LUCERNE
Lucerne Senior Center open and offering classes and programs for seniors
Lucerne Alpine Senior Center will host the California Highway Patrol’s safe driver education program for seniors 55+, “Age Well, Drive Smart,” on Friday at 12:30 p.m. Local CHP Officer Geno Cortez and CHP Senior Volunteer Bev Hill will present the program, which lasts approximately an hour and a half. Participants will learn about the effects of aging on safe driving, how to assess your driving skills, how to maintain good health, and more.
No one will fail this class! Everyone who participates gets a certificate. Many auto insurance carriers give a discount on insurance to seniors 65+ who can show they have completed this course.
The class is free, but if possible, please come into the Senior Center during our open hours, Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. to sign up ahead of time.
In the meantime, LASC continues to offer guitar and ukulele classes with local musician/teacher Craig Wilczewski every Thursday from noon to 1 p.m. Please bring an acoustic guitar or ukulele, a digital tuner, and a folder for holding music. A digital tuner app can be downloaded to your smart phone for free or you can purchase a digital tuner from Stings & Things music store in Lakeport. Craig’s classes are geared toward beginners and people who want to brush up on their skills.
Amy Patton, the Lakeport Library’s crafts specialist, will be presenting a different fun and easy craft on the third Thursday of every month, at 10 a.m. This month she’ll be showing us how to make charming, unique jewelry from washers — yes, washers, those flat metal “Lifesavers” you use with nuts and bolts. The library supplies all the materials for the program free to participants. All you need to bring is your imagination. Amy is also happy to answer your questions about the variety of services offered through the library.
LASC also continues to offer Tai Chi with Paul Samberg every Friday afternoon from 2:30 to 3:30. We hope to add more exercise classes to our schedule soon.
The Lucerne Alpine Senior Center is now open Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m, for seniors 55+ and caregivers accompanying them. Lunch is served from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Suggested donation is $5 per person for lunch. Your donations help us to buy fresh, tasty food and keep our kitchen running.
We’re located at 3985 Country Club Drive in Lucerne, between 9th and 10th Avenues. Our Thrift Shop, located on 9th Avenue around the corner from the main building, is now open Wednesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., accepting donations from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. We welcome volunteers of all ages so that we can offer more services and open our Thrift Shop for longer hours.
For more information, see our website, lucernealpineseniorcenter.org and go to our Facebook page, Lucerne Alpine Senior Center 2021, or call 707 274-8779.
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MIDDLETOWN
Pomo Basket Design panel discussion at Twin Pine
The Middletown Art Center announces the commencement of Water Basket which opens with a Pomo Basket Design Panel Discussion at Twin Pine Sunday from 2 to 3:30 pm. Featured artists and culture bearers include Millie Simon, Wanda Quitiquit, Eric Wilder, Patty Ray-Franklin, Corine Pearce, Meyo Marrufo, and Buffy Thomas, with an introduction from Moke Simon. The event is free and open to the public.
Water Basket is a unique and monumental project the scale of which Lake County has not seen. The goal is to paint Middletown’s two water tanks on Rabbit Hill with 360° murals inspired by Pomo Basketry. The mural design will reflect the area’s history, people, and ecology utilizing geometric and organic shapes that are symbolic of animals and plants native to the region.
The project is a collaboration between Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians, of California, Pomo artists, Callayomi County Water District, and the Middletown Art Center. It’s funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional funding from the Middletown Rancheria, the Water District, and public support.
“Our cultural heritage is needed to uplift our people from grief and pain. Traditional aspects must be re-established not as a textbook lesson or an artifact behind glass, but as a living art through practice,” said Middletown Rancheria Tribal Chair, Moke Simon about the project.
An open call for proposals is available at middletownartcenter.org/waterbasket. A series of workshops led by Pomo Cultural artists Corine Pearce, Meyo Marrufo, and Eric Wilder, will support Native and non-Native participants in realizing their artistic vision. Water Basket invites Native people to bring expressions of their innate cultural heritage into public space and non-Native people to learn about Pomo cultural heritage. Individual, collaborative, and intercultural or multi-generational proposals are encouraged. MAC’s intercultural staff will provide artistic and technical support to prepare a 2-D rendering, as well as materials and supplies.
