By Gwen DeRu
HAPPY BIRTHDAY…TO YOU… LEBOISE DERU, LEKAMEREN DERU, JACARYS BRAXTON AND LEKOTA DERU!! …MANY MANY MORE!!
“WISHING YOU THE BEST OF EVERYTHING!”
CELEBRATE MARTIN LUTHER KING’S BIRTHDAY
….AND BLACK HISTORY MONTH!
Don’t Forget….
BIRMINGHAM TIMES MARTIN LUTHER KING SPECIAL – Pick up your copy of the Birmingham Times special edition on January 15th.
….Here are a few things for the season…
FOR THE BLACK HISTORY LOVERS…
5th ANNUAL MLK UNITY WALK – The Birmingham Metro Diversity Coalition will host its MLK Unity Walk, at Railroad Park, Friday. This FREE and Family-Friendly event starts at 10 a.m. with a Children Fun Zone, 11:30 a.m. Opening Ceremonies with Activities and White Dove Release, Noon a Fifth Annual MLK Unity Walk. Bring your non-perishable food items.
THE COMMUNITY ART CONTEST – McDonald’s Celebration of Creativity in the Community Art Contest deadline is February 13. To celebrate Black History Month students across Central Alabama will tell a story of strength, hope and unity through art. Students should draw a picture or write a poem that expresses their depiction of the civil rights movement and the country’s progression. If you have paintings and poems, submit before the deadline to the Summit Media Group, 2700 Corporate Drive, Suite 115, Birmingham, Ala. 35242 (M-F 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.) or McDonald’s Office at 121 Summit Parkway, Homewood, Ala. 35209 (M-F 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.).
NEAR…..IN MONTGOMERY…..2015 MLK COMMUNITY CLEBRATION – ASU co-sponsors a musical event, 2015 MLK Community Celebration, to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision and legacy, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. at Davis Theatre, 251 Montgomery St., Montgomery. The public is invited to the musical event. The event’s theme is “A Message for the Future, From Keepers of The Dream” and will feature the Montgomery Interfaith Choir. Performances will be held at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Call (334) 229-6755 for more.
FOR BUSINESS OWNERS…
Selling your Small Business and Successions Planning – Financial Education is a fundamental tool for making informed financial decisions about managing your small business. BBVA COMPASS will host a business course on January 14, 9 – 10:30 a.m., 15 S. 20th Street, Birmingham Room – 2nd Floor. The course will help you to understand how to incorporate life-cycle issues and preparations for retirement into management planning. Call (205) 524-7044 for more.
FOR ART LOVERS…
BETA PICTORIS GALLERY is hosting an opening reception for WARHOL: FABRICATED curated by John Fields, Friday, 6 – 8 p.m. with a panel discussion at 4:30 p.m. WARHOL: FABRICATED is a remarkable presentation of private and public Warhol pieces that have never before been exhibited together. The innovative exhibition will combine a series of Warhol screen prints and 90 photographic prints owned by UAB, as well as loaned pieces from the Andy Warhol Museum, the Booth Western Art Museum, the Birmingham Museum of Art, beta pictoris gallery and private collectors, and an iconic photo of Warhol from internationally recognized photographer Bob Adelman. A panel discussion exploring the topic of appropriation in art and the works of Charles Lutz and Andy Warhol, featuring New York artist Charles Lutz and AEIVA Curator John Fields, moderated by AEIVA Director Lisa Tamiris Becker will take place before the opening reception for WARHOL: FABRICATED. In addition, work by well-known New York-based contemporary artist Charles Lutz from his “Denied Warhol Paintings and Sculpture” series is included in the exhibition. Charles Lutz is a contemporary conceptual artist living and working in New York. He received his BFA from the Pratt Institute. His work deals with value structures and the idea of transference of values. Lutz’s work has been included in exhibitions at numerous institutions and galleries, including the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh, Pa.; the New Museum in New York; and the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, Pa. His exhibitions have been reviewed in articles in the New York Times, Art in America, ART FORUM, Modern Painters, and the Huffington Post, amidst others.
MAGIC CITY SMOOTH JAZZ RECEIVES NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS – National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Chairman Jane Chu announced today that Magic City Smooth Jazz is one of only 163 nonprofit organizations nationwide to receive an NEA Challenge America grant. Magic City Smooth Jazz is recommended for a $10,000 grant to support Jazz in the Park®. Jazz in the Park® is a summer concert series that travels to various underserved community parks to enhance cultural arts activities at no cost to the public. For the past five years, this concert series was held primarily in the Greater Birmingham area each Sunday from May – August. In 2015, Magic City Smooth Jazz and Alabama State Parks Division will collaborate to present concerts in four Alabama State Parks. Concerts will continue in Jefferson, Shelby, and Tuscaloosa counties.
(Photo Credit – Luther Strange)
MOUNTAIN BROOK CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 5th ANNUAL LUNCHEON – Luther Strange is the Keynote speaker at the Annual Luncheon, 11:30 a.m. at The Club Grand Ballroom on January 15th. The Mr. Wilmer Poynor, III Jemison Visionary Award will go to the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce, Dr. John Poynor The Tynes Award will go to the Emmett O’Neal Library, The City of Mountain Brook will receive the Stephen Gay Award, City Employee of the Year award, and the Mountain Brook City School will receive the 2014-2015 Leadership Mountain Brook Class.
