Benefit supports arts in CH-UH schools

“C’est la vie” is the theme of this year’s benefit and auction to support RoxArts, a nonprofit that brings enhanced arts education to students at Roxboro Elementary and Middle schools. The annual fundraiser will be March 5, at 7 p.m. at the Heights Rockefeller Building. Tickets are $25 in advance; $30 at the door. To make reservations, call Susan Ford at 216-932-2223. For general questions or to donate items, call Chesca Hadden at 216-932-7169.

Jeff Milchen, cofounder of the American Independent Business Alliance, will speak Wednesday, March 24, 7 p.m., at the Cleveland Heights Community Center.

Milchen, a nonprofit entrepreneur, writer and speaker best known as an advocate for independent businesses, community economic vitality and representative democracy. He frequently facilitates trainings for communities organizing independent business alliances, "buy local" campaigns, prolocal policy and other programs designed to enhance local economic development centered on local entrepreneurs.

The Home Repair Resource Center’s Home in the Heights subsidiary is about to complete the renovation and reclamation of another previously vacant and foreclosed property in Cleveland Heights, at 3519 Edison Road. 

The public is invited to an open house on March 20 to see the results of this energy- and green-conscious overhaul that includes a new roof, deck, bathroom fixtures, and heating and air-conditioning systems; a new kitchen complete with a bamboo floor; rebuilt front steps; and a remodeled basement complete with rec room and working fireplace.

Like many young Clevelanders, I twiddled my thumbs after graduation and looked for jobs in exotic (and expensive) cities. But unlike most of my peers, I discovered that the universe had other plans. I received a phone call announcing that an internship had opened up at International Partners in Mission, a small international nonprofit based in Cleveland Heights.

Escape the winter doldrums by spending the evening at Fairmount Church Cooperative Nursery School’s Second Annual Winter Carnival. After the fantastic turnout for the 2009 carnival, the school is again preparing for a fun-filled night of great food, raffles, carnival games with prizes. The festival is the main fundraiser for the parent-run cooperative preschool. Dinner tickets are $8 for ages 6 and up, $5 for ages 3-5 and free for ages 2 and under. The school is located in Fairmount Presbyterian Church as 2757 Fairmount Blvd. (at Coventry) in Cleveland Heights. For more information, contact the school at 216-321-5800.

Christina Hidek is a volunteer at Fairmount Presbyterian Church.

Heights High is the common link that brings together two Lee Road neighbors, Reaching Heights and Clyde’s Bistro and Barroom, for an event on March 8 that benefits the Heights schools.

Clyde’s is the new restaurant in the former diners at Lee and Overlook, next door to the Reaching Heights office. Considering that Clyde Mart, the bistro’s namesake proprietor, is a 1949 Heights High graduate, it was a natural fit when Reaching Heights sought a venue for a benefit dinner. The result: Hot Jazz on a Cold Night: Reaching Heights Night at Clyde’s, which will feature the musical stylings of a jazz ensemble of current Heights High students to accompany Clyde’s culinary stylings.

Heights Community Congress has scheduled its Heights Heritage Tour for the weekend of Sept. 25 and 26. The preview party is Saturday night, Sept. 25, and the tour of homes and gardens will be held Sunday afternoon, Sept. 26, rain or shine.

The tour will feature several Cleveland Heights homes and gardens, showcasing a diverse array of architectural styles. For more information, call Heights Community Congress at 216-321-6775.

Sally Fahrenholz is a volunteer with Heights Community Congress.

C’est la vie: Good food. Good friends. Good times.

That’s the theme of this year’s benefit and auction to support RoxArts, a not-for-profit organization of parents and community members who share a common goal: to bring enhanced arts education to students at Roxboro Elementary and Middle schools in Cleveland Heights.

The annual fund-raiser will be held Friday, March 5, at 7 p.m. at the Heights Rockefeller Building (3101 Mayfield Road, at the corner of Mayfield and Lee roads) in Cleveland Heights. Party-goers will enjoy French food, drinks and live entertainment, while bidding on fine arts and jewelry by local artists, tickets to sporting events and museums, a vacation getaway and much more in silent and live auctions.

