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Erie PA News and Events for Wednesday May 21, 2008

The Erie Graffiti Task Force continues to mount a crack down on vandalism. District Magistrate Judge Tom Carney, head of the group, is jumping in front of every TV camera and telling every reporter around town about the problem. Yesterday, the case of Daniel Montano of Pittsburgh was spotlighted. Montano faces life in prison and up to $600,000 in fines and restitution for 79 counts of graffiti vandalism. Surveillance cameras will be placed around town and reward money will be offered for tips leading to arrests.

Rebecca Hart of Erie won the 2008 United States Equestrian Federation’s (USEF) 2008 National Para Equestrian Championships. Hart and her 16-year-old Hanoverian gelding Norteassa claimed the title with a final score of 72.473. Running concurrently with the Para Equestrian National Championships, six riders including Hart were competing for a spot on the 2008 U.S. Paralympic Equestrian Team. The Paralympic Equestrian Team will be announced later this week. This would be Hart’s first Paralympics. Her friends at The Therapeutic Riding Equestrian Center have to be thrilled for her.

Get a Touch of Escape all week long at the Community Blood Bank. The Community Blood Bank and Myosage Massage Therapy are teaming up for a promotion that will allow one lucky donor to break away from their hectic schedule for a while. Through Saturday, May 24, all donors are able to enter to win a soothing spa package from Myosage Massage Therapy. The package includes: a 1 Hour Full Body Massage, 1/2 Hour Hot Stone Massage Therapy, Paraffin Sessions and a basket of relaxing spa products. “This promotion starts at a great time,” said Brittany Yost, Donor Resource Coordinator at the Community Blood Bank, “it will help to boost the inventory before the holiday weekend. Memorial Day weekend is one of the hardest weekends on the blood supply during the summer. It’s so great to have a local business, like Myosage, helping to keep the blood supply at a safe level. We encourage donors to come in to save a life and get a relaxing treat at the same time.”

The 2008 City of Erie Parks and Recreation Guide was released. Partnerships with the Erie School District, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and the Housing Authority of the City of Erie allow us to provide safe and organized summer fun for the residents of the City of Erie. There are activities planned at all 53 City of Erie Parks. (There are really 52 as they count Perry Square as two parks.) There are a million things to keep adults and kids occupied all summer long.

Still looking for house plants or flowers for your yard? The Dr Gertrude A Barber National Institute Greenhouse offers plants and flowers available for sale year round, including seasonal items such as an array of annuals and hanging baskets in the spring, mums in the fall, and poinsettias at the Christmas holiday. Open Monday-Friday from 8 am to 4 pm. Located off the Bayfront Parkway near East Ave. Call (814) 878-4103 for information.

Like pinball? Chris Bucci of Erie has been collecting pinball machines for 15 years. He’s holding an Open House in his arcade-like basement on Saturday June 7. He’s the list of wheat he owns: Family Guy, Terminator 3, No Good Gofers, Medieval Madness, Scared Stiff, Big Bang Bar, Safe Cracker, Johnny Mnemonic, The Shadow, Whitewater, Fish Tales, The Addams Family, The Getaway, Funhouse, Diner, Whirlwind, Earthshaker, Taxi and Banzai Run. His email address is on his web site.Contact him if you’re interested in attending.

