Community Calendar
September 2007

October 26-27: Things That Go Bump in the Night at the Bowers Museum 8:00 PM, ((2002 North Main Street in Santa Ana - in the Norma Kershaw Auditorium). Truly unusual, it is an evening (and an encore afternoon performance) with ghost and mummy stories that come to life in a 30s-style radio play format portrayed by talented actors you've seen on Orange County and Los Angeles stages. Commissioned by Bowers Museum, Cecilia Fannon, playwright, screenwriter, and director, has adapted three classic tales for the stage. Time: 8 PM (on Friday, with an additional performance on Saturday, October 27 at 2 PM.). Cost: $18/members; $20/seniors & students; $22/general. For further information, call 714/ 567.3600 or visit the Museum website.

October 27: Sea Scare 2007 at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium (3720 Stephen M. White Drive in San Pedro). The CMA will be transformed into a frightfully fun adventure with activities, crafts, demonstrations, entertainment, and of course ... trick or treat. Costume guidelines are available online. Time: 6:30 - 9 PM. Cost: $5.00/adult; $1.00/children & seniors. CMA members are admitted free with a special early entrance time of 6 PM.
Additional information can be obtained by calling CMA at 310/548.7562, or visiting their website.

October 27: Annual Friends Native Plant Sale at the El Dorado Nature Center (7550 E. Spring Street in Long Beach). Learn about the beauty and benefits of California native plants and then take some home to start your own garden habitat. Your donations will benefit the Center and help to support habitat restoration. $6 parking fee will be credited to purchases of $75 or more. Preview time for Friends’ will be at 8:30 AM. The sale will open to the public from 9 AM - 2 PM.

October 27: Kids Day at the Mission Theme: “Mission Scene Investigators” at the Mission San Juan Capistrano. Children will be “investigators” into the past by participating in historical games and activities. A Clue Passport will be given to all participants in the historical clue hunt. At each station, the Clue Passports will be stamped to show that an activity was successfully completed by our detectives. Prizes will be awarded at the main entrance to all children who show their stamped Clue Passports. Activities also include storytelling, crafts, games, and face painting. Time: 10 AM - 2 PM. Admission free for all kids ages 4-11 who wear historical costumes. Additional information on the Mission website.

October 27-28: Halloween Mourning Tours at Heritage Square Museum (3800 Homer Street in Lincoln Heights/Highland Park). This annual event is perfect for the whole family. adult visitors will learn about the history of Victorian mourning practices in America during the early 20th century. Guests will visit a house in mourning, about the origins of Halloween and the Victorian fascination with ghosts and spirituality. On Sunday only, October 28 only, children ages 2 to 12, are invited to come in costume, play period games, enjoy and make in 19th century harvest crafts, choose a pumpkin for the pumpkin patch, listen to spooky stories, and receive treats from our costumed interpreters. Hours: 12 - 4 PM (both days). Museum admission prices are $10.00 for Adults; $8 for Seniors over 65; $5 for Children 6 to 12 years; and free for Children under 6 and Museum members. Appropriate costumes welcomed for kids 1 to 12 on Sunday only. In the evening of Saturday, October 27, the museum will host its first ever Halloween and Mourning Movie Night. Features will include classic Walt Disney Halloween cartoons, the famous 1922 silent classic Nosferatu and more. Guests are encouraged to bring a chair or blanket to sit on, a small picnic, and warm clothing. Beverages, popcorn and candy will be available for purchase. Admission to the Halloween and Mourning Movie Night is free for Museum members and $10.00 for the general public. The gates will open at 7 p.m. for picnics with the show starting at dusk. Additional information can be obtained at the Heritage Square Museum website.

Coming In November 2007

November 3-4: Sixth Annual Autumn Festival: A Celebration of Asian Cultures at the Aquarium of the Pacific (Long Beach). The festival features music and dance performances, displays of artisans’ works, Origami Magic, an interactive demonstration, cultural storytelling, ethnic cuisine, and children’s crafts. Various cultural organizations will host displays . Also featured will be a display by the Martial Arts Museum, the world’s first museum entirely dedicated to the history of martial arts. Hours: 9 AM - 5 PM, both days. For additional information, phone 562/590.3100, ext. 0, or visit the website.