Without a doubt, Cleveland has made its mark on the culinary map. And while we may have an opportunity to occasionally dine at the most celebrated independent local restaurants; it's a rare treat when we can enjoy cuisine from more than 7 prominent chefs – all in one evening, at one event!

“This would meet many of our needs!” That was the sentiment of one of 30-plus attendees at a meeting to discuss community currency and exchange systems in the Heights. The Jan. 20 meeting, sponsored by FutureHeights and the Northeast Ohio American Friends Service Committee, addressed how a local complementary currency could help both area residents and small businesses who may be short on dollars but plentiful in goods, services or time. A community currency is a tool to facilitate exchanges of goods or services that otherwise wouldn’t take place.

You are invited to the League of Women Voters' First Thursdays speaker series featuring Ohio's Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner. The event is open to the public free of charge and is set for 7 to 9 p.m. Feb. 4 at Trinity Commons (The Art Gallery) at Trinity Cathedral, 2230 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland. There is free parking for attendees behind the Cathedral off Prospect Avenue.

Titled "A View From the Top," Brunner's talk will cover the collaborative effort across Ohio to reverse the trend in the state's administration of elections. She will share the highlights of three years in office and how the state worked to provide an efficient and successful 2008 Presidential Election, and continues to work on election reform with the state legislature.

Heights Community Congress (HCC), one of Cleveland Heights’ oldest nonprofit organizations, which works to eliminate housing discrimination and promote diversity and community engagement, is making some changes. Beginning January 2010, HCC will be located at The Rockefeller Center, 2475 Lee Boulevard, Suite 2G, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118. 

“We’re excited to relocate to a historical landmark, such as the Rockefeller,” says Kasey Greer, HCC Executive Director. “It’s a beautiful building that can only be found in a community like ours.” 

HCC was established in 1972 as an advocate of social justice, a monitor of fair housing and a facilitator of community building. To find out more about HCC, visit www.heightscongress.org or call 216-321-6775.

Heights Community Congress celebrated 37 years of work in fair housing, social justice and community building in November and presented its HCC Community Awards to Les Jones and the Cleveland Heights High School Performing Arts Team.

Happy Holidays! We’ve accomplished a lot in 2009 and we couldn’t have done it without you. Community support helped us achieve amazing growth. A year-end gift to the annual fund of any amount will be a tremendous help—allowing us to stay the course in 2010.

Here are a couple of great illustrations of just how your investment in FutureHeights empowers the community to tell their stories, get active and stay involved.

Heights business owners Dawn and Alex Quintana have found the Heights community spirit and FutureHeights shop local programs support their independent business in a tough economy.

 “When we relocated our business to Cleveland Heights we learned about FutureHeights and its fierce focus on supporting local merchants and educating the public on “buying local.” We believe the reason we are sustaining our business in a down economy is due to being part of a community that values us as a local business. FutureHeights programs, such as the Heights Observer, online auction and the Best of the Heights Awards, help build awareness and keep our business strong.”

Dawn and Alex Quintana, owners of Quintana’s Barber and Dream Spa

The shelves of the Heights Emergency Food Center are growling with hunger. Stock is dwindling. They are looking to YOU for canned goods and dry goods, baby food and diapers.

Updated application guidelines for Cuyahoga Arts and Culture’s two principal funding programs are now available on the Cuyahoga Arts and Culture (CAC) website (www.cacgrants.org). CAC General Operating Support (GOS) and Project Support (PS) guidelines, each presented as a separate document, detail for prospective applicants—and the broader community—the processes by which grant dollars will be distributed to arts and cultural organizations in 2011 and 2012.

FutureHeights, the nonprofit publisher of the Heights Observer, raised over $13,000 during its recent online auction.

"Auction revenues were about 20 percent lower than last year, but that was to be expected, given how tough times are now," said Board President Gina Cheverine. "We're grateful for the generosity of the community and the way they've embraced the work of FutureHeights, particularly the Heights Observer citizen newspaper. We're working hard to keep it going, and this money certainly helps our bottom line."

Its motto is "building global friendships" and Children’s International Summer Villages does just that. CISV, a nonprofit, nonpolitical volunteer organization, is also a unique youth travel program that promotes peace, education and cross-cultural friendships.