“The tanks hold the water of life. Water Basket honors our people as stewards of the land and the connection that we have to the land and the water,” said Buffy Thomas, Project Coordinator, a member of Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians.
A jury composed of representatives from Middletown Rancheria Tribal Members, regional Cultural Practitioners, Water District board members, Middletown community members, the Middletown Area Merchants Association and Town Hall, and MAC artistic staff will assess proposals and select 2-3 proposals for each tank to move to public input at several Middletown locations. Final selection will be made by the Water District and Middletown Rancheria.
Learn more about the project and the call for proposals, RSVP for the panel discussion and reserve your spot for upcoming workshops at middletownartcenter.org/waterbasket.
Middletown Art Center is a Lake County non-profit dedicated to engaging the public in art making, art education, and art appreciation. Through exhibitions, performances, workshops, and community events, the Art Center provides a platform for diverse voices and perspectives, striving to create an inclusive and accessible space for all.
To learn more and donate to support Water Basket and other MAC programs visit middletownartcenter.org or call 707-809-8118. The MAC is located at 21456 State Hwy 175 in Middletown.
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LAKEPORT
Help the Lake County Land Trust celebrate its 30th anniversary on Oct. 28 at Boatique Winery
It was 30 years ago that a group of like-minded Lake County citizens joined together to form the Lake County Land Trust (LCLT). Incorporation papers were filed in November of 1993 and since that time the Land Trust has preserved valuable habitat and natural lands around the county with the help of numerous Land Trust supporters.
The Land Trust will celebrate with a 30th anniversary on Sat., Oct. 28, at Boatique Winery, 8255 Red Hills Rd., Kelseyville. The public is warmly invited to participate. Admission to the event is $100 per person and sponsorships, with special benefits, are available.
To purchase admission to the dinner, visit www.lakecountylandtrust.org and click on the “Anniversary Dinner Admission” button or mail payment, along with an order form that can be printed from the website, to P.O. Box 1017, Lakeport, 95453. Sponsorship opportunities are also explained on the website. Deadline to assure participation is Oct. 16.
Over its 30 years of existence, LCLT has many accomplishments for a small land trust. Early on, the trust took ownership of Rabbit Hill in Middletown when the Madrone Audubon Society deeded the property to the trust.
Next came the first big project, the Rodman Ranch and Slough. That property was successfully purchased in 1999 after several years of working with county, state, and federal agencies, along with private land owners, to protect over 280 acres of wetland habitat, grass and Oak savannah, and Oak forest, and protect over 100 acres of agricultural land.
The Land Trust created a Conservation Priority Plan which identified the shoreline habitat along the southwestern shore of Clear Lake as one of its priorities. Through the Big Valley Wetlands Preservation project LCLT has purchased two separate parcels and is working on a third, to total almost 300 acres of secured shoreline and upland habitat for both people and animals to enjoy.
The trust currently owns over 500 acres, holds conservation easements on 88 acres, and oversees management of the Boggs Lake Preserve in a partnership with the Nature Conservancy. Through the years the trust has also facilitated the protection of the Black Forest near Buckingham and elk and mountain lion habitat in eastern Lake County.
The Land Trust operates a small nature center at its Rodman Preserve where children’s programs and community art and nature events have been held. Saturday walks are conducted weekly throughout the year.
Through all of its adventures the Lake County Land Trust has relied on the support of businesses, residents and second-home owners. LCLT board members look forward to gathering with supporters and friends to celebrate three decades of working together to preserve special areas of Lake County and Clear Lake.
The Lake County Land Trust is a charitable nonprofit organization that protects the unique and valuable wildlife habitats of Lake County and Clear Lake. For more information, go to www.lakecountylandtrust.org, call (707) 262-0707, or email lclt@lakecountylandtrust.org.
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