October 21, 2004

Calendar of local events

Unless otherwise noted all phone numbers are in the 408 area code.

HARVEST
HAPPENINGS
October 15 – 31
Oak Meadow Park in Los Gatos once again hosts The Haunted Forest, a variety of spooky sights to thrill the whole family. For the brave at heart, the Raglan Castle Walking Tour is a guided trek through the haunted forest that includes a witch’s house, the lair of the spider queen, a mysterious castle and graveyard, and a host of spooky characters to thrill and chill. Spooky Hollow give children 11 yrs and younger a haunt of their own, featuring the new Trick-or-Treat Street attraction. And of course there is the Wildcat Railroad, an age appropriate dark journey through the park. Children should dress for the weather, wear sneakers and bring a flashlight. Admission is $10 for the Raglan Tour, $4.50 for Spooky Hollow and Trick-or-Treat Street. Hours are 7 – 10 p.m. nightly, except Mondays Parking is $4.

October 29 – Friday
Fright Fest Haunted House Festival at the Alum Rock Youth Center, 137 North White Road in San Jose. This event features a haunted house, costume contest, music, prizes, food and carnival games. Admission is $4 without costume, $3 with costume, children under 3 yrs free. Hours are 6 – 10 p.m. For more information call 251-5757.

October 29 – Friday
Campbell’s historic Ainsley House will host evening flashlight tours from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The Anisley House tours will feature a guided walk through of the 80-year old house plus an evening of fun re-creating Halloween games form the 1920s and 30s. This family event will include hot cider, apples to dunk, candy and treats for the youngsters, and wholesome snacks for all in the Carriage House. The cost is $5 for museum members and $10 for non-members. Reservations are required by October 22. Call 866-2718 to reserve your spot. The Ainsley House is located at 300 Grant Avenue in downtown Campbell.

October 31 – Sunday
Free Harvest Carnival! Willow Glen’s 15th Annual Harvest Carnival will be held at Willow Glen Baptist Church at the corner of Hicks and Minnesota from 5-8 p.m. Families are invited to come and enjoy pony rides, a giant slide, a bounce house, crafts, games, a photo booth and lots of candy!! This event is free and open to all. For more information call 280-0611 or visit WGBC.net.

October 31 – Sunday
Haunt the Hollow - Halloween Event. Trick-or-Treat in Happy Hollow Park & Zoo on Sunday, from 2 - 5 p.m. Trick-or-treat stations throughout the Park & Zoo will provide a fun, safe and family friendly experience for all.
Happy Hollow will be open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. on this event day. This event is included with regular admission of $5.50 per person. For more information, call Happy Hollow Park & Zoo at 408-277-4193.

MUSIC
October 23 – Saturday
Le Petit Trianon Theatre, 72 North 5th Street in San Jose, will host a 2:30 p.m. Children’s Concert featuring the students of seven local violin and piano teachers. Musical selections range from “Star Wars,” and Disney, to the classic favorites of Vivaldi, Handel and Bach. Admission is $1 for children over 4 years, adults are encouraged to make a donation. For more information call Elizabeth Park at 257-2845.

October 28 – Thursday
The San Jose State University School of Music and Dance presents Aaron Lington, SJSU’s coordinator of jazz studies, in a recital at 7:30 p.m. in the SJSU Concert Hall. The Program, ‘The Two Faces of the Baritone Saxophone,” will feature works in both classical and jazz styles. Admission to this recital is free and open to the public. For more information, call 924-4673.

THEATER
October 26 – November 7
American Musical Theater of San Jose presents Cathy Rigby as “Peter Pan.” Rigby, whose name as become synonymous with Peter Pan, has played the part on Broadway, on a National Tour and in an Emmy Award winning A&E Special. In her farewell performance as the “boy who wouldn’t grow up, Rigby, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, will take flight in the 100th Anniversary of this immortal James M. Barrie tale. All performances will be at The Center for the Performing Arts in downtown San Jose. For tickets and additional information, call 1-888-455-7469, or visit www.amtsj.org.

MEETINGS
Ongoing:
Las Madres Adoption Group is a wonderful support system for those who have gone through the adoption process and are looking to share the joys and challenges of parenting an adopted child. We have regular play dates for newborns-5 years old and monthly “mom’s night out”. For more information, contact Barb Griswold at barbgris@aol.com or call toll free 1-877-LasMadres.
Oakridge Century Theatres in association with Las Madres Neighborhood Playgroups presents CineMamas! A morning out to the movies for moms and their little ones. This group meets every Tuesday at 10 a.m., There are three showings to choose from, baby-safe sound levels, cheerios at the concession stand and a relaxing atmosphere with other moms who understand kids are kids! Check CineMamas.com for a weekly update on what is showing. Kids under 3 are free!
Le Tip International, a business leads networking group meets every Tuesday at 7:15 a.m. at Denny’s Restaurant, 1140 Hillsdale Aveue. For more information, call 298-9131.

CLASSES
Ongoing
The New Almaden Community Center will be hosting a weekly yoga class on Mon/Wed/Fri. at 6 a.m. and on Tues/Thurs. at 7 a.m. Attendees should bring their own yoga mats, however, there are a limited number of pads available. For more information, contact Tara at 997-9383. Class fees are $6 each or $24 per week. Classes are appropriate for both beginner and intermediate levels.