FOR OUTDOORS LOVERS…,
SATURDAY, 8 a.m. – Southeastern Outings Dayhike, at the Turkey Foot and Borden Creeks, Sipsey Wilderness, Bankhead National Forest. Details: Enjoy an especially beautiful, moderate 3½ mile hike along Turkey Foot and Borden Creeks. There may be as many as 22 waterfalls on this trip. There are usually at least two fine waterfalls on the ¾ mile walk along Turkey Foot Creek. To assist with going up or down the possibly slippery bank beside one of the Turkey Foot Creek waterfalls hikers will be provided with the opportunity to use an assist rope. You will not be climbing a vertical cliff on a rope. Your feet will always be on the ground. It is just that having the rope gives you something solid straight in front of you to hold on to instead of scattered rocks and roots as you go up or down the short, about 20 foot distance. After the hike to the end of Turkey Foot Creek, walk beside the Sipsey Fork River a short distance to Borden Creek. The hiking route then follows Borden Creek where you can look for additional waterfalls and admire the gorgeous cliffs. Along Borden Creek the trail runs through a short, but very dark tunnel. You can stand up through the entire length of the tunnel. Please bring a small, bright flashlight with you to light your way through the tunnel. Optional dinner after. Well-behaved, properly supervised children age 7 and older able and willing to walk 3 ½ miles without complaining are welcome. Reservations Required: Call Dan Frederick, (205) 631-4680 or email your reservation to seoutings@bellsouth.net by 5 p.m. Friday. Leave phone number or email address. This outing is limited to 30 people, and will break up into a maximum of three separate groups of 10 people each to comply with U.S. Forest Service regulations. If you make a reservation with Dan to come on this trip and then for any reason decide later to not come on this outing, you are required to telephone Dan, right away.
SUNDAY, 1 p.m. – Southeastern Outings Dayhike at Oak Mountain State Park. Details: Enjoy a moderate four-mile walk in the woodlands near Birmingham on a Sunday afternoon. This is an excellent outing for introducing your friends to Southeastern Outings and for making new friends who enjoy the outdoors. This hike may be partially off the color-coded trails. There will be some ups and downs. Well-behaved, properly supervised children age eight and up able to walk the distance of about four-miles and complete the hike are welcome. Share an adventure! Bring a friend. Depart 1 p.m. from the Oak Mountain Park office parking lot. Please bring $3/person ($1 seniors and children) park admission fee plus your drink. For more info. contact : Edd Spencer at (205) 317-5868.
HERE ARE A FEW MORE THINGS GOING ON…
THIS WEEKEND…
Friday…
**Ona’s Music Room is jumping.
**THE KINKY APHRODISIACS, CAPTAIN IVORY and AMERICAN ANIMAL at The Nick on southside.
Saturday…
**TIDE AND TIGER LOUNGE, 8 p.m. on Graymont Avenue across the street from Legion Field. Open Tuesday through Sunday.
**SKEPTIC?, THE RESERVES, MEDICINE KING and ECONOMY CARTEL at The Nick.
GIFT OF LAUGHTER….IN THE ‘HAM… AT THE STARDOME AND IN DA HOOD… …LAUGHTER FOR THE NEW YEAR…
**AT THE STARDOME…DON’T MISS… COWBOY BILL MARTIN and CINDY KAZA, this weekend… Cowboy Bill Martin is one of the most talented performers seen on stage today. The Texas native, who has toured with some of the biggest names in country music including George Jones, George Strait, Brad Paisley and Rascal Flatts and has headlined clubs and theaters across the U.S. and Canada, delivers an electrifying performance which uniquely combines real stories of do-it-yourself mishaps, plus hilarious stories of love, life and hope.
CINDY KAZA is a clairvoyant (clear seeing), clairaudient (clear hearing) and clairsentient (clear feeling) who works across the country as an evidential medium. Evidential mediumship is a style of mediumship practiced around the world that puts heavy weight on the medium’s ability to bring through extremely specific evidence to the sitter. This evidence can include, but is certainly not limited to, names, personality traits, physical ailments, favorite past times, and phrases often used by loved ones in spirit. The purpose of this style of mediumship is to diminish skepticism among sitters and to prove that the medium is truly connecting with the client’s loved ones in spirit.
COMING SOON…, DON ‘DC’ CURRY – January 16-19, SMOOTH JAZZ – January 22, STEVE McGREW – January 23-25, TONY ROBERTS – January 30 – February 1, DL HUGHLEY – February 6-8, FINIS HENDERSON – February 13-15, SHERYL UNDERWOOD – February 20-21, MIRANDA SINGS – February 7-8 (Tell Bruce that Gwen sent you.) Enjoy some good laughter and fun times while you eat some great food with your friends. For more, call (205) 444-0008.
**MORE LAUGHTER…COMEDY IN DA HOOD at the New Tide and Tiger on Graymont Avenue. Comedians are invited! Call (205) 503-3880 for more.
**MARCH 5-9 – BRIDGE CROSSING JUBLIEE in Selma, Alabama.
NOW…. BIRTHDAY SHOUT OUTS!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU… LEKAMEREN DERU, KACARYS BRAXTON, LEKOTA DERU, JANICE BELL, DEIDRA PERRY, CHARLES MCCAULEY, RENEE KEMP-ROTAN, KYLE WHITMIRE, PHYLLIS CONNELL, BETTINA BYRD GILES, MICHAEL GOULD, EVERETT SPRUILL AND TO ALL CELEBRATING!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ALL YOU BIRTHDAY BALLERS…MANY, MANY MORE HAPPY BIRTHDAYS!! ENJOY!!
Well, that’s it. Tell you more ‘next’ time.
(People, Places and Things by Gwen DeRu is a weekly column. Send comments to my emails: thelewisgroup@birminghamtimes.com or gwenderu@yahoo.com.)
