🗞️ Bishop McGuinness opens six new lighted tennis courts

🗞️ Novant Health Kernersville now offers Saturday mammograms

🗞️ Two Forsyth sites are being marketed to data center developers, and neither would need a rezoning

🗞️ Four Kernersville pumpkin patches worth a visit this fall

🗞️ Civitan golf tournament raises money to support the Challenger League

🗞️ Your Saturday game plan: a better forecast, then a soggy Sunday

⛅ Mostly cloudy | High: 73°F | Low: 57°F

Good news for all those Saturday plans: the forecast has improved. Saturday now looks mostly cloudy and comfortable, with a high near 73, a light northeast breeze and only a slight chance (20%) of a shower after 2 p.m. The rain arrives in earnest Saturday night, with showers likely and a low around 57. Sunday is the soggy one, with rain showers almost certain (90% chance), a high near 67 and up to an inch of rain possible, so get your outdoor fun in on Saturday.

Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School cut the ribbon this week on six new lighted tennis courts, along with new restrooms beside them. The Rev. Christopher Brook blessed the facility Tuesday afternoon before the ribbon cutting, with members of the school's boys' and girls' tennis teams looking on.

For the school, it's a milestone. "We came to Kernersville in August of 2001 and we are celebrating our 25th year here. This is the first major capital enhancement at the school," said Bishop McGuinness President Jared Rashford. He also thanked the Kernersville Parks and Recreation Department for letting the Villains play at Fourth of July Park and Civitan Park for the past two years while the work was underway.

Rashford credited a partnership between donors and school leadership for getting the project done, and he sees the courts opening new doors. "There is a lot of interest that pours into our sports programs, and now we can have more people involved in tennis," he said. "We can also now maybe host some junior tournaments and clinics with USTA and host regional playoffs."

Head coach Larry Ingram, who leads both the boys' and girls' teams, said it's something he has hoped for a long time. "I am ecstatic. It is a beautiful facility, and to have six courts with lights is incredible," he said. The Lady Villains, now 12-5, christened the new courts with a 7-2 win and honored their seniors with a Senior Night celebration the same afternoon.

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Just in time for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, getting a mammogram in Kernersville no longer has to mean taking time off work. Novant Health Kernersville Medical Center has started offering screening mammograms on select Saturdays, with at least two Saturday clinics planned each month from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

"We hope to make it easier for women to prioritize their breast health and receive recommended screenings with extended access," said Megan Beck, the medical center's radiology manager. Regular screenings can catch breast cancer in its earliest stages, often before symptoms appear. Nearly 800 people in the Triad are diagnosed with breast cancer each year.

Screening mammograms don't require a doctor's order, so you can book your own appointment by calling (833) 752-1160 or visiting NovantHealth.org/Mammography.

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Forsyth commissioners have had the final say on data center proposals so far this year, but that may not always be the case. Two large industrial properties in the county are now being marketed directly to data center developers, and because both are already zoned General Industrial, projects there would not need a rezoning or a vote from commissioners or the Winston-Salem City Council.

The first is more than 300 acres next to the R.J. Reynolds manufacturing plant in Tobaccoville, which could support about 2.7 million square feet of buildable space with 30 megawatts of power available now and up to 100 megawatts later. The second is the 72-acre Piedmont Triad Industrial Center, the former Schlitz brewery just north of the I-285 South Main Street interchange in Winston-Salem, where up to 90 megawatts of power is committed for June 2027. Both sites have their own Duke Energy substations.

"Neither parcel would need a rezoning to construct a Services A use (which is how the ordinance classifies data centers)," said Chris Murphy, the city and county's director of planning and development services. The news comes days after commissioners voted 5-2 against a temporary data center moratorium.

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Pumpkin season is here, and you don't have to leave town to find a good patch. With Saturday shaping up drier than Sunday, this weekend is a great time to go. Here are four Kernersville spots to put on your list.

Smith Hollow Farm, 5920 Smith Hollow Rd. Open Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., through Nov. 8. Admission ($17 cash, $19 card, free for ages 2 and under) includes unlimited hayrides, the corn maze, apple launching, kid-friendly axe throwing and more, with pumpkins restocked weekly.

Zane's Clodbuster Farms, 5500 Leonard Farm Rd. Open daily through Nov. 8, with hours that vary. Admission is free, and the six-acre corn maze and hayrides around the 87-acre farm are $9 each or $15 for both. Kids under 3 are free.

Apple Family Farm, 1765 N.C. Highway 66 S. Open daily (9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday). Admission is free. Take a wagon ride, browse mums and sunflowers, and carve or paint your pumpkin on weekends.

Kernersville Pumpkins and Christmas Trees, 843 Old Winston Rd. Open daily 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., weather permitting, with no admission fee and pumpkins grown in the N.C. mountains.

Hours can change with the weather, so it's a good idea to check with each farm before you head out.

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Seventy-two golfers on 18 teams teed it up for a good cause on Friday, Sept. 25, at the 32nd annual Civitan Charity Golf Tournament at Pine Knolls Golf Club. "It was a beautiful day and we had a fantastic tournament," organizer David Turner said.

It came down to a tiebreaker. The top two teams both finished 24 under par, and the win went to the team of Lee Kiger, Steve Stack, Mike Abernathy and Randy Beeson, who made an eagle two on a par five. Will Grant, Liam Grant, Jimmy Dunford and James Dunford took second. Kiger and Missy Briry won the longest drive contests, and Daniel Lawson, Michael Ray, Ivan Irby and Steve Stack took the closest-to-the-pin prizes.

Every dollar raised stays in the community. The Kernersville Civitan Club, which has served the town for 65 years, will put this year's proceeds toward its service projects, including work with the Challenger League, which gives people with disabilities a chance to play sports in a setting built for their success.

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Here's some welcome news for one of Kernersville's busiest Saturdays of the fall: the storms that looked likely earlier this week have mostly backed off. The National Weather Service now calls for a mostly cloudy, comfortable day with a high near 73 and only a slight chance of a shower after 2 p.m. Sunday is a different story, so Saturday is the day to get out.

Start early. Cars & Coffee wraps up its 8 a.m. season at 1175 S. Main St. (8 to 10 a.m.). The Triad Heart Walk opens at Triad Park at 9:30 a.m., and little ones can catch Storytime at the Park at Paddison library at 10 a.m.

Midday. Browse local makers at the free Artisan Craft Market at Harmon Park and the Kernersville Museum (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.), then swing by the Choice Tire fall car show at VFW Post 5352 (noon to 4 p.m.). It's also a great afternoon for one of the pumpkin patches in today's issue.

Late afternoon. Grown-ups can toast the season at the 16th Annual Kernersville Oktoberfest at Körner's Folly from 3 to 6 p.m. (ages 21 and up).

Sunday. Rain is almost a sure thing, with up to an inch possible. If you're running the All Mounds Matter 5K at 9 a.m., pack a rain jacket and check the race page for any weather updates.