purchase tickets
  • Website URL
  • SHORT description of the event
  • Photo

Our editors will review and post within a few business days.

Agenda
Agenda
December 2024 – May 2025 Dec 2024 – May 2025
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Dec
14
Sat
Tacoma Santa Parade, Street Festival and More!! @ South Tacoma Way
Tickets
Dec 14 @ 12:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Tacoma Santa Parade, Street Festival and More!! @ South Tacoma Way

The beloved Tacoma Santa Parade is back for its 11th year, bringing holiday cheer, community fun, and endless festive activities to historic South Tacoma Way on Saturday, December 14th. This year’s event promises an unforgettable experience for all ages, with the day’s festivities kicking off at noon and leading up to the exciting parade at 4:30 PM.

Event Highlights:

? Street Festival (Noon – 6:00 PM): South Tacoma Way between 50th and 56th will transform into a bustling holiday street festival, featuring a wide range of vendors selling handmade gifts, bath and body items, home goods, jewelry, including a Creepmas Market and more—perfect for holiday shopping!

? Food Vendors: Satisfy your seasonal cravings with comfort foods from local vendors, including Pacific Islander delicacies, soul food, pizza, kettlecorn, baked goods, hot cocoa, and more. Enjoy the tastes of the holidays while exploring all the festival has to offer.

? Stage Entertainment: A full lineup of live performances will celebrate the season with music and dance. Don’t miss the Ugly Holiday Sweater Contest at 4:00 PM on the main stage—bring your most outrageous festive attire and compete for prizes!

? Parade (4:30 PM): The grand Tacoma Santa Parade will step off in style with local cheer teams, dance clubs, marching bands, decorated floats, and, of course, Santa’s Elves. The parade will end with the arrival of Santa Claus himself, spreading holiday cheer to all in attendance.

Join Us as a Sponsor or Parade Participant:
To make this year’s event truly magical, we are still welcoming sponsors and parade participants who wish to join in spreading holiday joy. Interested businesses and community groups can visit our website at www.tacomasantaparade.org to complete an application and become part of this cherished Tacoma tradition.

Sponsors and Community Support:
This year’s event is proudly supported by local businesses and sponsors dedicated to making the holiday season brighter for the Tacoma community, including Pierce Transit,  Stellar Soirees Event Creation, SEO2000, Partytime Parcels, Cascade Home Builders, Tapco Credit Union, Liz Ann Johnson Elder Law, Guild Mortgage and the Asian Pacific Cultural Center. Their support and commitment to community spirit help make this cherished event possible.

Join Us for the Magic of the Holiday Season:
The Tacoma Santa Parade & Street Festival has become a favorite annual tradition, bringing together families, friends, and neighbors to celebrate the holiday season with warmth, joy, and Tacoma’s signature community spirit. With fun for all ages and something for everyone, the 11th Annual Tacoma Santa Parade promises a day filled with festive cheer.

For more information, follow our event updates or reach out to Event Coordinator Jennifer Day at tacomasantaparade@gmail.com. We look forward to celebrating with you and ringing in the holiday season together in the heart of Tacoma! 

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Categories: Arts and Entertainment Family Events Food & Beverage Kids Seasonal and Holiday Events
Experience an 1861 Christmas @ Historic Fort Steilacoom
Tickets
Dec 14 @ 4:30 pm – 8:00 pm

An affordable event for families: Experience an 1861 Christmas at Historic Fort Steilacoom on Dec. 14

Step back in time and experience Christmas as it was celebrated in 1861! Join Historic Fort Steilacoom in Lakewood on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, from 4:30 to 8 p.m., as living historians bring the holiday season to life in the same buildings where it was celebrated 163 years ago.

Visitors will walk through candlelit scenes of re-enactors singing, dancing, dining, and exchanging gifts, just as the residents of Fort Steilacoom might have done in the first U.S. military post in Puget Sound. Visitors from 2024 will walk past and witness scenes as if the visitors are silent time travelers.

Though 1861 marked the beginning of the U.S. Civil War, Christmas at Fort Steilacoom was a time of celebration and social gathering, where soldiers, families, and friends came together in a festive spirit.

Ticket Information

Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for youth. A family of up to two adults and four youth pays $12. Proceeds support the maintenance of Fort Steilacoom’s historic buildings. Tickets are available in advance through Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/christmas-at-historic-fort-steilacoom-1861-in-2024-tickets-1086615178249?aff=oddtdtcreator

This popular event often sells out, so advance purchase is highly recommended. You can check the Fort Steilacoom Facebook page for updates about tickets.

The final tour group departs at 7:10 p.m.

Fort Steilacoom is on the grounds of Western State Hospital, located at 9601 Steilacoom Blvd. SW, Lakewood, WA 98498. Be sure to use this address to locate the fort, as GPS may direct you to nearby Fort Steilacoom Park. After entering Western State, turn right, and look for the cannon shelter and lights. Tours start at the building furthest right of the four.

About Fort Steilacoom

Fort Steilacoom was the first U.S. Army post in Puget Sound, operating from 1849 to 1868. Now managed entirely by volunteers, it holds an essential place in the settlement and early history of Washington Territory. The Historic Fort Steilacoom Association is dedicated to preserving this heritage, acknowledging the complex history of the Fort, and including diverse perspectives in its storytelling.

