ALAMEDA
For hardcore dance fans, curious adventurers and casual drifters, the free, family-friendly Runway Dance Festival will present a weekend of dance, music and stories celebrating the vitality and creativity of Bay Area dance from 2 to 5 p.m. May 4-5 at Alameda Point’s Radium Runway.
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Alameda briefs: Bette Center photo exhibit on display now through May 25
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Alameda briefs: Kiwanis group accepting college scholarship applications
Discover the works of leading Bay Area companies, Tara Pilbrow Dance (Alameda), Embodiment Project (San Francisco) and Post:ballet (Berkeley). Also, experience performances by youth companies from four of the Bay Area’s leading dance schools: Alameda Ballet Academy/Alameda Civic Ballet, Berkeley Ballet Theater, Roco Dance, and Shawl-Anderson Youth Ensemble/Shawl-Anderson Dance Center.
While you’re there, dine from the Locos Only Fusion Food Truck and grab drinks and snacks from the Radium Bar. Hosted by Radium Presents, the Runway Dance Festival is a part of Bay Area Dance Week, an inclusive celebration of movement and dance. Radium Runway is at 2151 Ferry Point in Alameda. For details online, visit radiumpresents.org/runway-dance-festival-2024.
— Radium Presents
Libraries to loan out laptop computers for up to three days
Officials with the Alameda Free Library system are excited to announce the launch of their brand-new Laptop Lending Program, bringing the power of computing directly to community members. The program is meant to remove barriers to technology by offering laptops for loan at the library system’s main, West End and Bay Farm Island branches.
Anyone who doesn’t have a computer at home can now check out a laptop for up to three days, perfect for learning new skills: Brush up your resume, take online courses, or prepare for that big certification exam; staying connected: Video chat with loved ones, manage social media or finally conquer that online job application; or entertainment on the go: Stream movies, catch up on the latest shows or explore the wonders of the Internet.
The library system’s popular Wi-Fi hotspots are the perfect companions for these loaner laptops, creating a mobile workstation wherever you roam. Also, the borrowed laptops automatically erase all personal information upon restart, ensuring your privacy is always protected.
Ready to check out? Laptops are available for loan and can even be placed on hold. Visit your local branch or the library system’s webpage at bit.ly/3vVV0Wo for more details.
— city of Alameda
Former Apollo test pilot Johnson, 99, flies plane on birthday
Wallace “Wally” Johnson, a former Apollo test pilot and former Alameda Aero Club president, celebrated his recent 99th birthday by flying ‘thrice around’ in a pattern, doing three touch-and-goes at Oakland International Airport. Happy birthday, Wally!
— Liz Sommers, Alameda Aero Club
Kiwanis Foundation scholarship applications due Monday
The Alameda Kiwanis Foundation is accepting scholarship applications for the next academic year with $100,000 altogether available in awards. Foundation officials encourage graduating seniors from Alameda’s high schools to apply. Application forms are available at school sites’ counseling offices and online at alamedakiwanis.org.
The awards are open to Alameda residents and nonresidents, provided that the applicant graduates from an Alameda school and meets the eligibility criteria. High school seniors planning to attend community colleges are also urged to apply.
Applications and documents must be completed, submitted and postmarked (if submitting by mail) no later than Monday. Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Mail your application, if preferred, to Alameda Kiwanis Foundation, P.O. Box 1217, Alameda, CA 94501. Email it if preferred, along with any questions, to alamedakiwanis@gmail.com. For online details, visit k01025.site.kiwanis.org/scholarship-application.
— Kiwanis Club of Alameda
Bay Farm Island waterfront trail detour to start Monday
A large segment of the waterfront trail starting at the Bay Farm Ferry Terminal and leading up to Creedon Circle on Alameda’s Bay Farm Island will close from Monday through May 10 while the city widens and repaves the trail, eliminating hazardous conditions and creating a smooth walking and riding surface. Marked detours are in place.
Many young people use these trails as they travel to and from school, so please use extra caution. The city is working hard to finish the work quickly and will open the improved trail sooner if possible.
Visit bit.ly/3U5E3Ay online to help plan an alternate route, and please report all requests for service and trail repairs at seeclickfix.com/us-ca-alameda/report.
S.F. music festival organizers working on sound mitigation
The Portola Music Festival is planned to return to San Francisco’s Pier 80 for its third year on the weekend of Sept. 28-29, and event organizers are working to mitigate the sound and vibrations felt in Alameda. Read more about these efforts and how you can share your feedback online at alamedaca.gov/RESIDENTS/Portola-Music-Festival.
— city of Alameda
Bette Center photo exhibit on display now through May 25
During the weekend of the full moon in February, 48 photographers were loosed upon this island for 48 hours, each assigned to document their assigned 1/48th of Alameda. The results of that weekend are now on display in the Frank Bette Center’s annual “Alameda On Camera” photo exhibit on display now through May 25.
The exhibit is dense with visual and emotional content providing visitors with images that are fondly familiar and provocatively peculiar. A disparate bunch, some of the participants had resumes and websites as photographers while others worked at all manner of blue-, white- and plaid-collar jobs. Some had been up-scaling their equipment and skills for decades while some were youths lit with a new fever for photography.
Picturesque Alameda provides countless opportunities for the visually hungry to feast. The city is steeped in history and has an eye focused on a progressive future, but the images shown here are timeless in that they all rely on universal elements of design, organization, color, value, focus and texture to share with the viewer a unique visual experience enjoyed during “Alameda On Camera.” For more information, visit bit.ly/3JjDkaa online.
— Karen Braun Malpas
Paw Prints fundraiser to benefit animal shelter, Bette Center
Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter (FAAS) officials and staff say they’re excited to announce their Paw Prints fundraiser, a chance to buy amazing, one-of-a-kind portraits of the animals you love.
Artists with FAAS and Alameda’s Frank Bette Center for the Arts will paint your pets from photos you supply, and the proceeds will be split evenly to benefit both groups. The cost of a portrait is $50 plus tax with an option for shipping.
The artist may create a watercolor or acrylic painting; a pen-and-ink, pastel or charcoal drawing; or a digitally altered photo. Your portrait will be finished in an 11-by-14-inch format. To participate, choose your favorite photo, visit frankbettecenter.org/order-a-pet-portrait online, provide payment information and upload a photo in .JPG format for the artist to work from.
The Bette Center will host a June 22 reception to view all the portraits, thank the artists and distribute the purchased pet portraits (they can be shipped to anyone who can’t attend).
— FAAS
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