A professor in the Sam and Irene Black School of Business at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, is organizer of next month’s “Bangladesh in the 21st Century” conference at the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Syed Saad Andaleeb, professor of marketing at Penn State Behrend, is president of Bangladesh Development Initiative (BDI). BDI is jointly hosting the June 13 and 14 scholarly conference in collaboration with the Democracy and Development in Bangladesh Forum of Boston, Mass., and the Roy and Lila Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard’s John F Kennedy School of Government. As the conference’s primary planner, Andaleeb has worked with the US Department of State and the Bangladesh Embassy in Washington, DC, to make travel arrangements for Bangladeshi scholars, coordinated conference speaker invitations, scheduling and publicity, arranged for U.S., Bangladeshi, and European media coverage of the event, and secured $40,000 in sponsorships to help cover the conference’s expenses. In addition to his conference organization duties, Andaleeb will give a research presentation, “Knowledge Generation in Nation Building: A Vision for Higher Education in Bangladesh,” based on his three Fulbright Fellowships spent at BRAC and East West universities in Dhaka. BDI is a US-based nonprofit composed of independent scholars who promote educational exchange between the United States and Bangladesh, which has the tenth-largest population in the world. In addition to coordinating scholar-exchange programs and hosting conferences to debate Bangladesh’s political and social policies, BDI publishes the Journal of Bangladesh Studies and archival collections of Bangladeshi indigenous knowledge. The Black School of Business at Penn State Behrend supports production of the Journal of Bangladesh Studies, as does the American Institute of Bangladesh Studies, a consortium of US universities and colleges pursuing research on Bangladesh.

Aspiring dancers are invited to join the Mercyhurst North East Summer Dance Intensive, July 7-19, on the Mercyhurst North East campus and in downtown North East, PA. This is the second year for the intensive, which is designed for dancers of all levels, ages 12 through adult. Intermediate and advanced dancers will be challenged by the core curriculum that focuses on a wide range of dance genres and beginning dancers can develop their skills through introductory classes. Students can choose to attend for the full two weeks, or by the class. Dance genres that will be covered include flamenco, ballet, pointe, modern, pas de deux, improvisational dance, jazz, and hip-hop. Courses will also be offered in drama and voice. Performing artists from the area and around the world are teaching at the intensive, including world-renowned flamenco artist Luis Montero. Housing will be available for students in the MNE campus dormitories. The deadline to register is May 23. For more information on the MNE Summer Dance Intensive contact Gina Illingworth at (814) 725-6345.

RedShift Ventures, an Arlington, Va-based early-stage venture firm, has named Tom Ridge of Erie, CEO of Ridge Global LLC, first Secretary of Homeland Security, former Governor of Pennsylvania, former Congressman, to their advisory board. RedShift primarily invests in the communications, microelectronics and information technology sectors and is traditionally the first institutional investor in a company.

The Erie SeaWolves dropped their second straight to the Bowie Baysox on Tuesday night by a score of 10-5 in front of 4,445 at Jerry Uht Park. The SeaWolves and Baysox continue their four-game series on Wednesday afternoon…12:05 First Pitch. RHP Matt Righter (0-1, 6.28 ERA) takes the mound for the ‘Wolves against RHP Kyle Schmidt (0-0, 4.50 ERA). It’s Weird Science Day on WACKY WEDNESDAY! Join us for School Days presented by UPMC Health Plan and learn all sorts of neat stuff by Bill Nye the Science Guy. Show your Giant Eagle Advantage Card for $2 off Reserved Seat Tickets.

The Mercyhurst women’s varsity eight was selected to compete in the 2008 NCAA Division II Women’s Rowing Championships May 30 through June 1 at the Sacramento State Aquatic Center in Gold River, Calif.

Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Jake Westbrook and closer Joe Borowski, both on the disabled list, will each make one minor league appearance before they are activated. They’ll be with the Class AA Akron Aeros when they host the Erie SeaWolves.

The Technology Council of Northwest PA brings you the 5th Annual Business Intelligence and Technology Summit (BITS) event will be held today, Wednesday, May 21 at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. This event presents an opportunity for IT managers, CEOs, and professionals to gather, discuss, and learn about the forces shaping our regions IT industry. This year’s BITS theme will focus on Emerging Technologies for Business. This one-day event will be host to a full day of seminars, workshops and product demonstrations. They will have 15 topic speakers, as well both a morning and luncheon keynote address. Morning keynote speaker is Nortel President and CEO Michael Zafivorski who is a graduate of Edinboro. Mike Richwalsky of Erie Blogs and Allegheny College will speak on the new trend of cloud or grid computing, using off-site resources for storage, content delivery, data processing, and more with Head in the “Cloud”. Register online.

Every Wednesday is FREE admission to all four Erie Art Museum galleries from 11 am to 5 pm.

