Health Services of North Texas Hearts and Heroes “Havana Nights”

September 18th  •  6:00 pm
Silver Eagle Suite
“Havana Nights”, a recreation of the 1940’s-50’s Tropicana nightclub scene in Old Havana, featuring live dancers, authentic cuisine, and the thrilling Sax and Big Band sounds of Johnny Reno.  A silent and live auction, award ceremony, live music and dancing will add to echoing the yesteryear tunes of that era. Tickets are $125 per person and benefit the needy clients of Health Services of North Texas; please contact HSNT at (940) 381-1501 for more information or to purchase tickets.

Access 1st Capital Bank presents The Greater Denton Arts Council’s Fourth Annual Wild Beast Feast

September 25th  •  5:30 to 9:30 pm
North Texas Fair Grounds
A great fun family event for the entire community that features cooking teams from the community preparing a wide variety of “Wild Beast” dishes.  Thad Bounduras and the Fun Addicts will provide live music.  A live auction will be held.  Cooking teams will vie for Best of Beast. All proceeds benefit the Greater Denton Arts Council’s programs and projects.  Don’t miss the great event!
Margaret Chalfant 940-382-2787 or exdir@dentonarts.com
dentonarts.com

Cumberland Presbyterian Children’s Home Eighth Annual Fall Family Festival

October 9th  •  10 am to 4 pm
Cumberland Presbyterian Children’s Home Campus
1304 Bernard St.  •  Admission is free
We’ll have giant inflatable’s, pony rides and a petting zoo, a hayride and pumpkin patch, carnival games, a car and truck show, festival food, and much more! All proceeds from the event support CPCH’s programs for vulnerable kids, teens and families.

Denton Alumnae Chapter of Sigma Alpha Iota Annual Benefit Musicale

October 17th  •   3:00 pm
First Presbyterian Church of Denton
The Sundance Brass Quintet, comprised of faculty members from the University of North Texas and TAMU-Commerce, will be performing.  All donations benefit music scholarships at UNT and TWU.

Denton Benefit League’s
Eighth Annual Sensational Settings
October 26  •  Denton Country Club
“Every Day’s a Holiday”
For information dentonbenefitleague.org
or call Karen Milnes 940-497-4191

Our Daily Bread Community Soup Kitchen

Our Daily Bread serves a noon meal Monday through Friday to the homeless and those in need. No questions, paperwork or sign-in. Just a desire to provide a daily meal in a safe environment for all who are hungry, as well as physical and emotional support for the needy people of Denton County. Our Daily bread located in the kitchen and fellowship hall of St. Andrew Presbyterian Church at 300 W. Oak Street in downtown Denton. A professional chef, assisted by volunteers from more than 26 local churches and other community organizations, prepares and serves an average of 175 meals a day, Monday-Friday (12:00 noon until 1:15 pm daily, except Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day). Also, snack packs are being offered to patrons for the weekend, when Our Daily Bread is not open.

The program is dependent on the gifts of time, talent and treasures generously given by a large community of volunteers and donors. Individuals, church partners, local business and community groups support the program through volunteer hours, money, grants, goods and prayer.  These folks participate in a wide variety of activities in support of Our Daily Bread, including meal preparation, serving and clean-up, produce and commodity pick-up, agency coordination, special holiday distributions, and fund-raising.  Our Daily Bread receives no local or national funding.

Clients also have other programs available to meet their needs. A volunteer Program Director works closely with clients, referring them to appropriate agencies such as HOPE Inc., Interfaith Ministries, Family Resource Center and area Clinics.  Bus tokens and gasoline vouchers are made available for necessary transportation needs.  Hygiene products are distributed as needed and a nurse is available once a week for blood pressure checks.

The food is good, nourishing and filling.  The hearts of those who serve and those who are served at Our Daily Bread are filled too, with gratitude. There are many types of volunteer opportunities, as well as supplies and food items that Our Daily Bread always needs. Or, just come and visit.  Homelessness is isolating, and you can help by starting a game of chess or checkers, or discuss the latest book you read. Come be a part of something that makes a difference in Denton County.

For more information, contact Helen at 940 262 0871
or Billie at 940 271 4712, www.ourdailybreaddenton.org

A new sign, donated by First State Bank as part of their sponsorship program, could mean a lot of extra money for Ryan High School’s baseball team. The local bank is placing a new sign in the school’s stadium, offering donations in $2,000 increments when players hit the sign on a home run.

The colorful sign will display First State Bank’s traditional logo along with the slogan, “We hang it. You bang it.”  Ryan High School Baseball Coach, Bret Warnack said, “First State Bank has been  a mainstay in the Denton Community. The Raider Baseball program is proud and appreciative to have their support for our student-athletes.”  The new sign is just one example of the commitment First State Bank has in giving back to the local communities it serves.

“We support our community in a variety of ways, and this is just another example of how we can help,” said Marty Rivers, Executive Vice President and Chief Lending Officer of First State Bank. “The bank is excited to help Ryan High School’s baseball program. They rely on the booster club for a lot of their funding. The money will be a big help for them,” Rivers concluded.

Chartered in 1905, First State Bank is the oldest state bank in Texas. Combining the friendly customer service of hometown banking with innovative, state-of-the-art technology, First State Bank brings you a legacy of banking experience. First State Bank has 8 locations throughout North Texas, and a new branch is currently under construction in Rayzor Ranch and opening this summer.

For more information about First State Bank, please visit www.F-S-B.com.