CISV’s Northeast Ohio Chapter will host an information meeting on Sunday, Dec. 6, at the Lee Road Library in Cleveland Heights. The meeting, which begins at 3 p.m., will provide an opportunity to learn more about travel opportunities for 2010 and meet local students who participated in recent trips and exchange programs with Spain, Brazil, Italy, Norway and Mexico.

PAWS was called when a kind woman found a sweet mother cat and her four young kittens. The mother cat has nursed her kittens to be big and strong and now it is time to find her forever home. Sugar is everything her name suggests...sweet as can be! She loves belly rubs or any other attention that can be lavished on this beautiful brown/orange tabby girl.  Sugar is up to date with routine vaccines, spayed, tested negative for FeLuk/FIV and litter box trained. Can't your home use a little sugar? If interested, please contact PAWS at 440-442-PAWS or visit www.pawsohio.org.

The Heights Observer will hold a Photography Workshop Wednesday, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. in Room A of the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road. It's the third in a series of workshops for people interested in volunteering for the Heights Observer or any other citizen journalism project.

Faith was found all alone in the woods behind a PAWS foster home. She was taken in and bottle-fed until she was ready to eat kitten food...and she has barely stopped for a breath! She is a fabulously cute grey tiger with a lot of spunk! Faith doesn't want to let a single second get away without giving it her all. She is litter-box trained and will be completely vetted ready to go to her forever home!If interested in Faith, please contact PAWS at 440-442-PAWS or visit www.pawsohio.org. Photo courtesy PAWS.

“We want everyone to think globally but shop locally to support the local economy this holiday season,” says Deanna Bremer Fisher. The executive director of FutureHeights is talking about Shop Around the Heights, a holiday shopping extravaganza presented by her organization, so that Heights residents can take advantage of shopping where they live.

Consumers can pick up a passport and shopping bag at one of several starting locations on Nov. 21 and shop from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Locations include the Brew N Bistro at Fairmount Circle, Macs Backs in Coventry Village, Appletree Books at Cedar Fairmount, Boommodern and Heights Arts Gallery in the Cedar-Lee area and Quintana’s Barber and Dream Spa in the Cedar-Taylor district.

On Dec. 11, 1918, the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra delivered a benefit performance at the historic Gray’s Armory for Saint Ann Church. Some of you may know the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra eventually evolved into the world-famous Cleveland Orchestra. However, most of you probably do not know that it was Father John Powers, pastor of Saint Ann Church, to whom, as Plain Dealer music critic James Rogers wrote at the time, “[Clevelanders] are indebted for this opportunity.”  Father Powers, according to Donald Rosenberg’s The Cleveland Orchestra Story, was instrumental (pun intended) in orchestrating (intended, again) this early version of our present-day Cleveland Orchestra.

The holidays are quickly approaching and what better way to show your holiday spirit than to purchase fair trade items? John Carroll University will host "Gifts That Give Twice," an annual fair trade holiday sale on Tuesday, Dec. 2 and Wednesday, Dec. 3 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on Sunday, Dec. 6 from 7 to 11:30 p.m in the Lombardo Student Center.

The pre-K class of Fairmount Cooperative Preschool enjoys a beautiful fall day at Forest Hill Park. Beverly Dobrea teaches the four-day-a-week pre-K class and field trips are a favorite way to enrich the curriculum. Photo by Christina Hidek.

If you drove on Monticello Road this summer, you might have noticed surprising new growth at Forest Hill Church in the form of tomatoes, peppers, cabbages, and dozens of vegetables and herbs.

Church members and friends planted and tended a new vegetable garden in the churchyard near the intersection of Lee Road and Monticello Boulevard. The volunteers harvested more than 300 pounds of fresh produce from the garden for visitors of the church's food pantry and the Heights Emergency Food Center.