Beaches at Presque Isle State Park open for the season on Saturday, May 25. The regular hours for lifeguards are 10 am to 7:30 pm. Swimming is not permitted on unguarded beach areas. To answer the four questions I am always asked: Camping is not permitted on the park. There are a number of boat launch areas. Dogs are allowed however, they must be on a leash. There are no restaurants but there are concession stands at Beaches 6, 8, 10 and 11.

Alzheimer’s Association- Greater Pennsylvania Chapter presents “A Celebration of Caring, An Afternoon of Enlightenment and Recognition” on Thursday, May 22, 11:30 am - 1:30 pm. Luncheon at The Regency at South Shore, 322 Washington Place, Erie, PA 16505. Featuring: Melanie Titzel, MS, Co-Chair Greater Pennsylvania Board of Directors and the presentation of the “Caring Touch” Award honoring outstanding performance in dementia patient care. Join us for an afternoon of enlightenment and recognition as you hear the touching story of Melanie Titzel’s journey with Alzheimer’s disease on a personal and professional level. The Caring Touch Awards are reserved for the “the best of the best” and offer you an excellent way to salute a deserving caregiver and recognize employee accomplishments This event is open to all professionals and family caregivers, and the community. For questions, please email Kristen Bires or call her at (814) 456-9200.

KillerWolf Films is holding meetings/open auditions for their new feature film “Warriors of the Apocalypse” on Friday May 23 and Friday May 30. They will be held at the Erie Playhouse Rehearsal space at 12th and Brandes Streets in Erie from 6-9 pm both days. Shooting commences Saturday July 19 and wraps Sunday July 27, with filming being in the Northwestern PA area and possibly a few dates on the NJ/PA/NY border. KillerWolf Films latest release, “Fist of the Vampire”, is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com and is to be released worldwide July 8 from Maxim Media International/Brain Damage Films. KillerWolf Films is co-owned by Erieite Len Kabasinski and Meadville,PA native Lisa McQuiston.

The 11th annual Memorial Day Shootout soccer tournament will be held at Family First Sports Park in Erie PA, May 24-26. Over 250 teams U9-U19 are registered for the tourney. This is one of the top college recruiting tournaments in the country with dozens of colleges sending representatives. All area hotel rooms are booked and waits at area restaurants are expected.

Special events for are planned for Memorial Day weekend at the Erie Maritime Museum, Homeport of the US Brig Niagara. Climb aboard the reconstructed warship, the US Brig Niagara, which carried Oliver Hazard Perry to victory in the Battle of Lake Erie on Sept 10, 1813. The bayfront museum features hands-on exhibits, a one-of-a-kind “live fire” exhibit, a dockside amphitheater and spectacular views of Presque Isle Bay. The museum will celebrate its 10th anniversary on May 24 with hands-on activities, living history demonstrations, and live music from 10 am - 4 pm. Holiday weekend hours: Monday and Saturday: 9 am - 5 p.m.; Sunday: 12 pm - 5 pm.

The Manufacturers’ Association of Northwest Pennsylvania Eggs ‘n’ Issues topic on Wednesday, May 28 will be Keeping Pennsylvania Producing: A campaign to keep business from leaving Pennsylvania and the United States. The speaker will be David Bell, Coalition Member, The American Council for a Strong Economy. Price is $30 for members and $60 for non-members.

The Erie Capacity-Building Collaborative will be holding a FREE workshop on Fiscal Management 8:30-4 on Wednesday May 28. The workshop will be held at the GECAC Main Conference Room, 18 West 9th Street in Erie. It’s open to all community-based and faith-based grassroots organizations. Please RSVP at least one week in advance by contacting Lindsey Kimmy, 459-4581 Ext 448.