November 4-5: Intertribal Marketplace at the Autry National Center (Griffith Park in Los Angeles). Santa Fe in Southern California! The largest regional Native American art sale showcases pottery, jewelry, sculpture, paintings, mixed-media artworks, weavings, beadwork, woodcarvings, and cultural items created by more than 100 Native artists. Hours: 11 AM - 6 PM (Saturday) and 11 AM - 5 PM (Sunday). Enjoy Native dancers, singers, and musicians as they perform throughout the weekend. Also, on Sunday only, there will be a story time for children (1:30 PM), and a Native Voices play, “Plymouth Dodge De Soto” by Cherokee playwright Diane Glancy (2-4 PM). Additional information is available on the Autry Center website.

November 10: Author Brian Jacques at Barnes & Noble (7881 Edinger Avenue in Huntington Beach). Jacques’ bestselling Redwall books star animals in medieval England who must protect their home from evil. This is a wristband event with a signing limit of two items per person. Time: 4-5 PM. Call the store at 714/897.8781 for additional information.

November 10: Sixth Annual L.A. Storytelling Festival at the Expo Center in Exposition Park (3980 South Menlo Avenue in Los Angeles). A variety of events for the family - from concert performances to workshops and story swaps. Tickets available for specific events and all day; visit the website for price schedule and to order.

November 17: Elizabethan Festival at The Huntington Gardens and Library (1151 Oxford Road in San Marino). Step back in time to experience all the color and pageantry of the Elizabethan court. Events include a recreation of the annual Accession celebration of Queen Elizabeth I. Enjoy period music and dance; mingle with merchants, courtiers, and soldiers; talk to explorers about their voyages to the New World; annd pay your respects to the queen herself. Cost: General admission. Time: 11 AM - 4 PM. For more information, call 626/405.2100 or visit the Huntington website.

November 18: Acorn Harvest Festival at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Gardens (1500 N. College Avenue, Claremont). Celebrate the acorn harvest season at the Garden with members of the Tongva tribe. Culture keepers will share the local Indian lifestyle and demonstrate Indian uses of native California plants. Learn to twist fiber into cordage, make, and paint with, a yucca brush, and make a shell necklace. For an additional fee, you can also learn basket weaving and create your own basket. Time: 11 AM. Cost: $5 per person or $20 per family; pre-registration is recommended. For additional information, contact Cotton Coslett 909/625.8767 ext. 224 or visit the Garden website.

November 18: Key to the Sea Educator Workshop at the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium (3720 Stephen M. White Drive in San Pedro). This free educator workshop provides the materials and curriculum for K - 5th grade teachers who want to bring their class to the Key to the Sea Program available at a number of local marine education facilities and on Cabrillo Beach as part of an enhanced self-guided visit to CMA. Time: 9 AM - 3:30 PM. For more information about this collaborative watershed marine education effort, check out Key to the Sea website or call the CMA at 310/548.7562.

November 23-25: LOSCON 34, at the Los Angeles Airport Marriot Hotel, sponsored by the Los Angeles Science Fantasy Society. The roles of archaeology and paleontology in science fiction and fantasy are the themes for this year’s regional convention. Events include gaming, a marketplace, an art show, anime, childrens’ (13 and under) masquerade, and more. Visit the website for schedule, and driving directions.

November 24: Family Fun Days: Animals in Literature at the Cal Poly Pomona Downtown Center (300 West Second Street Pomona). Various fun activities will be used to examine the role of animals in literature. Storytellers, art activities, as well as live animals will be utilized to spark awareness and curiosity. Free books will be given to all children attending. Time: 1 - 4 PM. This event is part of The Big Read, an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest. For additional information, visit the event website, or call Jonnie Owens 909/869.4689 or send an email.

November 24: 10th Annual Three Stooges Film Festival at the Alex Theatre (216 North Brand Blvd., Glendale). This year’s features include: Micro-Phonies (1945), A Plumbing We Will Go (1940), Hoi Polloi (1935), Pop Goes the Easel (1935), and Punchy Cowpunchers (1950). Additional information can be found on the theatre website. Showings at 2 and 8 PM only.

