Category Archives: Events
On a spring weekend in Berkeley, a city full of happenings
This past weekend in Berkeley was action packed and the weather more than cooperated for the many al fresco activities. At the UC Berkeley Commencement on Saturday, held at the newly remodeled Memorial Stadium, Apple-co-founder Steve Wozniak gave a 15-minute talk in which he recalled his adventures as a Cal student and offered some formulas for happiness, one of them being: “Happiness equals S minus F (smiles minus frowns).” … Continue reading »
The It List: Five things to do in Berkeley this weekend
JAZZ ON FOURTH STREET The 18th annual Jazz on Fourth Street Festival takes place on Sunday, May 19, from noon to 5 p.m. on Fourth Street in West Berkeley. The event is a benefit for Berkeley High School’s phenomenal jazz programs. The free day will feature the Dixieland sounds of famed radio host and trombonist Mal Sharpe’s Big Money in Jazz Band; the classic blues sounds from harmonica master Mark Hummel and the Blues Survivors; and the Latin jazz sounds of drummer and Berkeley High School alum Josh Jones and his Latin Jazz Group. The Berkeley High School Combo A, awarded DownBeat Magazine’s 2011 Best High School Combo Award, and the grand finale from the full 22-piece Berkeley High School Ensemble, directed by Sarah Cline. There’s always great food and drink too, and Berkeleyside, a proud sponsor, will be there with our booth. Come by and say hello! … Continue reading »
18th annual Jazz on Fourth kicks off on Sunday
The 18th annual Jazz on Fourth Street Festival kicks off on Sunday, May 19 at noon. The free festival supports the renowned jazz programs at Berkeley High.
“School districts around the country have trouble keeping their arts and music programs thriving,” said Marshall Lamm, who helps organize the festival. “Berkeley High’s jazz program has been a source of pride for the community for so long. It takes a community and it takes concerned citizens to support the kids. Every bit helps.”
Sunday’s program includes Dixieland from Mal Sharpe’s Big Money in Jazz Band, blues from Mark Hummel and the Blues Survivors, and Latin jazz from drummer and BHS alumnus Josh Jones and his Latin Jazz Group. The full 22-piece Berkeley High School Ensemble, directed by Sarah Cline, will provide the festival’s finale. … Continue reading »
Photo essay: Edible Schoolyard Plant Sale
The Edible Schoolyard at King Middle School held its annual Plant Sale on Saturday, May 11. The event, a big fundraiser for the Edible Schoolyard, featured food, live music, student-led tours, cooking demonstrations, and plenty of plants to snap up. Contributing photographer Nancy Rubin was there. … Continue reading »
Berkeley Public Library South Branch: The opening
Saturday May 11 saw the official opening of the new South Branch of the Berkeley Public Library on MLK Jr. Way and Russell St.
The library, designed by architects Field Paoli at a cost of $6.5 million, includes the city’s Tool Lending Library. It is significantly larger than the old library building and energy efficient. Supporters, library-goers and Berkeley government officials turned out in force to mark the occasion. … Continue reading »
The It List: Five things to do in Berkeley this weekend
MORE SALAD The 11th annual Edible Schoolyard sale takes place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 11. It features delicious food, live music, student-led tours, raffe prizes and, as you’d expect, plenty of plants for your garden. Gardening advice for novices to experts is on hand as well. Activities are aimed at both children and adults. Edible Schoolyard, King Middle School, 1781 Rose St.
GAME, SET, MATCH Cal is one of the 16 hosts for the first two rounds of this year’s NCAA women’s tennis team tournament. The first round started today with a morning match between 21st-ranked Auburn and 40th-ranked St. Mary’s. The seventh-ranked Cal Bears have an afternoon match against Stony Brook. Cal is led by fifth-ranked nationally Zsofi Susanyi. The winners from the first round play starting at noon on Saturday, May 11, at Hellman Tennis Stadium, on Frank Schlesinger Way on the western edge of the Cal campus. Tickets (cash only) are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors, youths and students. … Continue reading »
Police watch for violence at funeral for 19-year-old
Berkeley police were out in force Thursday for the funeral of Ceejay Reed, 19, at McGee Avenue Baptist Church in South Berkeley.
The police established a visible presence on McGee and Stuart Street around 11 a.m. in an effort to deter a repeat of a shooting Tuesday night in East Oakland during a street vigil for Reed. On that occasion, a car driving by a group of people mourning Reed in the 5000 block of Melrose Avenue fired 20 to 30 bullets, one of which killed a 19-year-old Antioch man. Some of the bullets shattered the window of Oakland Fire Station 18, narrowly missing two firefighters, according to news reports. … Continue reading »
New South Branch library to open in Berkeley on Saturday
It was four days to D-Day and the place was hopping.