With the economic crisis hitting the Cleveland area hard in early 2009, the timing was right for the church to engage in a sustainable project that creatively connects participants to each other, their neighbors, and the earth. More than 20 members volunteered to tend the garden regularly, and dozens more helped

 

Jack and Milo arrived at PAWS after their owner became ill and needed full-time medical care. Jack and Milo have been together since they were kittens and because we want them to stay together, we are offering a special adoption fee.Jack is a food nut! He is mischievous, lovable and sweet. He loves to have his face rubbed and rolls on his back from attention. Milo is a sweet, gentle curious boy who loves to observe the day's goings on from a perch. He, too, loves belly rubs. These boys do everything together: eat, play, sleep and groom. Could your home be their real forever home? Both have been neutered, tested negative, litter box trained and ready to go home! If interested, please contact PAWS at 440-442-PAWS or visit www.pawsohio.org.

The League of Women Voters Cuyahoga Area invites citizens to an informative program that analyzes the competing charter reform issues on the Nov. 3 ballot (Issue #5, #6). Join the League Thursday, Oct. 15, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland, 2728 Lancashire Road, Cleveland Heights.

The presentation spells out the key provisions in the proposed charter (Issue #6) and explains how those changes can improve county operations. It also describes the charter commission option (Issue #5) and why the League has determined that route is not needed.

For more information, including a list of other Charter Reform meetings, visit www.LWVCuyahogaArea.org.

The second annual Ride for Miles was held in September in memory of Professor Miles Coburn. More than 400 people registered to complete the 15-mile ride.

The League of Women Voters is presenting a 30-minute PowerPoint presentation on the Cuyahoga County Reform Initiative, Issue 6. The program will take place at 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 15, at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland, 2728 Lancashire Road, Cleveland Heights.

Situated in the Heights Rockefeller Building in Cleveland Heights, the nonprofit organization Facing History and Ourselves will open its nationally acclaimed interactive multimedia exhibit to the public on Oct. 22. The exhibit, "Choosing to Participate," will run through Feb. 26, 2010 at the Western Reserve Historical Society.

The organization, headquartered in Brookline, Massachusetts, produces classroom resources and educational strategies that promote student engagement, critical thinking, and a scholarly approach to the study of history. With nine offices in North America, and another in London, Facing History engages students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and anti-Semitism in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry.

Home Repair Resource Center has two special events in October to mark Financial Literacy Month.

“Maxed Out,” an award-winning documentary from James Scurlock that exposes the inner workings of the credit card industry will be shown at the Lee Road Library at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 8. Deemed “eye-opening and necessary” by the New York Press, “Maxed Out” paints a picture of a national nightmare.

Thinking about adding insulation or replacing doors and windows with more energy-efficient models? You can benefit from the new energy tax credits. Michael Higgins from the Ohio Department of Development will speak on “How to Reduce Energy Consumption: Energy Star Ratings and Energy Tax Credits” at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 29, at the Lee Road Library.

Volunteers are needed to spruce up the Coventry P.E.A.C.E. Park, located at the intersection of Euclid Heights Boulevard and Coventry Road, on Saturday, Oct. 10 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Each spring and fall Coventry P.E.A.C.E. organizes a day to clean the grounds and repair the playground equipment at the park. The nonprofit organization stands for People Enhancing a Child’s (now a Community’s) Environment and evolved from a Coventry Elementary School PTA group charged with rebuilding the Coventry School playground in 1991.

Heights Community Congress has decided to postpone the 2009 Heights Heritage Home and Garden Tour that was scheduled for September. This would have been the 34th annual tour and had been the organization’s largest fundraiser.

“It was one of the hardest decisions we’ve had to make,” said Executive Director Kasey Greer, “but it’s the right thing to do.” Greer said increased costs and anticipated lower revenues due to the weak economy drove the board’s decision.

The following letter was written by a Cleveland Heights woman. To protect her privacy, I refer to her as DA.

"I found a sizable lump in my right breast in January 2007. I was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer. I was devastated! My surgeon and oncologist told me that we must be aggressive because this type of cancer is fast-growing and invasive. Thus began my long journey battling this terrible disease. I didn’t know how drastically my life would change. I had coped with arthritis and fibromyalgia for years, and learned to live with these. I didn’t know how I could possibly live with CANCER!"

