Mujer Aguila
By Kate X Messer, Fri., Oct. 9, 1998
Don't Waffle. Raffle!
There is one week left to purchase raffle tix for two local sweepstakes. Literacy Council of Williamson County is giving away a Pentium computer, a TV, camcorder, VCR, and microwave to five lucky winners at a drawing next Sun, Oct 18 at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock. Tickets are $5 each. Also next weekend, St. Luke Infant Care Center will hold its annual raffle featuring prizes from over 40 local vendors. Tickets are $1 each or six for $5. The drawing is Sat, Oct 17, 4-7pm, at Pease Park. Literacy Council, 244-6647 or 244-6648; St. Luke's, 478-3113 or 443-0231.
Happy Campers
Central Texas Camp Fire Boys & Girls will be Collecting Food throughout the month of October (see, there's that month, again!). They'll be raiding pantries all over town and county, collecting door-to-door, at schools, at churches, libraries, and shopping centers. Some will even Trick-or-Treat for your canned yams or creamed corn. They will donate the goods to the Hospice Austin Food Pantry. 462-2777.
And speaking of Hospice and Camps ... Hospice's support camp for kids who have recently lost a loved one is accepting names for its list for Camp Brave Heart 1999. This year's camp brought over 50 kids ranging in age from 6 to 16 together to help them cope with their grief in an atmosphere of fun, relaxation, and trust. The camp is free of charge, and next year, Hospice hopes to offer slots to at least 75 kids. 342-4700 or 800/445-3261.
A Chihuahua, a Loaf of Pizza, and Thou
What, ma cheri? You are not impressed with our fine selection of cuisine to wine you and dine you and show you the ways of love? Would it impress you more, mon ami, if we told you that we made a donation in your name at the local Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, where we chose to sup, in order to benefit Any Baby Can? Yes, oooooh, we thought so, little babushka; you are a compassionate soul, no? Who? All those people? Mmmmm, kitten, never mind them, they are just here to learn that the Taco Bells and Pizza Huts in their area will have canisters set up throughout the month of October to collect the extra loving change that people wish to contribute. Yes, mon petit chou chou, we may go back to what we were doing before we became so civic minded. 454-3743.
Write 'Til You Cramp
Amnesty International Local #500 will host a six-hour Human Rights Write-a-Thon, this Sun, Oct 11, noon-6pm at Ruta Maya Coffee House. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the UN's ratification of the Declaration of Human Rights, writers and activists will scrawl, scribble, and scribe letters on behalf of prisoners of conscience worldwide. Volunteers will be writing for a per-letter pledge amount. Come out and write, pledge, or just to enjoy tunes from Matt the Electrician, Kristin De Wistt, Chip Dolan, Mike Rosenthal, and more. 371-3253.
This Li'l Piggy Went Vrroooom!
The wild biker babes at Austin's SafePlace are getting their motors runnin' to get one of you out on the highway with a brand spankin' new spankable Hog-a-roonie. Yep, you heard right. SafePlace is giving away the cream of the American cycle crop, a real live 1999 Harley-Davidson Sportster. It all happens next week, Thu, Oct 22, 6-9pm at Hog Heaven, their annual Anniversary Serenade at the Austin Music Hall. Christine Albert hosts the evening, featuring Asleep at the Wheel and her own Boxcars. there will be hors d'oeuvres, dancing, and a full cash bar. In addition to the Harley, their raffle features other cool prizes like two American Airlines tickets, and a $250 Target gift certificate. Admission is $25 per person and raffle tickets are available for $5 each or six for $25. 385-5181.
Laced With Love
It just takes one afternoon, but the territory you cover lasts for a year. Every year that we can get out the tennies, the sneaks, the Air Jordans and hoof it across town for AIDS Services of Austin, we do. And even when we can't, we try to get out the pledges and submit them on AIDS Walk day. It's a rush seeing all those people joined together for Austin's big annual party on foot. Sure, it's only 5K. It's no marathon, but when you finish with the thousands of other walkers, you'll know you've accomplished something. AIDS Walk Austin 1998 is next Sun, Oct 18. Sign-ins begin at noon and the walk takes off across East Austin at 2pm, departing from Waterloo Park. ASA gets 75% of the take and then distributes the other 25% between 15 area organizations. Take it from us: It's easy to raise a lot of dough for ASA this way -- even if you are starting this late. 406-6115.
What Month Isn't It?
Well, it isn't Hug the Independent Counsel Month; as far as we know it's not National Dry-Cleaning Month, and we're almost totally sure it isn't Buy Your Intern Staff a Box of Cigars & Tell Them to Go Nuts Month. Nope. No way. But October does seem to be just about every other lovin' type of month and its mother: It is, for example, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, as we addressed a few columns ago. It's also AIDS Awareness Month (AIDS Walk '98 coming up! See above!). It's Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and you'll see SafePlace's big fall event listed above. It's National Orthodontic Health Month and Archaeology Month. Phew. For the public service community, the "new fall season" addresses so much more than Ally McBeal's new hiked up mini-skirt or the shake-ups on Melrose. We're talking a new fall season of Fundraising, baby. We're talking big gun events. Maybe it has to do with the fact that this is the time of year to gear up for a next few months of gluttony; Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Eve -- all these holidays have come to represent the best in American Excess. Maybe it's just because the nights are crisp and the days less blazing. As the ripples of our Austin summer settle into the cloudy cool of autumn, our town sees more than just physical change. With the cool comes an invigorated commitment to community, to purpose, to cause, to change. So go and make it your month to do something.
What's Goin' On?
All you Public Service Publicity-types, update your mailing list today! Your Chronicle contact for this "Public Notice" column should remain Kate X Messer, but you may wish to consider adding our wild dude "Community Listings" editor, J.C. Shakespeare to your roster. Between us, we are attempting to cover as many events in as many applicable sections of the paper as possible. Unfortunately, J.C. and the home office for "Public Notice" have very different hours and locales, so sending separate items will ensure that both get your important info. J.C.'s e-mail address is commpage@auschron.com. See snail-mail address below. 385-5181.
E-mail: pnotice@auschron.comMail to: "Public Notice," The Austin Chronicle, P0 Box 49066, Austin, TX 78765. Deadline: Wednesday, 6pm, eight days prior to publication. Phone calls have a .001% chance of being returned.