HEALTH
Ongoing:
Bay Area Alzheimer’s Association now includes meetings at Kaiser Santa Teresa. Meetings are held in the San Jose Kaiser Family Health Center, Conference Room C, 3rd Floor, located at 276 International Circle. For more information call 800-660-1993

FIFTY PLUS
Ongoing:
SeniorNet, computer classes for adults 50 and over still has openings in the following classes: Computer Fundamentals, e-mail A-Z, Managing Your Files, Photoshop Elements, CD Burning, Word Processing 1, Windows XP, Computer Security and Finding Things and People on the Web. To enroll in any of the course openings, contact Don House at 268-1703.
The San Jose Metro Widows and Widowers Association meets every Wednesday at 9 a.m. for breakfast at Goodies Coffee Shop, 2201 South Bascom in Campbell. We also meet on the first Tuesday of each month at Harry’s Hofbrau restaurant, 390 Saratoga Avenue. For more information, call 275-6178 or 269-7126.
AARP Information Center needs volunteers to staff their office. Duties include helping seniors find various services and programs, and providing information on senior needs. The office is located at 840 Willow Street, Suite 300, at the corner of Bird and Willow Streets on bus route #25. The hours are Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information, call 278-1855.
The Geriatric Advisory Program is a service providing documented analysis, advice and resources to those caring for aging family members and is available through the Almaden Valley Counseling Service. Sliding scale fees available. 975-2988.

CHILDREN/FAMILY EVENTS
October 10 – November 15
Los Gatos Christian Church will be taking registrations for their Youth Basketball League. The League plays at Branham High School from November 20 through March 5, 2005. Both Boys’ and Girls’ teams will be available for participants in the 1st through 8th grades. For additional information, call Marge at 997-4642, or check the website at www.losgatoschristian.org.

October 23 & 30
Take a trip back through time to the early days of “moving pictures” at the Divine Science Community Center’s Festival of Silent Movies. Films screen at 7:30 p.m. and the admission fee of $6 or $10 for two includes popcorn & a beverage. The Community Center is located at 1540 Hicks Avenue in San Jose. for a schedule and additional information call 293-3838.

October 23 - Saturday
The Laurelwood Harvest Festival, 4280 Partridge Drive, will be held from 3- 6 p.m.. This family event features Carnival booths, games and food. All proceeds will help benefit the Laurelwood school and students.

October 24 – Sunday
The Civic Auditorium will host the San Jose Firefighter Burn Foundation Benefit, a family-oriented event featuring magic and variety acts. Admission is $35 per family. For more information, call 376-3424.

October 23 – 24
Monterey Bay Aquarium is celebrating their 20th Anniversary weekend with free Sunday Admission for children and special activities. Saturday is “Shark Day” featuring a special presentation at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. by Peter Benchley, author of “Jaws” and renowned underwater photographer, David Doubilet, as well as appearances by the Monterey Jazz Festival’s All Star Combo at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. On Sunday it’s one big Birthday Bash with children’s entertainment, a guest appearance by comedian and actor, George Lopez, and birthday cake at 12:45 p.m. For more information, visit www.mbayaqu.org.

October 23 – Saturday
Le Petit Trianon Theatre, 72 North 5th Street in San Jose, will host a 2:30 p.m. Children’s Concert featuring the students of seven local violin and piano teachers. Musical selections range from “Star Wars,” and Disney, to the classic favorites of Vivaldi, Handel and Bach. Admission is $1 for children over 4 years, adults are encouraged to make a donation. For more information call Elizabeth Park at 257-2845.

MISCELLANEOUS
October 28 – Thursday
Martha Alderson, M.A., author of “Blockbuster Plots: Pure & Simple”, and Linda Joy Myers, Ph.D., author of “Becoming Whole: Writing Your Healing Story”, will help fiction and memoir writers create consistent character plot lines at this free clinic held at Borders Book Store, Westfield Shoppingtown, Oakridge. Event hours are from 7 – 9 p.m. Alderson will also be available to sign books. For more information, visit www.BlockBusterPlots.com or call Borders at 363-6900.

October 30 – Saturday
Diana Cornelius, author of “A L.I.F.E. Blueprint: Spirituality Designed for the Non-Religious,” will be presenting a free lecture from 10 – 11:30 a.m. at PlaneTree Health Library, located at Mission Oaks, 1581 Los Gatos-Almaden Road in Los Gatos. Reservation are recommended by calling 358-5667 or visit www.planetreesanjose.org.

Ongoing
Montgomery Hill Observatory at Evergreen Valley College will be offering star gazing each Wednesday evening, weather permitting. This activity is recommended for children ages 10 years and older. For reservations, call 270-6490 before 6 p.m. Star gazing will be cancelled if clouds cover most of the sky or if systems upgrades are in progress.


HAVE AN ITEM FOR OUR CALENDAR?

We are seeking calendar items pertaining to the south bay communities we cover in our seven monthly community newspapers: Blossom Valley, Cambrian, Campbell, Evergreen, Santa Teresa, Willow Glen, Fifty Plus, and our weekly publication, Almaden Times Weekly. Items must be submitted by email or fax several weeks before the event. Send an email to candy@timesmediainc.com or fax to Candy Richter at 494-7078. Photos should be sent digitally as jpegs or mailed to Calendar, Times Newspapers, 1310 Tully Road, Ste. 107, San Jose, CA 95122. Due to the large volume of items received calendar requests left on voice mail cannot be used. Space is limited.