Meet Waldo and Gracie

Waldo is a VERY affectionate five month old male grey tux (kind of a unique kitty!) . He loves to cuddle in someone's lap and purr and rub. He is great with other cats and dogs and kids (including young kids). His best friend on the plant is Gracie, a three month old Calico girl. They are absolutely attached! Gracie is a quiet girl that loves to play...but her favorite thing to do is snuggle with Waldo. Both kittens have tested negative, are up to date with routine vaccinations, altered and litter box trained. If interested, please contact PAWS at 440-442-PAWS or visit www.pawsohio.org.

Magnolia Clubhouse, Inc., located in University Circle, is a community that creates opportunities for people with mental illness. Its mission is to ensure that people who have a mental illness are respected coworkers, neighbors and friends. Formerly known as Hill House, the clubhouse has promoted vocational, educational, social and personal achievement since 1961.

FutureHeights is accepting donations of new goods and services for its fifth annual online fundraiser, to be held from Oct. 16 through Nov. 15 this year.

"This annual fundraiser is a win-win for everyone," said Deanna Bremer Fisher, director of FutureHeights. "Local business donors receive terrific online presence throughout the auction's run and a tax deduction, bidders can snag some wonderful bargains for themselves or gifts for the holidays, and FutureHeights receives much needed funds to continue its work."

For more information and to donate online please visit: www.futureheights.cmarket.com or www.futureheights.org.  Or call 216-320-1423.

FutureHeights is the publisher of the nonprofit Heights Observer community newspaper.

 “Feature Writing 101,” a free workshop for citizen journalists, will be held 9:30-11:30 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 26 at the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road.

The workshop, hosted by the Heights Observer and FutureHeights, is the third in a series designed to help people who want to foster discussion of community issues by writing for the Heights Observer or any other citizen journalism project. The prior sessions focused on newswriting skills. It’s not necessary to have attended either of the previous sessions.

The Heights Observer bid goodbye to summer interns Jeremy Hebebrand and Kaitlin Bushinski this month.

"Jeremy and' Kaitlin not only wrote and edited stories for the paper," said FutureHeights Executive Director and Heights Observer Publisher Deanna Bremer Fisher, "they also contributed to the professionalism of our fledgling publication. They created guidelines for business profiles, kept an interns' blog, which will benefit future interns, and helped us move forward technologically."

Hebebrand returns to Kent State University where he is a senior majoring in Magazine Journalism.

Bushinski, who graduated from Oberlin College in May, is moving to Morgantown, West Virginia where she will free lance for local papers with the hopes of landing a permanent journalism position.

The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes will host its “Mixer on the Marsh” on Thursday, September 3, from 6 to 8 p.m.

The center will host a progressive cocktail party through its various habitats, including a flood plain, prairie, upland forest and marsh.

The evening includes hors d’oeuvres, wine and beer and live music. Food and drink will be provided by Lopez, Olde Saratoga Brewing Company, Croquette Patisserie and Fresh Market. Live music will be provided by local musicians J.T. Lynch and Vaughn & Company. 

Thank you all! Thanks to each and every one of you who rose to the challenge and donated generously to the FutureHeights Seeds of Community Campaign 2009.

FutureHeights raised $15,310.17 and the $15,000 challenge grant has been awarded for a grand total of $30,310.17.

Thanks for supporting FutureHeights' efforts to build strong citizens and promote community collaboration through the Heights Observer, volunteer activities and a host of issues-oriented public events and forums.

Your thoughtful investment enables us to continue on our work. And for that we are most grateful.

Didn't contribute yet? It's not too late. FutureHeights accepts tax-deductible donations all year long. Visit our Web site www.futureheights.org to make your contribution.

Heights Community Congress continues its dialogue series with two upcoming programs focusing on "Reengaging the American Dream." These community discussions are part of HCC’s broader series "Perception vs. Reality: How do we talk about race, class and in diversity in our community?"

"Reengaging the American Dream" examines our country’s vision for itself and the different ways in which that vision is defined in the nation's past, present and future.

The programs, hosted by the Cuyahoga County Public Library, will be held on Thursday, Aug. 20 at the Parma Heights Branch and on Thursday, Aug. 27 at the Brook Park Branch. Both programs begin at 6:30 p.m.

On a humid Tuesday afternoon in July, Doug Freer, owner of Lawn Lad, and his crew are mowing a client’s lawn, fertilizing, and cleaning up some of the landscaping. It’s a typical day on the job except this University Heights client won’t be paying for her lawn care services.

