There are a million ways to love, but sometimes it feels like there are only a few ways to celebrate on Valentine’s Day. Is there more to the holiday than kids exchanging pun-riddled cards with classmates, and adults exchanging chocolates and flowers with romantic partners and maybe going out for a nice dinner?
Of course there is. This is Reno! We’ve found events in Reno, Sparks and Carson City that range from silly to sincere, and from indulgent to avoidant—for single people, couples, children, teens and anyone else who wants to celebrate romantic love, self-love, family love or even ambivalence to Valentine’s Day.
Maximum market
Jorge Chacon and Amy Rios are on a mission to create the most vibrant, fun, multi-generational and multi-cultural events in town.
They started an organization called The Funktion last summer to showcase Mexican-American vendors and music. Their initial events had around 10 vendors with classic soul, funk and R&B from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s—“very much a staple in the Mexican-American community,” said Chacon. The duo added theme nights, like a bicycle night featuring lowrider and custom bicycles, and a lowrider car show for Mexican Independence Day.
When the weather cooled off, Chacon and Rios hosted an event at the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony gym—which was on the same day that the RSIC was also hosting a craft fair.
“We had about 20 vendors; they had about 20 vendors,” Chacon said. “We had Mexican-American food and snacks; they had Native American Indian tacos and fry bread treats for sale, and people bounced back and forth between the events and experienced both events and both cultures.”
The event had multi-generational appeal. “Elders of the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony … came in, got some food, and sat down and listened to the children play in the bounce house and watch them color and do puzzles,” Chacon said. “We realized we have an opportunity to create a place where the young and the old can gather and learn about each other’s cultures.”
The Funktion is collaborating with the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony and its United National Indian Tribal Youth (UNITY) Club on an event called Cupid’s Groove, which will include a Valentine’s Day-themed day market, a night market and a dance at the Futsol Sports Arena, 1580 Hymer Ave., in Sparks, on Saturday, Feb. 8. Chacon said heart-shaped cookies and pies will be among the offerings.
The event will feature about 70 vendors and will run from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. At 6 p.m., the overhead lights will go off, and a DJ will spin classic love songs and R&B hits. Tickets are $10 for the dance and markets, and $3 for the markets only. For information, visit @the_funktion_775 on Instagram, or find the event on Eventbrite.
Crafts for kids and adults
Sierra View Library, at Reno Town Mall (4001 S. Virginia St.), hosts Crafternoons for kids and families on Fridays, and will be doing Valentine’s crafts from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 14. You can register for this free event on the library’s webpage.
April Kasper, of Painting With April, hosts events for participants with any degree of artistic ability, during which she provides stenciled canvases and offers step-by-step instructions for creating a unique painting. She has been facilitating painting events for a decade and loves taking them to different venues. She said that, while some attend with family and friends, you can also come solo, because “you are never alone when you come paint.”
Several of her February events have a Valentine’s Day angle. For example, “Hoof Hearted” will be held at the Little Waldorf Saloon, at 1661 N. Virginia St., at 1 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 16. Kasper encourages participants to come at noon for lunch and a good seat. Participants will paint an adorable, chunky unicorn with legs akimbo. Tickets are $39.
For more information, visit paintingwithapril.com.
Where teens can sidestep the sap
The Washoe County Library System is hosting events that will appeal to teens who would rather do something that is not Valentine-related. The Sierra View Library will host an Anti-Valentine’s Day Party at 4:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 13, where teens can “treat (their) jaded hearts to fun and treats” as they help plan future youth library programs and earn volunteer hours. Non-broken hearts are also welcome to attend.
For teens who would enjoy a distraction from Valentine’s Day complete with adventures, monsters and storytelling with other teens, the Sparks (1125 12th St.) and Spanish Springs (7100A Pyramid Way) library branches will host tabletop games (such as Dungeons & Dragons) from 4 to 6 p.m., Friday, Feb. 13. To register for either the Spanish Springs or the Sparks event, visit the library’s website. Like all library events, these are free.
Sounds like self-love
If a holiday devoted to romantic love is not for you, Jen Haddix of Intuitive Jen suggests you take two hours for yourself and spend an evening celebrating self-love at her Valentine’s Day cacao ceremony and sound immersion, at 5 p.m., Friday, Feb. 14, at Sweet Apple Yoga, 1271 W. Seventh St., in Reno.
She will serve cacao, a hot drink derived from the same plant as cocoa; she describes it as a non-psychoactive plant medicine that helps open the heart. During the cacao ceremony, people will set intentions and meditate. Then, once everyone is relaxed, an hour-long sound bath will feature crystal singing bowls, gongs, a flute and singing. Tickets are $48. To register, visit intuitivejen.com.
Big-screen romance
Carson City Shorts is hosting a Valentine-themed short film competition, and you can watch the resulting 40 or so creations at the Love Notes Short Film Competition Screening and Awards Ceremony, at 2 and 7 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 8, at the Brewery Arts Center, 449 W. King St., in Carson City.
Local filmmakers were given two weeks and a prompt. Organizer Lyric Burt said he and his partner, Taylor Wilson, began making films in short competitions like this and have gone on to become finalists in the Cordillera International Film Festival, making this a great event to catch our region’s up-and-coming filmmakers. Emily Skyle-Golden, Cordillera’s executive director, will be one of the judges, and the judge’s choice winners will be screened at Cordillera.
“You may get some cheesy rom-coms and some heartfelt dramas, but also see some things from beyond the stars—and maybe a bad romance or two,” Burt said.
Tickets are $15 to $25, available at breweryarts.org/event/20250208-love-notes.
The South Valleys Library (15650A Wedge Parkway) is playing romantic movies in February as part of its “Isn’t It Romantic? Classic Love Stories in Film” series. On most Saturdays at 2 p.m., you can catch a classic film, including Roman Holiday, starring Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn, on Feb. 1; An Affair to Remember, starring Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr, on Feb. 8; Some Like It Hot, starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, on Feb. 22; and The Way We Were, starring Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand on March 1.