The 18th annual Erie Wild Rib Cook-off and Music Festival will be held May 28-31 at Perry Square in downtown Erie. Admission is FREE. This popular annual family event includes eight Professional National Award Winning Rib Cooking Teams offering the very best in BBQ cuisine. Added attractions include a selection of delicious festival foods, ongoing stage music, the “Kid ZONE” - a children’s fun area featuring scheduled Ride-A-Ribba-Rama packages, artist and crafts booths, educational and informational displays, specialty vendors and more. This festival has grown to attract over 50,000 visitors to Perry Square Park and the adjacent streets in Erie’s downtown district.

Dafmark Dance Theater and Erie Homes for Children and Adults (EHCA) presents “Partners in Dance VII: Modern Jazz Ain’t No Cakewalk.” The performance will begin at 1:30 pm on Thursday May 29 at Saint Benedict’s Community Center located at 320 East 10th Street and will feature dancers from the Dafmark Dance Theater and EHCA. The event is FREE and open to the public. For more information, call (814) 454-1534 x103.

JR’s Last Laugh Comedy Night Event to benefit Because You Care will be held at 6:30 pm on Thursday, May 29. Comedian: Juston McKinney. Food and drinks are available before and during the show. Ticket price: $15.50 Juston McKinney is one of the hottest comedians in the country. Coming to us from New York City, he has headlined many of the clubs in NY such as Caroline’s, Comic Strip Live, Dangerfield’s, and Stand-up NY. He’s been featured at the Toyota Comedy Festival and on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and had his own show on Comedy Central. He is a US Comedy Arts Festival Award Winner, and delivers a funny, original, high energy performance, which has made him a huge hit all over the country. Call (814) 899-0061 to buy single tickets or blocks of tickets. Circle May 29 on your calendar today and plan to enjoy a great night of entertainment. Get your party together and share the night with friends and family! A big thank you to JR’s Last Laugh Comedy Club for sponsoring the 6th annual Comedy Night event. The money raised will help Because You Care pay for the spay and neuter of the many kittens taken in during April and May.

The charity bellydance event, “Shimmy for a Cure”, will be held May 31 at the Erie Playhouse in downtown Erie, PA. This event will benefit the John Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation.

The Saint Vincent Sports Medicine 2008 Edinboro Triathlon will be held May 31. You can register here.

Preview dresses owned and worn by nationally-recognized celebrities like Martina McBride, Beyonce, Amy Grant, Ann Curry, Raven Symone, Patti LaBelle and many others from 12:30-3 pm June 1 at Lake Shore Country Club. The Celebrity Dress Preview event will benefit My Father’s House of Erie, a nonprofit transitional program for homeless/abused women and their children. The organization operates the retail store Bella Designs, 4801 Peach Street, in which women in the program have the opportunity to learn vocational skills and work experience. “These dresses are telling of the personalities who owned them ,” said Connie Miller, My Father’s House Of Erie, special projects administrator, “and this event will be a casual Sunday afternoon here in Erie by the lake to see them before they travel to Los Angeles for our live on-line fashion show auction in the Fall,” she added. The event will also feature guest speaker, Pete McDaniel, Senior Writer, Golf Digest Magazine and “Training a Tiger” co-author with the late Earl Woods, will entertain the audience with his storytelling and will auction four original Tiger Woods autographed photos from the legendary golfer’s PGA 20007 victory. Sponsored by Fishtank creative, an Erie-based marketing advertising and communications agency, powered by the Velocity Network, the host committee is comprised of Melanie Johnson, Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership, Cynthia Phillips, Motivational Speaker, Alan and Angie Rossum, NFL San Francisco 49ers (formerly of the NFL Pittsburgh Steelers), Shaun and Shonda Smith, NFL Cleveland Browns, and Dr. and Mrs. Matthew Thomas, St Vincent Health Center. Tickets are $35 per person or $50 per couple and available at the following locations: Bella Designs, 4801 Peach Street; All GE Federal Credit Union branches; and National City Bank, 801 State Street. For more information, please call (814) 879-0880.

The Technology Council of Northwest Pennsylvania will hold a Breakfast Briefing, “Understanding Financial Ratios Your Banker Looks At”, Wednesday, June 4, 7:30 am to 9 am, at the Holiday Inn Express, 8101 Peach Street in Erie. Free to members, $40 non-members. RSVP by May 30. Advanced registration is required.

