Public Notice

It's Better Than Being Frowned Upon ...that's being looked up to, of course. What better way to feel like an honest-to-golly big shot than to help out a small fry? Here are a few community organizations that help kids get or stay on a sane path. They all need volunteers:

* Texas Runaway Hotline is accepting volunteers for training classes, next week, Wed, Sept 11. Hotline counselors provide callers with crisis intervention and info and referrals to community services. 463-1980.

* Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Austin will have an information meeting to help shorten the waiting list of over 250 kids in need of a kind pal, Thu, Sept 9, 6-7pm at 1400 Tillery. 472-KIDS.

* VICTORY Tutorial Program needs volunteers to link up with local students of all ages at eight branches of the Austin Public Library. While no teaching or tutorial experience is needed, this is a great opportunity for education-major types. 499-7317.

* Community Mentoring Network operates on a similar tip, but these kids have taken a brief tour through the Travis County Juvenile Justice Center. These teens are non-violent, first-time offenders and need your guidance. Be prepared to pass a background check and attend a meeting, Thu, Sep 5. 472-7627. We DARE Ya, PAL Members of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) are not too happy about the City of Austin's proposed cutting of all funding to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) and Police Activities League (PAL). They would like to call a public forum on the matter and to invite parents and students who feel the same way to get involved. The DARE program served fifth- and seventh-graders in AISD. Advocates tout statistics which indicate a higher attendance and smaller drop-out number among participants compared to other students. txacornaustn@acorn.org or 326-9372 or444-1315. Gotta Have Some Funk Y'all are gonna jump back and kiss somebody when you hear this line-up: Can it be true that within the three-evening span of Fri-Sun,
Sept 13-15, that James Brown, Bunny Wailer, George Clinton & the P-Funk All-Stars, Toots & the Maytals, and De La Soul, among many others, will perform to benefit the Chautauqua River School? The three-night One World Music Festival camp-out is at Camp Chautauqua on Lake Travis. Twenty environmental groups will attend the festivities to pass the good word about taking care of the planet, globally and locally, and all those other feel-good things.

Additionally, the Chautauqua Foundation, host of the festival, will sponsor a Clean-Up Day on the banks of Lake Travis and invite you out for a fun day in the sun helping to restore the shore's natural beauty. Meet at Camp Chautauqua on either or both Saturdays, Aug 31 & Sept 7, 10am-3pm. 264-1752. Inner Circle Girlfriend, f'real! Go see and be seen at the University YWCA's fall spectacular: Circle of Friends: A Celebration of Women in the Arts. Count yourselves among the culturally diverse and artistically inclined for this open-air celebration of la creme de la femme. Along with Austin's top women artists, the Latin band Wild Mango will jazz up the evening. The performing arts fest is Sat, Sept 7, 2-10pm at Fiesta Gardens. encanto@eden.com or 442-5986. They're Ba-a-a-a-a-ack In school, that is. And if you, like the majority of us, are a working parent, here's sweet relief for the latch-key set. Dougherty Arts Center offers Youth Arts Instruction After School Program for kids through middle school grades, again. They offer cartooning, papier mâché, computer art, clay, multi-media arts, photography, music, dance, and theatre. Registration will be accepted through Mon, Sept 9. 397-1458. Post-Hurricane Date No simple rain date, this! Not after last Saturday's deluge, which wiped out the Artists' Legal & Accounting Assistance (AALA) Garage Sale. Try again this Sat, Aug 31, 8am-noon at 4209 Ave. A. 476-4458. Hot Wheels Meltdown Don't forget, it's always the last Friday of the month (like, this Fri, Aug 30) to meet other mad-biker types and foot-power advocates at the Critical Mass "Anarchy Ride" (you want us to define that, punk???). Meet at the UT West Mall at 5pm, especially if you are "critical" of the new Helmet Law. powervegan@aol.com