The annual Southern Festival of Books presented by Vanderbilt University is coming to Nashville Oct. 17 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Oct. 18 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The festival is free and includes live performances, food trucks and numerous publishers and booksellers. The event is a celebration of the written word and one of the oldest literary festivals in the country welcoming hundreds of authors and thousands of visitors to Nashville.
Volunteers are welcome with shifts typically 3-4 hours long, some may be outdoors in all-weather conditions and may require extended periods of standing. Volunteer signups are for people 18 years and older. Families with 14-17-year-olds can email: sofestofbooks@humtn.org. There will be a 1-hour training session
online before the festival.
Volunteers may include greeters, set up and break down, putting up posters, shuttle drivers, assisting with author signing tables and other opportunities. Go to: https://www.sofestofbooks.org for information on the festival. Go to: https://www.humanitiestennessee.org/support_advocate/festival-volunteers/ for info on volunteering and to sign up. The Festival will take place in downtown Nashville at the Bicentennial Mall, Tennessee State Museum and the Tennessee State Library and Archives all off of Rosa L Parks Blvd.
Spooky season in Franklin
The Franklin 41st annual Pumpkinfest is coming Saturday Oct. 24 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sunday Oct. 25 11 a.m.-5 p.m. rain or shine. The event is presented by the Williamson County Heritage Foundation which is a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the historic, cultural and natural resources of the county. The festival is a free event that will have autumn-inspired food and drink, live music, costume contests, and a marketplace featuring the region’s finest seasonal arts and crafts. Booth sitters, merchandise table attendants, costume contest check in and numerous other opportunities are available to volunteer. Go to https://williamsonheritage.org/support-us/volunteer/ click on volunteer for pumpkinfest at the top of the page and it will take you to sign up genius. Go to: https://williamsonheritage.org/event/41st-annual-pumpkinfest-2026/ for more info on the festival that takes place on Main Street in downtown Franklin.
Wounded Warrior Project fundraiser
The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) is having the WWP Nashville Carry Forward 5K run on Oct. 10. Their mission is to help provide life-changing programs, connection and support for our nation’s veterans. Registration will begin at 6:30 a.m., opening ceremony at 8:00 a.m. and the race will start after the ceremony. Over a hundred volunteers are needed to assist with packet pick up, event set up/break down and race day support. Go to: ttps://carryforward.woundedwarriorproject.org/events/626 and click on Volunteer in the middle of the page to sign up and pick a volunteer opportunity. The race is at the Nashville Soccer Club stadium, Geodis Park, 501 Benton Ave.
Please contact jean_simmons@hotmail.com to submit volunteer opportunities for the month.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Where to volunteer in Nashville in October