Impacting Generations One Step At a Time

By Stacey Duncan

As an eighteen-year-old college freshman, she had it all: a new red Mustang for graduation, the latest designer clothes, and some great friends . . . when suddenly she discovered she might be pregnant.

What would she do?  How would she find help, information, and a caring, listening ear?   A friend told her about the Woman to Woman Pregnancy Resource Center, a clinic that offers free pregnancy testing and information on all pregnancy options. Woman to Woman is an organization that offers practical assistance to women and their families facing unplanned pregnancies.  But Woman to Woman doesn’t only serve pregnant women, it also offers services like STD testing, relationship education, and peer counseling at no charge.

Woman to Woman is a nonprofit organization supported through monetary and material donations.  New and gently used household items, furniture, and clothing are donated and sold through the Twice as Nice Resale, located at 413 East Oak Street (at the corner of Bell and Oak) in Denton.

This year’s Walk for Life offers an opportunity to gather pledges and walk a short two mile distance to benefit this local organization that has been providing practical assistance to women in unplanned pregnancies since 1986. Multiple locations offer supporters a convenient location to walk and enjoy family-friendly activities.

If you would like to help Woman to Woman Pregnancy Resource impact generations by participating in the Walk for Life, pledge forms are available at Twice as Nice Resale after March 15th. The Walk for Life will be held Saturday, May 1st. If you have any questions, email info@dentonprc.org or call 940-383-3150.

Woman to Woman is impacting generations one step at a time – won’t you walk with us?

Mardi Gras Festival
On February 13th, Denton Rotary will be hosting there Fourth annual Mardi Gras Festival from 6-10 pm at the Denton Civic Center.  The event will have Cajun food, jugglers, dancers, games, silent auction, prizes, and more!  Tickets are $35 at the door which includes game tickets and food/beverage tickets. The proceeds will benefit local charities, Interfaith Ministries and Salvation Army. For more information, go to www.mardigrasdentonrotary.com

If You LOVE Chocolate
The Denton Chocolate Festival, supporting CASA of Denton County will be held February 7th, from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm.  Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children.

Woman to Woman Pregnancy Resource Center
“We endeavor to empower women to make wise life choices through education and truth.”  All services are confidential and offered at no charge.  Services provided:  general information regarding pregnancy & reproductive health; on-site nurse for medical questions on health, reproduction, and pregnancy;  peer counseling;  pregnancy testing;  STD referral classes and classes on childbirth.

www.adoptaussoldier.org
To honor active US military personnel, Adopt A U.S. Soldier is a volunteer-based organization that connects supportive Americans with deployed soldiers and offers a channel by which to communicate  encouragement and express gratitude to the brave men and women serving our nation.

Sign up to “adopt” a soldier, and you will receive the mail and email addresses for a soldier.  These soldiers are looking for notes and/or letters, and a bit of encouragement from home.   Many have very little family and some have none, so they are not as fortunate to receive news and well wishes, as do other soldiers with family back home. Please visit the site, and adopt a soldier – they appreciate and love the letters more than we will ever know.

Vision Ministry
Vision Ministry is an outreach program provided by Denton Bible Church that ministers to others by going out into the communities to reach people where they are.  Clothing giveaways take place by going out to apartment complexes or mobile home parks and knocking on doors.  While the adults are looking through the clothes, Vision Ministry gathers the children and tells them a bible story.  It is so wonderful to see their eyes light up when they hear about Jesus and what he did for them. Donations of food, clothing, and furniture may be made at the Vision office at 107 Maple Street in Denton. For more information, contact Al Jacobson at 940 387 8230.

Salvation Army Thanksgiving Dinner
More than 2,000 people will share a free, traditional Thanksgiving Dinner with all the trimmings at the metroplex area Salvation Army homeless shelters. This will include homeless individuals and families that cannot afford to have a Thanksgiving-style meal at home. The meals will include turkey, dressing, green beans, mashed potatoes, yams, fresh rolls, and pumpkin pie. In The Salvation Army’s tradition, there will be festive decorations and place settings, to enhance the dignity of those who come for a meal, and volunteers will serve all participants at their tables.  You can participate on Thanksgiving Day, November 26, 2009 from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm, at the Salvation Army office, 1508 E. McKinney Street in Denton.

Angel Tree
Through the ever-popular Angel Tree program, The Salvation Army will collect hundreds of thousands of donated Christmas gifts to distribute to children and senior citizens. Local children’s names will be available to select from the tree.  The selection will include their list of a wish item, a need item and a clothing item, and the gifts will be collected at Golden Triangle Mall from Friday, November 13 until Sunday, December 13.  About 89 percent of recipients will be children and 11  percent will be senior citizens and disabled adults.  Please consider adding an extra “angel” to your tree this Christmas.

Christmas For Our Troops
Let our troops know we care!  That is the Christmas wish of Joan Anderson and her husband Jerry.  The two of them carry that blissful burden every week of the year.  For more than 18 months they have sent soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan requested want and need items.

Their list comes from Defenders of Freedom, and Joan and Jerry take as many as they possibly can. The names come consistently and, while using their own finances,  they want show these American Troops that “we are behind them and we thank them.”

They can use your help, especially for holiday giving.  You can donate any of the typical needed items: socks, CD’s, DVD’s, hygiene items, hand and feet warmers, warm gloves, snacks, international calling cards, or you can make a monetary donation that may help with the shipping and boxing of the items.

Make our country’s defenders part of your holiday, by being a part of a soldier’s Christmas. Contact Joan and Jerry at:  helpingoursoldiers@yahoo.com or 940-484-7646.