Erie Chamber Orchestra presents “A Tribute to Victor Herbert” on Friday June 6 at St Patrick’s Church, 130 East 4th St in Erie. A tin-pan alley composer, Herbert played the cello and wrote many light operas. Some of these works include “The Wizard of the Nile,” “The Fortune Teller,” and “Babes in Toyland.” The concert is FREE and open to the public. Show time is 7:30 pm.

On Saturday, June 7, 2008 there will be a Nautical Flea Market from 10 am to 1 pm at the BCMS (Bayfront Center for Maritime Studies) 40 Holland Street, Erie, PA. The event is FREE and is held in conjunction with Erie Safe Boating Day. All boaters (power/sail) are welcome. Tables for selling nautical wares are available FREE of charge but table reservations MUST be made by calling Linda Dunbar before May 28th at (814) 456-9060. A bulletin board will also be available to post items too large to display.

Head Coach John T Reilly of Gannon University will conduct three sessions of basketball camp this summer. Sessions will be held June 9-13, June 23-27 and August 4-8. His coaching staff, area high school coaches and several of his players will serve as camp instructors. The sessions are designed as teaching camps that emphasize the fundamentals of the game of basketball. The camps are for students in Grades 3-10.

Penn State Behrend will host its second international conference on injection molding, “Injection Molding: Innovation and Emerging Technologies,” from June 10-12. The three-day conference will feature 24 technical presentations, offered concurrently in the mornings, and hands-on tutorials in the afternoons. Two keynote speakers will address attendees on Wednesday and Thursday - Rob Neilley, editor-in-chief of Injection Molding Magazine, and William Carteaux, president and CEO of The Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc, respectively. On Tuesday, all are invited to tour the local Rehrig Pacific Company plant, located at 1738 W 20th Street in Erie. Advance registration for the conference if required.

The first Erie Downtown Partnership Block Party of 2008 will be held Thursday June 12 on the 1300 block of State Street in front of Calamari’s Squid Row. The event is FREE. Food and beverages will be available for sale. One World Tribe will provide the music.

The 84th annual Lake City Fire Company Carnival will be held June 12-14 in Lake City, PA.

The eMarketing Learning Center at eBizITPA will hold a roundtable titled Aligning Marketing and IT for Success from 4 pm to 5:30 pm on June 18.

The Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (LECOM) will hold a Summer On Campus Day, 1 pm - 4:30 pm on Friday, June 20 to provide opportunities for prospective students to tour the campus facilities and learn about the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Doctor of Pharmacy Program and the Health Sciences Post Baccalaureate Program. Please confirm your attendance for the event with Maggie Crosswhite or Camille Jennings.

The Erie Summer Festival of the Arts will be held June 27-29 at Liberty Park.

Erie’s gay, lesbian bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community will come together the weekend of June 28-29 to celebrate Pride 2008 with a picnic, march/rally, and social opportunities. Festivities get underway Saturday, June 28, with the Pride Erie Picnic at Rotary Pavilion, Beach 7 at Presque Isle State Park. The Pride Picnic runs from 1-6 pm with food being served from 2-4 pm. The Pride March will step off from The Zone Dance Club at 1 pm. Sunday, June 29, with the Pride Rally beginning in Perry Square at 2 pm. Information about the Erie area Pride March/Rally is available at www.ErieGayPride.org, by email at eriegaypride@gmail.com, or by calling 866-229-1974 (toll free).

There will be a Rust Belt Bloggers Summit on July 11-12 in Erie. People from Youngstown, Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and other area cities will be attendance to discuss economic development issues in the region.

The Manufacturers’ Association and Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority annual Roar on the Shore motorcycle rally will be held July 17-20, 2008. While downtown Erie serves as the hub of the rally, related events take place throughout the city and region. Most notably, two outdoor concerts featuring major artists will be held Friday and Saturday, July 18 and 19, at Liberty Park along Presque Isle Bay.

Posted by Dennis at May 21, 2008 7:05 AM

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