About The Letter Home

Once again with this edition ... I am testing delivery method.  While the Constant Contact service has been an interesting learning experience for me, I will be discontinuing its distribution service.  Future editions will be delivered through TLH Yahoogroups. TLH will also be available on the BayShore website, and at our new blog.

The Letter Home is published monthly by BayShore School & Educational Services. The newsletter is available through TLH email group, the BayShore website, and on the TLH blog.  Please feel free to share this with others.

The events listed in this newsletter are not planned by BayShore (unless otherwise noted). Questions about events/activities should be directed to the person/organization cited in each item.

The views expressed in articles and advertisements in The Letter Home belong to the authors and advertisers, not necessary to The Letter Home, BayShore Educational Services or its owners and staff.  

Edited by Lenore Colacion Hayes and two cats, Fig and Max who try very hard to get this in your email box by the 10th day of each month.  Unfortunately, sometimes life gets in the way and an edition is late, or just never materializes.  Thank you for your patience!

Dia De Los Muertos Celebrations

October 27: Dia de Los Muertos Celebration at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery (6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood). Experience a Day of the Dead procession with traditional Aztec blessings and regional musi and dance group dedications. In addition to over 100 community altars, there will be arts and crafts; interactive family activities; historical lectures; and performances. Hours: 4 - 11 PM. If you cannot attend, visit the website for a gallery and videos of previous years’ celebrations. This is one of (if not the) best celebrations in southern CA! Event is free; donations accepted. Event information is available on the website or by calling 323/447.0999. For those interested in creating an altar, call 323/653.2383 or send an email.

October 27: Family Fun Days: Dia de los Muertos at Cal Poly Pomona Downtown Center(300 West Second Street Pomona). Children and their families will create art celebrating Dia de los Muertos. Children's books celebrating themes from "Bless Me, Ultima" will be read in story circles, and a community altar will be constructed. TimeL 1 - 4 PM. This event is part of The Big Read, an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the institute of Museum and Library Services and Arts Midwest. For additional information, visit the event website, call Jonnie Owens 909/869.4689 or send an email.

November 1-2: Dia De Los Muertos Festival at Olvera Street (El Pueblo De Los Angeles Historic Park, 845 N. Alameda Street in Los Angeles). Enjoy colorful, ancient Mexican ceremony in remembrance of departed loved ones, beautifully decorated altars, entertainment and a Novenaria procession that takes place nightly at 7 PM. Additionally, throughout the day (10 AM - 9 PM), there will be children’s workshops, face painting, pinata breaking, and entertainment (mariachis and ballet folklorico). For more information please contact Valerie Hanley at 213 /716.1373. To learn more about Dia de Los Muertos, visit the Olvera Street website.

November 3-4: Mexican Day of the Dead Family Festival: A Celebration of Life at the Bowers Museum (2002 North Main Street in Santa Ana ). Two special days of celebration and remembrance. This is a time to honor the memory and legacy of our departed family members as we welcome back their spirits in a festive reunion with offerings of food, music, and art. Enjoy the art and traditions of Mexico with George Newnam's fourth annual display of life-sized skeletons in the casa de calaveras special exhibit. 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM: Make colorful art projects, decorate sugar skulls, and enjoy a delicious tamale, pan de muerto and Mexican hot chocolate, then have your face painted by our famous face painters! Hours: 11 AM - 4 PM. Call 714/ 567.3600 for more information, or visit the website for performance and workshop schedules.

Homeschool News

Homeschool Days at Legoland Carlsbad
for the 2007-2008 School Year

Complete the online registration form to receive a discount coupon ($17.00/person for one-day) good for any of the Homeschool Days. Parking is not included in the discount, and no discounts are available at the gate without the coupon. Coupons are valid only on the designated homeschool days.

Dates in 2007

Oct. 29
Nov. 5, 12, 19, 26
Dec. 3, 10

Dates in 2008
Jan. 7, Feb. 4 Mar. 10, Apr. 14, May 12 and May 19

For additional information and to register for the discount, visit the Homeschool Day web page at Legoland’s website. Legoland’s phone number is 760/918.5346.

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