Freer and his company are enrolled in a program called “Green Care,” an initiative of Project Evergreen, a nonprofit organization whose mission is “to preserve and enhance green space in our communities for today and future generations.” 

Green Care goes beyond creating tidy lawns. It connects  families of servicemen and women with lawn contractors, like Freer, who agree to provide free lawn care while their spouses are deployed.

When Ray Gonzalez, ACSW, LISW-S, started the nonprofit Planned Lifetime Assistance of Northeast Ohio in 1989, the conventional service model was for individuals needing mental health care to visit a mental health care clinic. PLAN was founded as a grassroots organization, developed by families and staff who wanted something different than this traditional model.

"PLAN's holistic home-based approach," Gonzalez says, "provides the tools necessary to allow hundreds of our members [PLAN's term for clients] living with mental challenges, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression, to achieve enduring emotional and cognitive recovery."

Carrie Claspy and her daughters, Anna and Maggie, work to replant the hostas purchased from the FutureHeights auction and donated to the Big Dig at Noble Elementary School. Mark your caldenar for the 2009 FutureHeights online auction, Oct. 16 through Nov. 15. Photo Credit Mazie Adams.

Whole Foods Market will present a late summer series of weekly Giving Grill events at its University Heights location to celebrate summer with healthy meas that are good for customers and the community. Giving Grills will occur on Thursdays from 5 to 7 p.m, outside the store’s main entrance.

Customers will pay a flat $5 donation and receive a grilled meal pack that includes a choice of protein (meat or vegan), side snack (fruit, chip, or potato salad) and beverage (water or soft drink). Whole Foods Market will grill and prep the meals while customers wait. Whole Foods will donate 100 percent of the proceeds from the events to local community groups.

Don't miss this final opportunity to double your community impact.

The deadline to match ALL dollars raised, up to $15,000, is midnight tonight, July 15. So far FutureHeights has raised over $14,667 from people from every neighborhood and every walk of life.

If you have been waiting to donate now is the time.  We need $333 to reach our goal and every dollar counts!

Please take this moment to click your mouse in support of FutureHeights, one of the Heights' most active and efficient nonprofit organizations, and the publisher of the Heights Observer.

Give and get something in return: the satisfaction that your gift supports a 100 percent local effort to make something good even better.*

Support the Heights Observer. You’ll be glad you did.

Donate online at Network For Good.

“You Too Can Write the News,” a free workshop for citizen journalists, will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 15, in Meeting Room A of the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road. This is a repeat event of the workshop, which was first held in May.

The workshop, hosted by the Heights Observer and FutureHeights, is the first in a series designed to help people who want to foster discussion of community issues by writing in the Heights Observer or any other citizen journalism project.

Topics covered in the workshop are vital reporting skills and techniques to make the writing process fast and easy. They are comparable to those taught in college-level journalism courses.

What the world needs now, is you! Help build intercultural understanding by sharing your home and daily life with an AFS high school exchange student. Our local AFS area team has committed to placing five more students on the east side of Cleveland by July 31, 2009. More than 10,000 students are exchanged each year through AFS, formerly the American Field Service, a volunteer ambulance corps in WWI and WWII. AFS students arrive in early August eager to experience what it's like to live as a member of an American family and community while attending local high schools for a semester or the school year.

“We can’t travel the world with our daughters,” Larry Sollisch, a current AFS host dad in Cleveland Heights said, "so by hosting and meeting all the AFS students we have been able to, literally, bring the world to our home which has given our family a greater understanding of many different cultures of the world. Our daughters have formed lifelong friendships with their AFS sisters."

Cosmo (black boy) and LuciLu (black and white girl) are nine month old siblings. Found in a dumpster, they were scared of humans at first, but have come a long way. Cosmo is still cautious, but loves being with his friendly sister. They just can't wait to find their forever home. To keep them together PAWS will adopt out both cats for the cost of one. Won't you give these two the love they truly deserve? Contact the Public Animal Welfare Society of Ohio at 440-442-PAWS or www.pawsohio.org.

Heights Parent Center honored Susan Scheps with the 2009 Carolyn Grossman Award during its annual gala benefit, “A Night Under the Stars,” at the Great Lakes Science Center in May.

