Long features
Take a Taste of Granite Bay
Event benefits A Touch of Understanding
Date Published: October 2007
A taste of this and a taste of that - it seems that everyone is offering a taste of something.
On Oct. 11, thanks to organizers from A Touch of Understanding (ATOU), the Granite Bay Kiwanis Club, the Gold Trail Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and Quarry Ponds, Granite Bay is offering it's own taste.
And a grand event it will be.
A Taste of Granite Bay will offer food and wine samplings, local artists, live entertainment, a fashion show, speakers, raffle and silent auction.
The event, which is scheduled for 6-10 p.m. throughout Quarry Ponds, will feature samples from Quarry Ponds restaurants as well as other restaurants in the community. Wine tastings will be provided by area wineries, including the new Auburn winery Lone Buffalo Vineyards.
A fashion show featuring the Quarry Ponds retailers will be going on between musicians. But the real fashion show may be worn by the guests.
The black tie optional event will be a who's who of the community. Local politicians, business owners and philanthropists have all been invited.
Featured artists include Gayle Morgan, Lorelee Love, Blue Reid, Felicia Lamb, Diane Thorp, Sandy Delehanty, Tommie Moller, Valerie Story, Juan Pena and Paula Amerine. Each will be demonstrating their art or have works on display and many have also donated works for the auction. In addition to these artists, Thien Dao, Kerry Clark and Gerda Francesca have also donated works for the auction.
Although the works of art will certainly be a focus of the auction, many other items will be included. Rollingwoods Racquet Club has donated a year membership, Attorney William Walker donated $500 toward estate planning and Richard and Calla Krupp have donated a week stay in a vacation condo in Victoria, British Columbia. Many other items are also up for bid, including tickets to the River Cats and a pair of designer sunglasses.
Another prize is a computer donated by Professional Computer Service in Granite Bay.
"We haven't quite decided if it will be a silent auction item or raffle, but it will go home with someone that evening," says Glover.
Proceeds from the event will go to ATOU, a unique nonprofit that brings hands on activities to schools and other groups in order to provide a deeper understanding of people with disabilities.
"It's a springboard for all differences and a springboard for understanding of all disabilities," says ATOU founder Leslie DeDora.
The group incorporated in 1996 and since that time has brought their program to a widening array of students. Through activities like mirror writing, writing in Braille and maneuvering a wheelchair, ATOU allows kids to get a better understanding of folks with disabilities from dyslexia to blindness to being confined to a wheelchair. Disabled speakers also give students a chance to ask questions and overcome their fear of people who are "different."
"What we are finding is not only the respect and understanding of people with disabilities, but respect for people in general improves in the classroom," says DeDora.
ATOU speakers, those who volunteer with the program and educators who have experienced the program in their classrooms, will join musicians at the three main gathering areas in Quarry Ponds as guests mingle.
"We are hoping to stagger our speakers into those three areas so that they would be addressing small informal groups, rather than standing up and speaking to the whole group. That way there can be question and answers and more of a connection made," says DeDora.
Organizers are hoping for 400 attendees, but they can accommodate up to 500 guests.
"My job is try to get people to understand about the program and I want the Granite Bay community to be proud of it," says Glover.
Flyers are available at the stores in Quarry Ponds and tickets are available by calling 791-4146. Tickets may also be purchased at the registration tables located at either end of Quarry Ponds the night of the event. Advance tickets are $60, tickets purchased at the door are $75.
For more information on ATOU, including a video about the presentation, visit www.touchofunderstanding.org.
On Oct. 11, thanks to organizers from A Touch of Understanding (ATOU), the Granite Bay Kiwanis Club, the Gold Trail Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and Quarry Ponds, Granite Bay is offering it's own taste.
And a grand event it will be.
A Taste of Granite Bay will offer food and wine samplings, local artists, live entertainment, a fashion show, speakers, raffle and silent auction.
The event, which is scheduled for 6-10 p.m. throughout Quarry Ponds, will feature samples from Quarry Ponds restaurants as well as other restaurants in the community. Wine tastings will be provided by area wineries, including the new Auburn winery Lone Buffalo Vineyards.
A fashion show featuring the Quarry Ponds retailers will be going on between musicians. But the real fashion show may be worn by the guests.
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"It's going to be a dressy affair," says organizer Susie Glover. "It is really a community event."The black tie optional event will be a who's who of the community. Local politicians, business owners and philanthropists have all been invited.
Featured artists include Gayle Morgan, Lorelee Love, Blue Reid, Felicia Lamb, Diane Thorp, Sandy Delehanty, Tommie Moller, Valerie Story, Juan Pena and Paula Amerine. Each will be demonstrating their art or have works on display and many have also donated works for the auction. In addition to these artists, Thien Dao, Kerry Clark and Gerda Francesca have also donated works for the auction.
Although the works of art will certainly be a focus of the auction, many other items will be included. Rollingwoods Racquet Club has donated a year membership, Attorney William Walker donated $500 toward estate planning and Richard and Calla Krupp have donated a week stay in a vacation condo in Victoria, British Columbia. Many other items are also up for bid, including tickets to the River Cats and a pair of designer sunglasses.
Another prize is a computer donated by Professional Computer Service in Granite Bay.
"We haven't quite decided if it will be a silent auction item or raffle, but it will go home with someone that evening," says Glover.
Proceeds from the event will go to ATOU, a unique nonprofit that brings hands on activities to schools and other groups in order to provide a deeper understanding of people with disabilities.
"It's a springboard for all differences and a springboard for understanding of all disabilities," says ATOU founder Leslie DeDora.
The group incorporated in 1996 and since that time has brought their program to a widening array of students. Through activities like mirror writing, writing in Braille and maneuvering a wheelchair, ATOU allows kids to get a better understanding of folks with disabilities from dyslexia to blindness to being confined to a wheelchair. Disabled speakers also give students a chance to ask questions and overcome their fear of people who are "different."
"What we are finding is not only the respect and understanding of people with disabilities, but respect for people in general improves in the classroom," says DeDora.
ATOU speakers, those who volunteer with the program and educators who have experienced the program in their classrooms, will join musicians at the three main gathering areas in Quarry Ponds as guests mingle.
"We are hoping to stagger our speakers into those three areas so that they would be addressing small informal groups, rather than standing up and speaking to the whole group. That way there can be question and answers and more of a connection made," says DeDora.
Organizers are hoping for 400 attendees, but they can accommodate up to 500 guests.
"My job is try to get people to understand about the program and I want the Granite Bay community to be proud of it," says Glover.
Flyers are available at the stores in Quarry Ponds and tickets are available by calling 791-4146. Tickets may also be purchased at the registration tables located at either end of Quarry Ponds the night of the event. Advance tickets are $60, tickets purchased at the door are $75.
For more information on ATOU, including a video about the presentation, visit www.touchofunderstanding.org.
Susan Jameson is the editor of the Granite Bay View. She can be reached at susanj@goldcountrymedia.com.