Painters rolled on a last coat of paint. IT guys fiddled with computer wire while architects strolled around looking for last minute glitches. Carpenters nailed sheets of plywood to a storage area.
In just a few hours, the new South Branch of the Berkeley Public Library was set to open. And, while the bulk of the construction was done, there were numerous small things that hadn’t been completely finished, like the landscaping, shelving all the books, installing all the computers, and the final build-out of the Tool Library.
“We have a lot to do in the next few days but we are feeling good about it,” Donna Corbeil, the city librarian, said on Tuesday. When pressed, though, about whether it would be finished, she took a long pause before answering with a resounding “Yes!” … Continue reading »
Officials oppose Feds’ suit to shut pot dispensary
Update 9:00 p.m.: US Attorney Melinda Haag told the Oakland Tribune in a prepared statement that “we continue to take a measured approach and have only pursued asset forfeiture actions with respect to marijuana retail sales operations very near schools, parks or playgrounds, at the request of local law enforcement, or in one case, because of the sheer size of its distribution operations.”
Original story:
City and state officials and medical cannabis advocates vowed Wednesday to fight back against … Continue reading »
Joan Lester draws on her background for Mama’s Child
In 1962, when Joan Steinau Lester was 19 years old and living in New England, she fell in love with a young African-American writer. Her family disapproved, so the idealistic young woman ran off to New York City to join her boyfriend. The young couple married six months later — an act that was illegal in 27 states – and eventually had a son and a daughter.
Raising two biracial children in a world that still regarded segregation as matter of course was not easy, but as the Civil Rights movement gained momentum, prompting a breakdown of racial barriers, society grew more tolerant. Today, one out of every 12 marriages is made up of people of two different races, according to the 2010 census. There are 4.2 million biracial children in the U.S. … Continue reading »
The It List: Five things to do in Berkeley this weekend
SECRET NO LONGER The annual Willard Middle School Spring Plant and Pizza Sale is described by its organizers as the “best kept secret” of the neighborhood. No more. Pizza is made with vegetables from the Willard garden — really a small urban farm — and visitors can buy plants and pick up free compost (donated by the City of Berkeley). The sale runs from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 4. Pizzas made on the student-built outdoor pizza oven will be available from 10:30 a.m. Entrance through the garden gate on Telegraph Ave. between Stuart and Derby. … Continue reading »
Meals on Wheels supporters feast for a cause
Supporters of Alameda County’s Meals on Wheels program came out in droves last Friday night to Oakland’s Scottish Rite Center to raise money for the agency, which feeds homebound seniors throughout the county.
Organizers announced Thursday that a total of $225,000 was raised, via auctions and donations throughout the night.
The event, dubbed “Five Star Night,” was Meals on Wheels’ 26th annual benefit. Berkeleyside Nosh proud to sponsor the event. Attendees heard stories about how the agency’s work benefits seniors, both through providing nutritional meals — more than 2,100 warm meals each weekday — and also by offering social interaction with volunteers who deliver the food. This year in particular, the non-profit reported needing more help than ever, according to agency Executive Director Cindy Houts: “With the potential for sequester cuts, funding for 50,000 meals might be cut,” she said. “We need to be ready to fill that gap.” (Scroll down to see photographs from the event.) … Continue reading »
The It List: Five things to do in Berkeley this weekend
BE PREPARED A 6.9-magnitude earthquake will hit the Hayward Fault on Saturday, Apr. 27 — simulated in a citywide emergency preparedness drill. Sign up on the city page to participate in local neighborhood drills from 9 to 11 a.m. No matter what your level of community emergency response team (CERT) training, you’re welcome to join in the drills, feedback from experts, and then a citywide debriefing. Earthquake prediction remains a field filled with more noise than signal, but seismologists have consistently warned that the Big One is likely to hit the Hayward Fault in the foreseeable future. Read the Berkeleyside article on the emergency drill.
YOU EAT WHAT THEY FARM Family physician Daphne Miller traveled to seven innovative family farms around the country to uncover the connection between how we care for our bodies and how we grow our food. Miller will be talking about what she found in her visits and, while writing Farmacology, on Saturday, Apr. 27 at 4 p.m. at Mrs. Dalloway’s Bookstore, 2904 College Ave. Miller, who lives in Berkeley, is a practicing physician and professor of family medicine at UCSF, as well as a noted author. Her previous book, The Jungle Effect, looked at the healthy diets of poor native populations around the world. There’s a wine and cheese reception at The Dailey Method around the corner, immediately after Miller’s talk. … Continue reading »