Scheps, the youth services manager of the Shaker Heights Public Library, won the award for her extraordinary commitment to families and children.

More than 175 participants and friends of the center enjoyed the live music of Vinyl Replay, from the Jam Session School in Kent, and the center's live auction of donated items conducted by Steve Presser of Big Fun on Coventry. Everyone had BIG FUN! 

The center raised over $13,000 to support its family literacy programs for parents and their young children. The center thanks its guests, sponsors and silent auction donors for their support. See www.heightsparentcenter.org for details.

Community volunteers and FutureHeights are planting the seeds of community--and you can help them grow. Every dollar you donate to FutureHeights--by July 15--will be matched by an anonymous benefactor, dollar-for-dollar, up to $15,000!

Your donation today cultivates healthy, sustainable neighborhoods in the Heights through

• The Heights Observer--The East Side's number one nonprofit citizen-written, neighborhood news source serves Cleveland Heights and University Heights and links citizens to resources, to information and to one another. Over 9,000 copies are distributed monthly by volunteers, and heightsobserver.org provides online access to the local news you need to know.
• Town Meetings and online forums like the annual Cleveland Heights State of the City address allow citizens to talk about important issues and exchange ideas.
• Volunteer opportunities--There are more than 400 citizens who give their time and talent as FutureHeights volunteers.
• The Best of Cleveland Heights Awards and Shop Local campaign--Supporting our vibrant, diverse independent business community helps strengthen the local economy.

The Officer Jason West Memorial Scholarship Fund is getting major support from a popular area restaurant. The Bodega restaurant and lounge at 1854 Coventry Road in Cleveland Heights, is sponsoring the Jason D. West Fund Raiser on Sunday, June 7 from 7 p.m. to 2:15 a.m.  

The fund raiser will include a complimentary buffet, $2 draft, $5 sangria, $5 cosmos, and $4 wine. Fifty percent of the evening's profit will be donated to the scholarship fund.

On August 29 Jillian's Billiard Club & Cafe, 12459 Cedar Road, will host a fun-filled night to raise money for the United Services Organization, a nonprofit that provides morale and recreational services to the U.S. armed forces. The USO seeks corporate sponsors and volunteers to help make the event a success. For $2,000, for example, a donor will receive tickets plus a full page ad in the program.

The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes will hold its 2009 Summer Benefit on Saturday, June 20 at the center in Shaker Heights. This year’s theme, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," challenges partygoers to adopt "good" earth-friendly practices instead of clinging to "evil" unsound environmental habits.

Based on John Berendt’s best-selling book, the evening is designed to evoke the charm of Savannah, Georgia—Southern hospitality with a touch of cheeky fun. The parking lot will be transformed into the perfect setting for a garden gala. The event begins at 6 p.m. with cocktails and a silent auction, followed by dinner (catered by Sammy’s), a live auction and dancing under the stars to music provided by the Special Request band.

Walk, run, have fun at the 19th annual A Most Excellent Race on June 28! Beginning and ending at Beaumont School, 3301 North Park Boulevard, A Most Excellent Race features a 10K run, 5K run and 5K walk. Proceeds benefit the Achievement Centers for Children’s Camp Cheerful.

For more information or to register, visit www.achievementcenters.org or call 216-292-9700, ext. 226.

Beautiful Natalie is a 1-2 year old petite Russian Blue Mix.  She has not had an easy road in life.  First, she was abandoned very pregnant in the back yard of a young woman with disabilities who was told to get rid of the cat or lose her home. This poor woman was left without a choice. A few days later Natalie gave birth to three kittens; only two survived. PAWS was called and took in Natalie with her two surviving kittens. Natalie's kittens have found new homes, now this sweet, beautiful girl is looking for that special someone who couldn't dream of letting her go.

Charles Michener, a former senior editor at Newsweek and The New Yorker magazines, will present the keynote address at FutureHeights' annual meeting tonight, Wednesday, June 10, at the Heights Rockefeller Building.

Michener’s talk, "Can Cleveland Heights Save Cleveland? Lessons from an Inner Ring Suburb to its Ailing Parent," will focus on civic engagement.