Learn more at www.historicfortsteilacoom.org

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Categories: Education Family Events Local History Seasonal and Holiday Events
Jan
9
Thu
HistoryTalks! The Evergreen Ballroom @ Lacey City Hall, Council Chambers
Tickets
Jan 9 @ 6:30 pm
HistoryTalks! The Evergreen Ballroom @ Lacey City Hall, Council Chambers

The Evergreen Ballroom story is an immigrant story, a local community story, and a music lovers’ story. From the time it was constructed to the last day that music played, the dance hall saw a number of people cross its stage who would go on to musical fame. In this presentation, Rebecca Sanchez will cover her research from a series of local history articles published on Thurston Talk.

Hybrid Format: Come in person or join online.

Registration required for online attendance only https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_lS3QWnAcTpmwaTU6tf5sVQ#/registration

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Categories: Author Talk Education Local Government Local History
Jan
25
Sat
Speed Puzzle Competition @ DuPont Community Center
Tickets
Jan 25 @ 6:00 pm
Speed Puzzle Competition @ DuPont Community Center

Join Dupont Parks & Recreation for an exciting Speed Puzzle Competition on Saturday, January 25, 2025, at 6:00 PM! Gather your team of four (ages 10 and up) and race to assemble puzzles for a chance to win some awesome prizes! With a diner-themed dinner included, it’s just $40 per team—sign up today at dupontwa.gov/195/events!

Prizes will be distributed on the evening of the event. Please distribute amongst your team.

Please bring a puzzle to swap, this is a really fun opportunity to share your love of puzzles with others!

Ages 10 & up. 

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Categories: Arts and Entertainment Family Events Food & Beverage Kids
Feb
19
Wed
Open House @ Rebuilding Hope Sexual Assault Center
Tickets
Feb 19 @ 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Open House @ Rebuilding Hope Sexual Assault Center

Stop by Rebuilding Hope’s new Hilltop headquarters to enjoy celebratory refreshments, tour the building, and learn about expanding healing services for victim-survivors.

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Categories: Business Networking Events Family Events Health and Wellness Volunteering and Community Enrichment Women Focused Events
Mar
8
Sat
Event Irish Fest @ Freighthouse Square in the Rainier Room
Tickets
Mar 8 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Event Irish Fest @ Freighthouse Square in the Rainier Room

Join us for the 4th Annual Irish Festival at Freighthouse Square

Over 40 Vendors, Beer Gardens, Leprechaun Photo Booth, Sweet Treats,

Food Trucks & Entertainment.

Joining us on the main stage are Celtic Treble, Clan Gordon Bagpipers & Jeweled Scarab Belly Dancers.

Free Parking in the parking garage across the street. Enter by the Escape Room/Defiant Fox Games entrance. Food trucks will be out front on the street!

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Categories: Arts and Entertainment Family Events Festivals, Expos, and Parades Food & Beverage
Apr
25
Fri
‘The Things They Brought Home’ Opening Reception @ Washington State History Museum
Tickets
Apr 25 @ 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Join us for the opening of the new exhibition, The Things They Brought Home, which honors the wartime experiences of Washington’s Vietnam veterans. Curators Erik Flint and Megan Nishikawa will present information about the development of the exhibition.

 

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Categories: Local History
May
15
Thu
South Sound Day of Remembrance @ Washington State History Museum
Tickets
May 15 @ 5:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Join us for an evening of commemoration as we recognize the 83rd anniversary of the wartime forced eviction of people of Japanese ancestry from South Puget Sound on May 17-18, 1942.

Take a walking tour through downtown Tacoma, the site of the city’s lost Japantown. The tour will make stops exploring significant sites in Japanese American history before reconvening at the Washington State History Museum for a taiko drum performance. The performance will be followed by a brief procession to Union Station to remember the site where the Japanese American community was forced to report before being sent to prison camps throughout the West.

This free program is held in partnership with Downtown on the Go.

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Categories: Local History
May
17
Sat
Lacey Spring Fun Fair @ Saint Martin’s University
Tickets
May 17 @ 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
Lacey Spring Fun Fair @ Saint Martin’s University

Enjoy 2 days of free rides, kids’ world activities and live entertainment plus shop from over 70 artisan and commercial vendors and food vendors!  Don’t miss the S.T.E.A.M. Fair on Saturday and Car Show on Sunday.  Free parking and admission. For over 35 years families have enjoyed this springtime tradition.

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Categories: Arts and Entertainment Family Events Festivals, Expos, and Parades Food & Beverage Kids
May
18
Sun
Lacey Spring Fun Fair @ Saint Martin’s University
Tickets
May 18 @ 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Lacey Spring Fun Fair @ Saint Martin’s University

Enjoy 2 days of free rides, kids’ world activities and live entertainment plus shop from over 70 artisan and commercial vendors and food vendors!  Don’t miss the S.T.E.A.M. Fair on Saturday and Car Show on Sunday.  Free parking and admission. For over 35 years families have enjoyed this springtime tradition.

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Categories: Arts and Entertainment Family Events Festivals, Expos, and Parades Food & Beverage Kids
December 2024 – May 2025 Dec 2024 – May 2025