"To avoid the cold and unpredictable weather we have experienced in recent years, the Veterans Memorial Committee is moving the event indoors." That sentence comes from the committee's notice for its 2026 Veterans Day gathering. It is the biggest change to the Northwestern Lehigh calendar this fall, and it sits on the same community events page as the other big date of the month.
None of the four townships runs the busiest dates of November here. The oyster supper belongs to a church kitchen on Kings Highway. The Veterans Day gathering belongs to a volunteer committee that raised the money for its own memorial. A craft market, a hoagie sale and a children's holiday shop come from a church and a historical society. This year two of those groups mark a milestone and make a move, and the first deadline is Friday.
The Order Sheet Closes Friday, Oct. 30
Jacob's Church will hold its 100th Oyster Supper on Saturday, Nov. 7, from 3 to 6:30 p.m. at the Jacob's Church Activity Center, 8373 Kings Hwy, New Tripoli. Reserved seating starts at 3 p.m., and the last seating is at 6 p.m.
Dine-in reservations and pre-ordered takeout are both due Friday, Oct. 30, which is tomorrow for anyone reading this on Thursday. The church calls reservations "always recommended." Here is how to order:
- Dine-in reservations: Faye at 610-751-5742
- Takeout pre-orders: Leann at 610-739-6896
- Online: the order form on the Jacob's Church oyster supper page
The menu is short and priced like a church supper. New Tripoli Bank's event listing has the full list:
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Oyster pie | $10.00 |
| Oyster stew | $9.00 |
| Fried oyster platter, 4 oysters | $18.00 |
| Fried shrimp platter, 7 shrimp | $14.00 |
| Fried combo platter, 2 oysters and 4 shrimp | $15.00 |
| Additional fried oysters | $3.00 |
| Hamburger or turkey barbecue | $5.00 |
| Fresh-cut French fries | $4.00 |
| Whole pie / personal pie / single slice | $12.00 / $6.00 / $3.00 |
| Extra pepper cabbage, pint / quart | $3.00 / $5.00 |
The platters come with pepper cabbage. Where you eat changes the side: takeout platters get a baked potato and eat-in platters get French fries. The pies are apple, cherry, coconut cream, lemon, strip and peach.
A Hundred Suppers, Almost Always on the First Saturday
Last year's supper was the 99th. New Tripoli Bank listed it as the "99th Annual Oyster Supper" on Nov. 1, 2025. The tradition was already called annual in October 1998, when The Morning Call ran a notice for it.
The supper has also held to the same spot on the calendar. Lehigh Valley Press announced it for Nov. 7 in 2015, for Nov. 3 in 2018 and for Nov. 7 in 2020. Every one of those dates was the first Saturday of November, and so were the 2025 date and this year's Nov. 7. If you plan your fall around it, the first Saturday is a safe bet. The firm deadline still comes about a week earlier.
The congregation is far older than the supper. The church's own history dates its first building to 1761, on Kings Highway in the Jacksonville area. Land for a church was donated on Feb. 1, 1761, and the present congregation still serves the Jacksonville area. When the church turned 250 in 2011, the Times News reported that an earlier building may have existed, though no written record supports it. 1761 is the first documented date.
The Memorial the Committee Built Itself
The other change this month comes from a group much younger than Jacob's Church. Its work stands at Ontelaunee Park in New Tripoli.
The Northwestern Lehigh Veterans Memorial was dedicated on May 30, 2022, which was Memorial Day. It honors veterans from Heidelberg, Lowhill, Lynn and Weisenberg Townships. It has 11 granite panels engraved with veterans' names and quotations, a flagpole set on a pentagon and a 21-foot brick star, according to The Morning Call's 2022 coverage.
The same Morning Call story traces the memorial to a 2018 proposal. The committee then researched and collected the names of local veterans, raised the money and built the memorial. The work continues. The committee's site lists its Hometown Heroes banner program, ongoing additions of names to the memorial, and fundraising for a proposed expansion. Back in 2022, The Morning Call also reported that the committee planned to raise money to maintain the site.
Why Nov. 11 Moves to Route 309
For several years the committee's Veterans Day gathering took place at Ontelaunee Park, near the panels it honors. This year it moves indoors to Eight Oaks Farm Distillery, 7189 Route 309, New Tripoli. The notice says the distillery "graciously accepted" the committee's request to host.
The gathering runs Wednesday, Nov. 11, from 4 to 8 p.m. Chris Noll will play live music, and food and drink will come from the Eight Oaks fall menu. Lehigh Valley Press confirmed the new venue in its Oct. 22 Northwestern Notes column. The notice does not list an admission price or a registration step. For anything beyond the time and place, check the Northwestern Lehigh Veterans Memorial site.
The reason given is practical. A weekday gathering in mid-November with no roof over it depends on the weather, and the committee says the weather has been cold and unpredictable in recent years. Its answer was to borrow a local business with a dining room.
The Rest of November Comes From the Same Kind of Group
After the two big dates, the rest of the month follows the same pattern of a congregation or volunteer society running one event.
Ziegels Union Church, 9990 Ziegels Church Road, Breinigsville, holds its Handmade Market on Saturday, Nov. 14, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The listing mentions local crafters and vendors, a bake sale, raffle prizes and the Slide On By food truck.
The Weisenberg/Lowhill Township Historical Society has several November entries in its 2026/2027 schedule, among them a hoagie fundraiser and two Little Shoppers Village dates. Its home page says events take place at its headquarters, 4585 Werleys Corner Road, New Tripoli, unless noted otherwise. Hoagie fundraiser orders go to Nancy at 484-767-2307. The society has not published hoagie prices or pickup details, so ask when you call.
November at a Glance
- Fri., Oct. 30: Last day to reserve a seat or pre-order takeout for the Jacob's Church oyster supper.
- Mon., Nov. 2: Orders due for the Weisenberg/Lowhill Township Historical Society hoagie fundraiser.
- Sat., Nov. 7, 3 to 6:30 p.m.: Jacob's Church 100th Oyster Supper, Activity Center, 8373 Kings Hwy.
- Wed., Nov. 11, 4 to 8 p.m.: NWL Veterans Day Celebration, Eight Oaks Farm Distillery, 7189 Route 309.
- Thu., Nov. 12: Historical society hoagie fundraiser.
- Sat., Nov. 14, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: Ziegels Church Handmade Market, 9990 Ziegels Church Road.
- Sat., Nov. 21, 1 to 4 p.m.: Little Shoppers Village at the historical society.
- Sat., Nov. 28, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Little Shoppers Village at the historical society.
Every item on that list is run by volunteers, and the first two dates on it are order deadlines. New Tripoli Bank's community events page gathers most of them in one place and is the easiest way to keep up as December listings appear.
At The Mick Seislove Team, we follow calendars like this one closely because traditions like these shape daily life in the communities we serve. If you know of a supper, market or volunteer event in Heidelberg, Lowhill, Lynn or Weisenberg that deserves more attention, or if you'd like to talk about life in Northwestern Lehigh, Contact Us. We'd be glad to hear from you.
